long way out

30 to 31 may 2008, taipei

2008-09-07T11:46:00.005+08:00

a summary of our route

士林夜市

sealing up the freshly baked 太阳饼

taipei 101 - i remembered Cher told me that the colors of this tower changes everyday.
yes, it's friday today.

Day	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
Colour

28 to 30 may 2008, hualien (花莲)

2008-09-07T11:21:00.013+08:00

九曲洞步道

car accident that happened almost a week ago

绿水步道

visit Taroko National Park (太鲁阁) if you are in hualien.
start with this trail, 白杨步道. total 4km walk (to and fro) with several tunnel passings. i loved the beautiful rock formations and the water curtains (水帘洞).

26 to 28 may 2008, kending (垦丁)

2008-09-07T11:14:00.004+08:00

25 to 26 may 2008, kaohsiung (高雄)

2008-09-07T11:10:00.004+08:00

another night market

爱河

24 to 25 may 2008, tainan

2008-09-07T10:57:00.006+08:00

shuffle and pick 15 tiles from the pile.
form a straight line and you get to pick any of their big soft toys.

catch some fish

the biggest night market in taiwan - 花園夜市. so much to see, eat and play.

23 to 24 May 2008, alisan (阿里山)

2008-09-07T10:19:00.008+08:00

trekking up to the nearby 祝山 at 4.30am

we missed the last bus (2.10pm) to alisan. so we negotiated with an old lady for a taxi ride up. cant remember how much we paid for, probably around NT 2300 for a one-way taxi cum room stay.
alishan is a popular destination to see its sun rise. most of the accommodations were priced double and are fully booked on fridays and saturdays.

22 to 23 may 2008, sun moon lake (日月潭)

2008-09-07T09:29:00.003+08:00

taichi/qigong?

stayed at a 民宿 owned by an old couple. the room was beautifully furnished and cost about NT 1000/night for a triple room.
chatted with the owner for a bit while he chewed on 槟榔. he generously offered us some of it from his packet. his mandarin carried a bit of a hokkien accent and honestly, i enjoyed hearing him speak.
he told us that the peak season in taiwan is around jul to aug. and through his wife, we booked the half day morning ferry tickets to see the lake. their price was cheaper than the ticket booths.

make full use of a digital camera to save time on taking down details. hee...
this is a daily departure train schedule from 水里. served as a useful reference for our next day departure. from 水里, its a 45 mins bus ride to sun moon lake.

21 to 22 may 2008, jiji (集集)

2008-09-07T08:21:00.011+08:00

camera set on timer. hee...

ran over

honey bees for you?

impact of the earthquake - a damaged temple

on our way to Sun Moon Lake, we made a stopover at Jiji, a small village that is abt 1.5 hours train ride away from Taichung. checked into a 民宿 for about NT1000/night (approx SGD 50) for a triple room. after a good rest, we set off in the early morning to cycle around the village.

here, one can still see the damage of the 921 earthquake (also known as the Chi-chi or Jiji earthquake) that occurred on 21 September 1999 in central Taiwan at 1:47 am and measured 7.6 on the Richter scale.

19 to 21 may 2008, taipei

2008-09-06T21:02:00.014+08:00

sk won a piece of candy at the end of this game. hee...

huge watermelons

at a night market (饶河夜市) : me, Anny, Brian, Cher and jza theme restaurant at 西门町 - one sits on a toilet bowl and eat from a "toilet bowl".

CKS memorial

parliament house

龙山寺

waiting for a city bus at taipei airport

we were glad to see that sk's grandmother was recovering when we returned home.

took some time to rest and catch up with family and friends. indulged in weekly mahjong games and the comfort of having no rush to do anything.

after about 1 month, we, together with jz, bought 2 weeks return plane tickets to taiwan.
on our first night in taipei, Anny and Cher brought us to a good place to have "甜不辣". it's a very special dish with bean curd skins, rice cake with some kind of red sweet soup.

after the meal, we met Brian at Cher's place and we talked till late before we get to bed. the next morning, Anny and Cher brought us to a good place for a simple but tasty breakfast... fried pan cakes and soya bean milk at a small eatery. in taiwan, everywhere is good food and friendly people.

22 to 24 apr 2008, ho chi minh city

2008-04-25T21:48:00.000+08:00

feels good to be back in a familiar place again. we went back to the same guesthouse bcos of the aircon and satellite TV. the owner is a nice man too. sadly, he has a son who is autistic and he desperately wants his son to receive medical treatment in singapore. i got him the address to consult a representative from a Singapore hospital but they told him that his son is too old for medical treatment. a school would be a better option. i hope he can find help really soon. his great love for his son can be felt when he told me that he is willing to sell his house for his son to get better. sigh...

we had a good time "rotting" in HCMC. i made a pair of spectacles which was ready in a few hours and it cost only 10 euros.

20 to 22 apr 2008, dalat

2008-04-25T21:46:00.001+08:00

ran over

students

nice cool weather at dalat. didnt do much here... just walk around the long Xuan Huong river and the market area.

sk phoned back home and realised that his grandma was quite ill so we cancelled our bus tickets to Hoi An and return to HCMC to fly back home instead.

17 to 20 apr 2008, ho chi minh city

2008-04-25T21:38:00.001+08:00

tapioca was the main staple during those days. our guide showed us how to cook and eat a tapioca. they were starchy and tasty.

one of the taller tunnels

steps to the long tunnel

our guide demonstrated how this piece of wood (with sharp rusty nails) will fly onto anyone who opens the door

booby traps

no problem entering but navigating underground was tough work. we ended up sweating doing squat walks through a few metres...

Cu-chi tunnel model - how the vietnamese fought the war against the U.S.

the process of making a beautiful art work

a chinese 妈祖 temple, similar to the Thian Hock temple in Singapore

we were finally back in vietnam again, where we first started our "long way out".

the traffic in Ho chi minh city (aka HCMC) is crazy. to cross the road, one has to walk carefully and just walk. though the motorbikes travel in all directions, they will slow down and bike around u.

we joined a half day tour to Cu Chi Tunnel on one day and met abt 300 singaporeans there. they were there on a company trip. how coincident.

overall, we had a good time in HCMC. the people there were nice and friendly like the cambodians.

14 to 17 apr 2008, phnom penh

2008-04-25T21:16:00.001+08:00

waiting for our turn to get on the car-ferry to vietnam

singapore flag

clothes left by the dead

Cheung Ek killing field - the truck stopped here with victims transported from Tuol Seng prison and other places. they were to be exterminated here.

a cubicle cell

Tuol Seng Museum

had a very bad sore throat. then from flu, came cough, then fever and diarrhoea. tried to follow sk not to take pills. it took a long time to recover but i did recover eventually.

came to phnom penh to see the Tuol Seng Musuem and Cheung Ek killing field. the former was previously a prison to hold prisoners during Khmer Rouge. the latter was the place where the prisoners were sent to for execution. there were probably a thousands skulls kept in the memorial tower. most have fractured skulls and bullet wounds. cycling in phnom penh was easier than siem reap. roads were smooth. while cycling, some kids on the street threw water bombs at us. it was their new year and it is the time where they throw water and powder on each other to clean them of their sins.

there is a cheap chinese restaurant 东北菜馆 near our guesthouse and we patronised them everyday. one plate of stir fry vegetable cost only usd 1. according to the young lady boss, she had put on 25kg after moving to phnom penh.

11 to 14 apr 2008, siem reap

2008-04-16T13:23:00.000+08:00

motor ride to the bus station

Ta Prohm

mobile sugar cane drink

Bayon

care for an elephant ride?

Angkor Temples

performers outside a pharmacy celebrating the New Year.

market

a bigggg 3D advertisment

but thanks to this man, he stopped his car to help fix our taxi

our taxi broke down...

finally arrived at Cambodia

thai-cambodia border at chong chom didnt ask for "stamp" fee too but the taxi to siem reap was overpriced. they wanted us to pay usd 100 for the taxi where travelers only paid usd 30 for one recently. a dutch couple paid 2000b (usd 65) for the taxi and we paid usd 30 to share one with them. it took us 3 hours to bring the price down. the taxi driver told us to keep mum about it. sigh...

the ride to siem reap was bumpy and dusty. there were no road signs on the way. we arrived in siem reap with a sore throat probably bcos of the crackers that we ate and the dry air in the taxi.

in siem reap, there were many japanese and koreans shops and guesthouses. we checked into one of the japanese guest house bcos of the cheap price. only usd 2 a night for a dormitory bed.

we spent one day cycling to and around the Angkor Temples. a day's rental of a bicycle is USD 2. although the road was bumpy and we were under the mercy of the scorching sun, it was great fun to make that effort. 3 litres of water, some sweet drinks and bread were sufficient to last us the whole journey which started at 6.30 am and finished around 3pm.

10 to 11 apr 2008, surin

2008-04-16T13:18:00.000+08:00

the lao-thai border at chong mek didnt ask for "stamp" fee. hehe...

as compared to laos, thailand is much cleaner and easy to travel. we changed many buses just to get to surin so that we can cross border to cambodia in the early morning the next day. surin is a quite a big town but not many travelers. hard to find a place to sleep too. we only saw 2 cheap hotels that night. we checked into one that gave us a discount, only 150b per night.

9 to 10 apr 2008, voen kham (lao customs wants stamping money)

2008-04-16T13:06:00.000+08:00

offered bbq frogs for snacks. this boy looks like little marcus. heheh...

bus from tadlo to the bus station

we left tadlo early in the morning to catch a bus down south to voen kham, the lao border, where we can cross over to cambodia. we changed to a big truck which was packed with people with no room for body and leg movement. one norwegian guy almost fainted. the 4 hours journey was full of yellow sand, dust and dirt. everyone on the truck were covered with yellow brown sand. we were asked to alight the truck and hop on to a motorbike which will send us to the border.

we arrived at the border at 2pm (which was still within the office hours) but the customs officer asked us for a usd 1 "stamp" fee. we refused to give, saying that we dont have to pay any money cos we dont need visa. the same applies if they come to singapore. the officers immediately put our passports aside and refused to stamp them. they asked us to go to the atm or bank to withdraw money. travelers passing thru both borders said that cambodian customs on the other side asked for the same amount of "stamp" fee too. they were too much, just want to rip travelers off. a french couple gave in after a while but sk and i decided to go back to pakse and think of what to do after that. we paid a van driver usd 20 to get us back.

when we arrived at pakse, we checked into a chinese guesthouse, took our dinner there and that was the only meal that we had for the day. the girl working there was from the same province (anhui) as my grandmother.

7 to 9 apr 2008, tadlo

2008-04-16T13:02:00.000+08:00

toddlers watching their bigger brothers jump

kids having a good time jumping off this waterfall

kids pumping water from underground.

after a swim in the nearby mini waterfall, sk and i walked around tadlo to see the beauty of the place

arrived in tadlo - these kids had a good time playing outside our hut.

a small village market

trying hard to make a living by getting people to buy from them

these turkeys were tied up for sale in a village market

a common sight if you travel in the local buses in Laos - peddlars wait by the road side under the hot sun for buses to stop so that they can hop on and sell some food and drinks in exchange for a living.

jason (my bro's friend) recommended us to come to this place. indeed, this is a nice village with waterfalls. some small ones and a big one 10km away from the village. as we were running short of kips, we didnt get to the biggest waterfall. just walked around the village to swim in those small waterfalls with the local children. it was cool. food and accomodation is cheaper than town too. only sgd 3 for a guesthouse and sgd 1 for a plate of fried rice.

5 to 7 apr 2008, savannakhet

2008-04-16T12:59:00.000+08:00

this was the only church we saw in savannakhet. looks like it has been there for some time.

in Vientiane, the river runs dry but over here, we still see a bit of water.

i accidentally chew on one of this small chilli fried together into my plate of rice and then i just cant stop my tears cos its too hot!

savannakhet is a quiet town but is a key transport hub to the Southern Laos, Pakse and 4,000 islands. there were only a few travelers at that time. we approached a belgian for some directions. he has moved there 2 years ago and has opened a restaurant and convenience store. the guesthouse that he recommended was a good catch, about 2 km walk from the bus station.

3 to 5 apr 2008, vientiane

2008-04-05T21:13:00.000+08:00

see what we have done to mother nature... a dry Mekong.

a local school

after about 5km of walking under the hot sun, we finally arrived at That Luang, said to be the holiest stupa in Laos built in 1566.

locals having a good time chatting and drinking at the cafe right below the monument

Anousavari Monument - A triumphal arch built in 1962 for the people who died in wars defending the country.

Lao coffee

Vientiane, the capital city of Laos. it looked quite neat and easy to walk around. there is a huge morning market called Talat Sao. one can shop there the whole morning for anything that you want. i bought a water boiling tube for 10,000 kip (Sgd1.50) and some toiletries there.

the popular guest houses were mostly full by mid day so one has to spend some time scouting around. i noticed that most of the eating stalls charged a 3,000kip (sgd0.50) mark-up if you are not a local. there were also many chinese people who set up businesses in this capital city. u can find most of them in the chinatown street.

in Laos, one has to definitely try the Laos beer. sk and i loved it a lot. as for Lao coffee, it's quite strong and sweet but good enough for a morning starter.

31 mar to 3 apr 2008, Vang Vieng Organic Farm in Phoudindaeng

2008-04-05T20:46:00.000+08:00

join the locals for a ride...

zzzz

"organic" piglets in the farm. wahaha...

organic vegetables

Namsong river - many people do tubing here whereby you sit on a rubber tyre and the river current will bring you to the town which is 3 km away

we eat this twice a day cos it's the main course on the menu.
organic fried rice - 12,000kip (= sgd 2)

frequent bus schedule onward to Vientiane. take a bus instead of a pick up cos it drops you 10km outside the town area.

so far, this is the place that i liked most in Laos. i really adore Mr Thi, the owner of this farm. he and his wife were very humble people. they work all day and if you dont ask, you will not know that they are the owners. they are very hands-on and looked like any of the workers hired there.

Mr Thi has the spirit that most people might not have. he does his best to fund the schools there so that children can learn english. they have a school bus contributed by the koreans to improve the school attendance.

while staying with them, one can easily get started with volunteering. you can help in building mud brick houses, teach english, feed the pigs and goats, farm and field work for the crops or help out in their fruit juice bar. there was one night we went to the english youth centre to assist the youths in learning english for one hour. they were so keen in learning that i have to say that i got confused with the use of some of the words myself until the main teacher corrected us. hehe...

on another afternoon, i dragged sk with me to do some weeding for the vegetables at the farm. although he had always prefered feeding and playing with the animals, i think he did enjoy the results after we finished weeding for the asparagus crop.

when asked about organic farming, Mr Thi said that it is not difficult to start organic farming and that it would be good if more people can practise that. to keep pests away, lizards, birds and toads will do the job. Mr Thi also grew some plants in between the crops which keep pests away.
he says that pests can never be eliminated totally. there will always be some damage done but so long as the harvest is enough for consumption, there is no need to worry too much about the damage.

i would highly recommend anyone who is interested in organic farming to come stay with them. it cost around 30,000 kip per night (SGD4) to stay in a dorm. they have single or double rooms too and it's just 3hours bus ride away from Vientiane.

30 to 31 mar 2008, Luang Prabang

2008-04-05T20:39:00.001+08:00

an air con bus to Vang Vieng but the air con doesn't work.

daily night bazaar at L. Prabang

dead. a dog ate this up after the photo was taken...

walk into the village through this motorway. it's free

the "toll" station below charges 4,000 kip per person to use this crossing. my advise is: don't use this crossing cos there is another free way to enter.

fighter cock

dried chilli

arrived here in at 3am after a 15 hours bus journey round hills and mountains. our face were covered with dirt. haha...

the guy at the guest house was so nice to take us in with no charge for that night. so after a shower, we slept right away.

L. Prabang is a tourist place. we had a nice village walk just across the river. there were some local women there charging 4,000 kip per person for crossing into the village via a bridge. it was by chance that we found another bridge used mainly by cars into that village and it saved us the kip. hehe...

the daily night market sells some pretty handicrafts and good cotton T-shirts. we bought 2 at only 35,000 kip (= SGD 5). as compare to Chiang Mai, this one gets you bored easily as all the stalls sell almost the same thing but i really liked their handicrafts though.

28 to 29 mar 2008, Huay Xai (thai-laos border crossing)

2008-04-05T20:25:00.000+08:00

most of the time, buses will add stools on the aisle so that passengers can rest their feet

bus terminal

children at school

kids having fun

long tail boat across the Mekong river to get to Huay Xai

buy boat tickets to Huay Xai

we took a bus from Mae Chan to Chiang Rai, stopped over for breakfast, then continued the bus journey to Chiang Khong where we could take a small boat to Laos across the Mekong River. we've heard that crossing the border during non-office hours will require some "fees" paid to the officials. we tried to avoid that by crossing the border in a Friday afternoon. it was easy crossing through here. the boat ride was only 3 mins to get to laos. travelers take note, the money changer at this Laos customs has the best rates offered in the whole of Laos. so, please change some money here before you move on. there is no ATM here though.

there is nothing much in Huay Xai so we left the next day to Luang Prabang. instead of taking a boat, we bought bus tickets from a travel agent. the travel agent said that we have to reserve tickets the day before, it is an Air-con bus and the bus station is 10km away from the town. the next day, we realised that we were duped. the bus station was only 2km away (where we could have walked there) and that the bus was a local bus with no air-con and there were no reservations made at all. the man who drove us to the bus station bought the tickets right on the spot and it cost only 140,000kip per person. the travel agent charged us 196,000 kip per person for arranging only a pick up service. oh, i learned my mistake. :p

26 to 28 mar 2008, Mae Chan

2008-04-05T20:12:00.000+08:00

thailand, myanmar and laos

ah pon's uncle drove us to the golden triangle

a view of myanmar from thailand

climb up to have a peek of myanmar"tok-kay" - a very common kind of reptile in this region. they got their name from the sound they gave. can you see the difference in size with the lizard on its right?

at their village, these banana leaves were collected and sold to smokers who use them as a wrap

anthony, ah pon, sk, ah moon and me having green mangoes. dip them in prawn paste and eat non-stop

ah yai and ah noi

food market at mae chan

termite's nest

we were supposed to leave Thaton for Mai Sai (Thai and Myanmar border) but we didn't make it on that day. for we met a Singaporean man, Anthony, on the same Saengthaew (pick up) with us. he is living in Mae Chan with his Thai wife, An Pon. it was when they spoke in Cantonese that we inquire where they come from. it was around 3.30pm when we arrived in Mae Chan and Anthony told us to put up one night at his place in the village and take a Saengthaew to Mae Sai the day after. we gladly took up the offer.

Both he and An Pon were very nice people. they knew almost everyone in the village. they told us stories while we have green mangoes together. lovely!

the next morning, An Pon's uncle took us on a day trip with them to Mae Sai and The Golden Triangle. at night, we had dinner at his uncle's place. their relatives living in nearby houses came by and drink through the night. amazing people. An Pon always says that living in the village is so different than in the city. people know and talk to each other. u wont see people talking to themselves in the streets. and one may not have to spend a single cent on some days for everyone grows vegetables and fruits in their land. Before I leave, An Pon handed me some basil seeds to grow them in Singapore. i hope i can do that.

24 to 26 mar 2008, thaton

2008-03-30T22:27:00.000+08:00

this statue looked real. sk and i had to touch it to be convinced that this is not real.

a view of Thaton from a hilltop temple

she probably belonged to the Akha tribe. she had wanted to sell us some of her handicrafts but ended up being invited to take a photo with us. she put on this hat for sk to make him look nicer in this picture.

he smiled after i dug out an oreo cookie for him

he cried when sk had only enough milo bars for his sisters...

collecting water from a public tap

this lady was extremely friendly as she gladly allowed us to take a few photos of her. she was weaving a cotton top, similar to what she was wearing. they do this all day to make a living.

they belong to a tribe called Long neck Karen, originating from Burma (Myanmar). some whom we talked to were living in Thailand for 1.5 years to 15 years. it was said that they get to receive a bit of money through the entrance fee.

we were greeted by this "Lahu" tribe ah ma to buy some scarves and bags from her. she kept saying 100块 100 块, which meant 100bhat 100 bhat.

Lahu tribe - they wear big earrings and are originated from Tibet.

walking down a paved road to the karen village...

on a sangtheaw to the karen village

one travel agent told us that Thaton is a good place to see long necked karen tribe as it is not as touristic as Mae Hong San. so we took a 4 hours public bus from chiang mai to get here. from here, it is easy to reach the karen village which is 16km away and the entrace fee is 250 bhat.

i like Thaton for it is a small quiet town, just about 1km long. we stayed in a guesthouse where we were the only guests there for both nights. according to the owner, Kwan, the peak season had ended and not many tourists come by here anyway. she will be closing the guesthouse after the songkran festival (mid april) till sep and then reopen from oct to mar. she only opens 6 months each time. such good fortune. hee...

anyway, over there, we experienced a big rain one day. it was raining big cubes of ice for a few minutes. i felt slight pain when it hit me. a monk offered us to take shelter in his place. many houses were damaged and the whole town was quiet at 8pm cos everyone closed their shops to stay home.

23 to 24 mar 2008, chiangmai

2008-03-30T22:17:00.000+08:00

this girl resembled little yan yee

a beautiful path that leads to a hotel/resort

this monk was a great draw to the dogs

blind performers at the sunday night bazaar

buy or not to buy

work in progress

100% orange juice

an unusual wat (temple) made of bamboo.

took an overnight VIP bus to chiang mai. it was a double decker bus. the seats upstairs were full so we were seated downstairs just next to the toilet. so, we can always smell the urine stench from the toilet whenever the door opens. and it just so happened that many people were using it during the journey. haha...

chiangmai's weather was cool in the night. we were just in time for the sunday night bazaar. it was a long stretch of stalls (hundreds of them), thousands of people and so many things to see and buy. one will not see many repeats in the things that they sell (which is good cos it wont bore u so much) and u can just walk until midnight and still find the stalls interesting. i bought a hair band for 5 bhat (sgd 0.20) and a wooden handicraft bracelet for 29 bhat (sgd 1.50).

the guest house that we stayed with was not too bad, except there were bed bugs and i was bitten quite badly. :(

20 to 22 mar 2008, ayuthaya (the old city of ruins)

2008-03-22T13:41:00.000+08:00

these guys were carefully inspecting the buddha pendants from a seller.

a busy market

devotees applying tiny strips of gold paper onto the buddha statue

one of the temple ruins in Ayuthaya

took 2 local buses to get to ayuthaya from kanchanaburi. it was a hot day and the same thing we did was to get a shower after we found a place to crash. Toto guesthouse is super clean. i cant even find an ant on the floor when i checked in.

we spent the whole day cycling around town yesterday to see the ruins. its the best way to see all the sights listed on the map and it only cost 30thb to rent the bicycle from morning till evening. i really enjoyed the whole cycling trip with sk though we had to make several U-turns as the road names on the map were not up to date.

now, sk and i are sun dried with reddish brown skin. one guy even asked if i am from the philippines! :p i could only remember the tasty sweet 7D mangoes and san miguel beer from there.

for my dad... i had some pineapples a few days ago and my, they tasted as sweet as before when i first came to chiangmai with you and bro some 14 years ago. you were the one who convinced me into trying, remember?

17 to 20 mar 2008, kanchanaburi

2008-03-19T20:42:00.000+08:00

remnants of the death railway (thailand-burma)

tiger cubs

the war cemetry

a view from our raft house

3 hrs train ride from bangkok. wondered why we have to pay 100 thb for a ticket while the locals pay 25 thb.

anyway, kanchanaburi is another nice place for me. we checked into a rafthouse (150 thb per room) by the kwai river. it is very cheap i thought, compared to the hostels in europe. its a whole lot of price difference! :p

one day we went to the famous tiger temple to get close up photos with the tame tigers. the tigers were cared for by the monks since they were cubs. so there is no worry when one gets to sit next to the tigers for photo shooting. they were almost like pets instead of the notorious types that we have seen on animal planet. they might have been very well fed before they were brought out to meet the visitors. oh, if you want to enter this place, please bear in mind not to wear red, pink and orange or sleeveless shirts. otherwise, you will be asked to buy one of their t-shirts at the entrance for 300 thb.

the next day, we went to see the death railway (thailand-burma). as many as 100,000 POWs have died there trying to complete the 415km railway in 20 months with pre-historic tools. no machines at all. they were overworked up to 18 hours a day and underfed with rice and salted vegetables and the occasional maggot-filled meat. living conditions were just as bad.

16 mar 2008, bangkok

2008-03-19T20:39:00.000+08:00

the famous Khao San road for party goers
the four faced buddha

thought this student is a beginner in saxophone, i can see that he put in lots of effort to play it well

took a 3 1/2 hrs ferry from koh tao to chumphorn and then took a night bus to bangkok.

went to chatuchak market and met Vuttisak for dinner. this time round, we stayed in a guesthouse in khao san road (said to be the foreigner's clubbing paradise). it was huge party at night. for those who like to drink and party, here is the place to come...

10 to 15 mar 2008, singapore-hatyai-koh tao

2008-03-19T20:24:00.000+08:00

thanks to our neighbour who left us a float before they left... see sk floating on it?

relaxing with a game of texas holdem at the balcony of a rented bungalow on Sai Ree beach

the night ferry to koh tao

i dont know why but i just adore this little boy from far...

one fine day, sk and i decided to go golden mile to check up the price of bus tickets to hat yai. a one-way ticket to hat yai is SGD 35. with no idea when will be a good time to leave, we just randomly picked a date that allow us at least one week to inform our families and that was 10 march. we took the bus at 6pm and arrived hat yai at 8am the next day. the VIP coach was very comfortable with big seats.

after arrived at hat yai, we took a 7 hours train to surat thani (55thb pp) to take an overnight ferry (550thb pp) to koh tao. akari had told me good things about this island 3 years ago.

on the night ferry, there were slim and thin mattresses lined up for passengers to sleep on. sk and i fell asleep shortly after the boat set sail.

akari was right. koh tao was indeed beautiful. we got ourselves a bungalow (500thb per night) which is 5 walking steps aways from the sea. can you imagine that? i can hear the sound of the waves every day. we were happy to sun ourselves at the hottest time of the day and swim out a few metres to see corals and fishes.

side track a bit... i lost my one and only set of bikinis while they were put out to dry one day. wonder who had needed them more than i do... anyway, i got myself a new pair at half the expense of sk. :p

for now, koh tao has replaced phuket's rank in my heart... :p

home in singapore

2008-02-27T00:25:00.000+08:00

sk and i arrived happily back in singapore on 1 february 2008 via Tiger Airways, singapore's budget carrier. Junzhen came to pick us up in the warm and humid, drizzling night.

after 8 months of traveling, we were finally grooving back in the place where we call home. it was hard getting used to be in the same house where i live at first. nothing has changed but just felt different in the beginning. it took me a week to get used to it.

i had a great time spending chinese new year with my family. unlike previous years, mum finally get the chance to prepare the reunion dinner herself and i really enjoyed the simple affair at home. :p
eating, drinking and laughing away with my brothers, mum and sk, what was left behind were the beautiful memories of traveling...

24 to 1 feb 2008, hong kong

2008-01-31T15:03:00.000+08:00

星光大道 - my favourite movie artiste and director - michael hui

after 8 years, here we are again...

sk and rodney

Rodney brought us to Tsim Sha Tsui harbour (尖沙咀) to watch the daily 8pm award winning laser show. music was played and the lasers from the commercial buildings across synchronised with it.

a last look at my broken umbrella. it has accompanied me this far since the start of this trip. some parts broke due to big rain and strong wind...

the Wishing Tree (林村许愿树) is now an old tree supported by wooden sticks with no "wishes" on it. before, it used to have many strips of yellow papers with names and wishes written on them. as the tree gets older and overloaded with paper wishes, the authorities decided to protect the tree from falling by removing all the paper wishes and ban anyone from throwing wishes on it... perhaps until it gets well again?

this japanese restaurant (大寿司), located near Shau Kei Wan, offers big and good servings of sashimi and sushis. each person has to spend at least HKD 100 (=SGD 20).

a morning hike up the Dragon's Back with a group of singaporeans living in hong kong

high rise flats and apartments can be seen everywhere in hong kong. houses are relatively small, compare to singapore, and they are generally much more expensive.

minghui, laurien, sk and me, waiting for wanton mee to be served

2008 is the rat year

do not trespass

some doors to the houses were extremely narrow... and the houses were made of alumimium or some kind of metal. can they keep warm during winter season?

dried seafood seasoning - good for making soup base

wedding gowns in the olden days

no fishing, no fishing, NO FISHING!

a day trip out to Tai O (大澳)

Causeway Bay (铜锣湾)

arrived in hong kong after a 11 hours flight from london

18 to 21 jan 2008, paris

2008-01-31T14:01:00.000+08:00

Chopin

Jim Morrison - a famous pop star who died in his 20s

walking up to the tomb of a russian princess who died in 1818.

took a stroll into the Cimetiere du Pere Cachaise (cemetry) where many rich and famous people were buried. i was told that it cost a lot of money to be buried here.

the Pompidou

a street performer

the Pantheon

this area looked like a red light district where one can find many strip bars and erotic sex items. the queue outside Moulin Rouge was pretty long. to watch the show with a 3 course meal + champagne starts from about 145 euros, depending on the kind of meal you choose. one can also choose to watch the show only for about 75 euros.

after watching the Moulin Rouge film for the first time with Martin in Liverpool, we have to see the actual place in Paris.

walked up the steep Montmarte Hill to Halles St Pierto Chapelle where one can get a view of Paris

Siene river that surrounds downtown Paris

Cathedral de Notre Dame de Paris

remember the Da Vinci Code film? this is the 21m high glass Grande Pyramide outside Musee du Louvre. No, Mary Magdalene cannot be found here.

many says that the best place to buy LV stuff is in Paris. cost about 10 to 20% less than the average market price elsewhere. reason: tax refundable and made in paris.

Champ-Elysees - a major shopping area where all the big and small brands are located. it is a wide straight road of shops. i was told that the rental cost on the left is higher than the right, simply because the sun shines on the left more.

Nourdine, me and Adeline

the daily 10pm light show at the Eiffel Tower... truly amazing

arrived in paris after a 8hours bus ride from london across the English Channel. Nourdine, our CS host, brought us out for the night after cooking us an asian meal, chicken rice. on top of that, he surprised us with a welcome gift: 2 weekend travel passes for paris travel, which cost him 14 euros each pass. what to say... we're really lucky to have met him...

15 to 23 jan 2008, london

2008-01-23T17:25:00.000+08:00

having fun at biying's place... Wii...

Bobby Moore

wembley stadium

goodbye to my trekking shoes... bought this in shanghai 2 years ago for about sgd 75. it is beyond repair now after several times of glue-ing. it is no longer water proof... cant bear to part with it.

during this period of time, we were very glad to have a place to stay in biying and xiaoping's apartment. on our first day here, biying (who was suffering from jet lag at that time) took the time to bring us to a nearby italian restauarant (Luigi?) for dinner. i have excellent comments about this restaurant. though a little pricey for my standard (cos i almost compare every kind of food with a plate of zhap chai png in singapore), the pasta served was really delicious and in a big portion! i tried to remember the details served on my plate so that i can cook that when i am back in singapore. love it

we walked around town for a few days, visited the usual sights such as the big ben, parliament house, thames river, london eye, the huge national art gallery (where there were lots and lots of paintings from 1500 to 1900), chinatown, oxford street and wembley stadium and then off to paris for the weekend. there were some problem with the camera batteries, therefore, not many photos were taken in london.

however, i had a great time shopping in england. clothes and shoes were mostly half-price due to the usual post-xmas sale. e.g. i bought a new pair of waterproof Hi-Tec trekking boots for only 25 pounds.

31 dec to 15 jan 2008, you will never walk alone in liverpool (aka sk's dream come true)

2008-01-22T19:37:00.000+08:00

farewell outing before we leave for london tomorrow

City of Culture 2008 celebration in town

Shankly gate

the hundred years old liverpool jerseys

anfield stadium used to be everton's home ground

a machine used to keep the field grass in good condition

players tap this sign for good luck before each game
any comments before you go?

the anfield stadium tour starts here... players enter this door to get changed for the match. it is usually barricaded on match days to avoid fan attacks.

Bill Shankly

Paisley gate

for stella - university of liverpool

the inside looks more like a theatre than a cathedral. thats how modern it is

metropolitan cathedral

a view of liverpool

took a ferry across the Mersey river. this was also the place where Titanic set sail

street performance

wendy (martin's best friend. she used to baby sit him when he was young) and martin

a night out at Alma de Cuba

beatles cake

3D cake

like this open green pasture near martin's place

judge going on trial

lime street station where most long distance trains depart

st george's hall

why, brother? which symbolises brothers (people of different nationalities or colors) fighting one another

Philharmornic Dining Room - one of britain's most extraordinary pubs with stained glass, wrought iron, mosaics and ceramic tiling, fitted with wingback armchairs

martin likes the sisters' chapel. see the grin on his face

sisters' chapel inside the anglican

anglican cathedral

a quiet chinatown

see the shattered glasses caused by the bomb?

this church was left to stand after a bomb was dropped on its ceiling during world war

a day out in town with martin. a big sale was going on everywhere in town and i got myself a pair of hi-tec waterproof trekking boots for a good 25 pounds. they were kept on standby cos my current china made trekking boots were going to break anytime after walking for the past 8 months.

the match ended with a disappointing 1-all score

cant believe that we actually came so far to watch this game and the happiest thing is that... we did it! before the game starts, we were like enjoying the atmosphere, giggling to ourselves and enjoying every passing moment. how very nice!

really really excited to go in and watch them play live

arrived at anfield stadium

Adel and Martin - Adel is a very committed liverpool fan. she moved to liverpool just to be close to her dream team and she will convince anyone to jump ship to support the red team.

martin - our CS host. i really like him. he has a great sense of english humour and also, he introduced us to lots of good movies, the catherine tate show, crazy taxi on PS 2 and Tetley makes tea bags make tea!

on 2 Jan, met Adel outside LFC store to go anfield stadium watch liverpool play against wigan.

on the train to martin's house. it was new year's eve and all the trains and buses were to end early that day (at abt 8.30pm) for the new year countdown. many people were in good mood that day including us. we were thrilled!

finally arrived on the ground of liverpool. hooray!!! we received warm welcome from most of the ground staff that night

31 dec 2007, venice

2008-01-22T18:08:00.001+08:00

on the opposite side of Grand Canal, standing outside Santa Maria church

the Grand Canal

99m campanile (bell tower) - built in the 10th century. it suddenly collapsed in 1902 and had to be rebuilt

Basilica di San Marco (St Mark's Basilica)

Piazza San Marco (St Mark's Square)

the 3 chinese students on my left were from china. they were studying in a university in turin and were here for a few days holiday. we chatted and walked together to

St Mark's square

Santa Maria church in a distance

see the small shop across? the fruit seller was not very happy with me when i asked to purchase one kilo of apples (i thought sk and i should at least eat some fruits to hydrate ourselves after spending several nights on trains and buses and not eating well).

this fruit seller appeared that he didnt like me from the start and the fact that i did not speak any italian actually gave him some chance to mumble a few words at me with some kind of unpleasant look on his face. not wanting to be rude, i just continued smiling and paid for the apples that i had asked for. i hope he wasn't trying to be racist...

it is easy to get lost in venice. why? because it is built on 117 islands with 150 odd canals and 400 bridges!

so what did we do? just follow the road names, remember landmarks and ask the locals who frowned at us when giving directions. perhaps we look like 2 pathetic blockheads... :p

arrived venice at dawn. we had only about 6 hours to spare here cos our flight to liverpool leaves at 4.30pm.

took a 8hrs night train from croatia. didnt sleep well cos the leg room of the seats were too small. there was not enough room for leg extension and furthermore, the lights on the train were on all night, heat radiator gave out cold instead of hot air and 3 customs checks on board as the train passed through slovenia into italy... *yawn*

29 to 30 dec 2007, zagreb

2008-01-22T11:52:00.000+08:00

this piece of ice was taken down from a tree... probably melts in your mouth

26 to 28 dec 2007, Belgrade

2008-01-22T11:41:00.000+08:00

a burek shop

view from Kalemegdan Citadel - fortified since 17th century

after much hassle, we're finally in serbia!

19 to 25 dec 2007, Prishtina

2008-01-22T10:45:00.000+08:00

a barricaded church

walking up to a war memorial

sk having meat burek, one of the common pastries served in this region

some left behind barricade

the park which we have to pass daily to get into town

the people in kosovo were mostly helpful and friendly. they do not have many visitors here after what happened in 1999 when Serbian began 'cleansing' Kosovo of its Albanians. Bombarded by air strikes, Serbian forces withdrew and Kosovo became a UN protectorate. we were often asked if we work here because most of the foreigners here were either with the NGOs or helping out in other ways such as working in the power plants to reduce electricity cuts, etc.

our intended stay in kosovo was supposedly 2 or 3 days but we ended up staying there for 7 days because...

our first attempt to cross border into serbia failed on 21st dec. we were refused entry at the kosovo-serbia checkpoint at 1am due to the political tension between the 2. it was not possible to cross border directly into serbia from kosovo. we were advised to enter via Macedonia. it was snowing and freezing cold (-8 degrees celcius) at that time and the officers at the serbian checkpoint told us to walk back to kosovo checkpoint. it was really unpleasant to be refused entry in such a weather. when we arrived back in kosovo checkpoint, the officer in-charge made us hot tea while we stood outside their office (civilians were not allowed to enter). after an hour, they finally got a passing car to agree on giving us a ride back to the city. phew!

we made a second attempt to leave kosovo on christmas day. this time we decided to cross border into Bosnia via Montenegro. crossing into Montenegro was a success but guess what... we were refused entry into Bosnia this time. it was our fault actually. we forgot to check the visa requirements again... in fact singaporeans ought to apply for a visa to enter Bosnia. :p

but thankfully, a kind hearted customs officer drove us to his village in Pljevlja (montenegro) where we had a bizarre encounter with a retired painter. he invited us to his house for coffee and snacks! that really made our day :p

17 to 18 Dec 2007, Tirana

2008-01-22T09:44:00.000+08:00

kids looking into garbage dumps for some useful materials.

at the back of the market, we spoted a piece of land with many shelters built from scrap materials (cardboards, cloths, metal sheets, etc). at a wet and cold temperature of 5 degrees celcius, it could be an unbearably cold place to sleep in.

many live turkeys were sold at this time of the year for xmas. some local sellers jokingly called out to us to buy from them. the locals were really friendly people...
market
a half torn down house

a half completed house

a snow mountain from far

admiring the beauty of the city of Tirana

graves below the statue of Mother Albania

Mother Albania statue

on our way up the hill to find Mother Albania statue

Statue of Mother Teresa

we left rome at 1.30pm, took a train to bari, and then spend the night in the lounge on the ferry to durres in albania. the ferry sailed through the choppy waters in the night and many people threw up and couldnt sleep. some kids were crying because of the discomfort. we arrived in tirana at 11.30am. found a hotel by the main road and quickly settled in for 20 euros a night.
Dlitta who works at the reception everyday told us that he is paid about 5 euros a day for 8 hours of work. considering a loaf of bread there costs about 0.80 euro, i think he can hardly make ends meet. he is a nice and gentle man in his late 50s... shared with us many things though it was only hand gestures all the time. he doesnt speak english nor did we understand albanian but we had a great time together.

14 to 16 dec 2007, rome

2008-01-17T18:40:00.000+08:00

Santa Maria de gli Angeli chruch

Quirinale (Parliament House)

Fontane di Trevi - the custom is to throw a coin into the fountain (over your shoulder while facing away) to ensure your return to Rome; a second coin grants you a wish

Pantheon

this street artiste was standing still but he looked like he's walking.

Piazza Navona

St Peter's Basilica

see what i mean?

this is the marked centre plate to stand

Vatican City - Piazza di San Pietro is bound by 2 semicircular colonnades, each comprising 4 rows of Doric columns. if you stand at the marked centre plate, you will see that each column of 2 pillars align into 1

outside Vatican City, there were some street artiste performing a short play for the public

Colosseum - completed in 80AD, it was a place for about 50,000 spectators to watch gladiators fight panthers, hippotami and crocodiles

the Roman Forum

i like the blue sky

piazza spagna

i was dead tired when i arrived in rome at 8am cos for the past 2 nights, i had only a few hours of sleep (1 night spent in the airport and 1 night spent on the train). we met 2 middle-age chinese man on the train and had a great time chatting with them in our seat cabin. they were on their way to naples. both are working in different factories. one had been working there for 4 years to support his wife and daughter (a uni student) at home and might be returning to tianjin after his daughter graduate from uni. the other has been working in italy for 1 year odd. both earns an average of 1000 euros a month and works about 12hrs a day everyday (meals included).

13 dec 2007, milan

2008-01-12T00:27:00.000+08:00

Duomo, the world's largest Gothic cathedral, is the most beautiful cathedral that i have seen so far... commissioned in 1386 to a florid French-Gothic design and finished nearly 600 years later.

central train station

a sudden change of environment... from the dusty towns in morocco to to the modern Milan... all that within 4 hours.
as the cheapest hostel here costs about 19 euros a night, we decided to just walk around Milan and then take a night train to Rome.

11 to 13 dec 2007, marrakesh (the red city)

2008-01-12T00:09:00.000+08:00

after spending a cold night in the airport, we were on our way to Milan, Italy.

Koutoubia Mosque

see the long rod that he was holding on to? there is a rubber ring tied to it and he was trying to put that ring onto the cap of each coke bottle. not sure of the prize though... probably win a bottle of coke?

Djemaa el-Fna - the focal point of Marrakesh. it a huge square in the medina

9 to 11 dec 2007, casablanca (the white city)

2008-01-11T23:52:00.000+08:00

here we are at the Atlantic Ocean

to see the interior of the mosque, one has to take a guided tour which obviously we didnt...

Hassan II Mosque - the world's third largest mosque which can hold up to 25,000 worshippers and 80,000 in the courtyards and squares around it.

7 to 9 dec 2007, Fes

2008-01-11T21:45:00.000+08:00

Doctor Marouk from Libya - he teaches Arabic history in his country and was in town for a conference. he stayed next door to our room and brought us around town, bought us meals, coffee and delicious moroccan oranges!

bisara - chickpeas cooked with olive oil

rooftop view of the medina

we stayed in a hotel inside this medina (an Islamic medieval city)

a big cemetry area outside the medina

a small water plain... cactus can be seen in most parts of morocco

note: be pepared to have some coins with you. the assistants helping out with the luggage storage will usually ask tourists to pay 10 dirhams per person while locals pay only 5. but if you insist that you only have 5, most of them will take it.

5 to 7 dec 2007, chefchaoeun

2008-01-11T21:02:00.000+08:00

ready to go...

a hot glass of milk coffee and prata before taking the bus to Fez

sunset

cemetry

was badly bitten by bed bugs at the hotel, thats why i'm scratchin...

trading goats and donkeys

a big market

children running home after school

rooftop view

the view from our hotel

while waiting for the bus to chefchaoeun, we sat down for a glass of mint tea (about sgd 1) and some toast bread

arrived at Tangier, walking 2km towards the bus station

3 to 5 dec 2007, seville (pronounced as seviya)

2008-01-11T02:00:00.000+08:00

goodbye espanol

on the 35 mins ferry to morocco. cost 31 euros per person!

me with 3 other Australian travelers

Tarifa

on our way to Tarifa Pier to catch a ferry to Morocco

Seville football stadium - Estadio Sanchez Pizjuan

this small neighbourhood reminded me of old airport road, the place where i used to live

hammock on the roof top of our hostel

duck meat

rabbit meat

Seville's famous bullring - Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza

Plaza de Espana - a semicircle of building clad in azulejo (ceramic tiles)

a lemon tree by a sidewalk...

orange trees everywhere in sevilla... plucked 2 and tasted it... they were very sour but left a fresh tangerine smell on my hands for a good whole day!

Antonio, whom we met in Latvia, was one of the reason why we decided to visit this city. it is also pretty near to morocco where we will be off to next.

1 to 2 dec 2007, lisbon

2008-01-11T01:15:00.000+08:00

many locals were out on a sunday afternoon

people were getting ready for sunday church service

see the inside... a really grand one...

Mosteiro des Jeronimos church from 1496

a weekend bazaar

Discovery Monument at Belem

a small boat that sailed past

a nice park

oceanarium

main bus terminal

big crabs being displayed in a restaurant

weather in lisbon is just as nice as barcelona at the time of visit. it's sunny and temperature is about 10 to 15 degrees.

27 to 30 nov 2007, barcelona... ma ma mia !

2008-01-10T22:13:00.000+08:00

the ball that is closest to the red one wins

an old BMW

the footballers used to travel in such a bus for away matches

Nou Camp stadium

this is one of many Gaudi's work

street artiste

las ramblas street

fruits and veg market

a bird biting on a piece of bread

La Sagrada Familia - one of Gaudi's unfinished work. he was ran over by a tram in 1926 at the age of 72. construction began in 1882 and it's estimated to complete in 2020.

old men playing some ball games... each ball weighs about 1 or 2 kg

health checks

missed the sunday bus to paris, therefore, we decided to do barcelona first... and here we are after 18 hours on the bus that cost about 60 over euros per person.

when we alighted the bus, we were like... wow, what a good weather! barcelona was sunny and temperature was at a comfortable 15 degrees. compare to the other west european countries, the weather here is just perfect for us...

24 to 26 nov 2007, luxembourg

2008-01-10T21:30:00.000+08:00

surfing at Tristan's house...

chanced upon this Cultural Centre where there was a photo exhibit by a war photojournalist James Nachtwey. although i did not take pictures at his exhibition, you may want to take a look at his photographs on his website at http://www.jamesnachtwey.com/

"I have been a witness, and these pictures are

my testimony. The events I have recorded should

not be forgotten and must not be repeated."

-James Nachtwey-

autumn colors...

light offerings in a church...

it has been raining in most parts of west europe these days... my the soles of my shoes were wearing out and i get frozen feet on most days...

dont understand the meaning leh...

arrived at Tristan's (our CS host) house in the middle of the night (4am) as the bus departed 2 hours late from brussels, plus... we lost our way while looking for his house. Tristan was so accomodating. he opened the door for us, show us the mattress and then went back to bed.
during our stay with him, he introduced us to the cartoon film, the Family Guy (which is quite similar to the Simpsons) and also to a French dish called Raclette. together with 4 other house mates, we were each given a small 8 x 8 cm square pan to melt our cheese, then pour it onto the boiled potatoes. depending on your preference, you can put in ham, onions and eggs! ooo laa laa...

22 to 23 nov 2007, brussels

2008-01-10T20:57:00.000+08:00

arina - our CS host who is mixed with french and japanese heritage.

Grand Place - built in the 15th century. it was a really grand sight just by looking at the details on the outer walls...

an old church

arina gave us a room in her tastefully designed and decorated house

the first belgium chocolate that was introduced to me by Iris... dont forget to try the belgium fries when you are in town.

night view of Grand Place

we took a bus from amsterdam at 1.30pm and arrived brussels at 6.30pm. looking forward to see arina (our CS host) in a while...

20 to 22 nov 2007, amsterdam

2008-01-10T18:44:00.000+08:00

thankfully, he wakes up the next day. ;p

our first try on a joint cigarette of 0.4 grams of hash in a coffeeshop. cost about 3.40 euros one stick and sk got really high after that. that feeling remained even after several hours of sitting in the shop. the beautiful shop keeper tried to 'revive' him by making him drink a glass of cold water with 4 packs of sugar added in it, an energy drink and a mars bar chocolate. it was a pleasant experience after all... :p

beautiful tulips

all kinds of tulip seeds

market

Van Gogh - the famous painter who cut off his left ear' lobe during some sort of seizure in 1888

end of the mp3 audio tour

a chinese temple in a short chinatown alley

the red light district - can you see some women in the glass window? they rent their own 'display' window and offer themselves for sex, starting from about 50 euros / 15 minutes. we walked a few rounds here in the day and night.

the Bull Dog - a famous coffee shop chain in amsterdam

we took a free mp3 audio tour from the hostel which will give us a brief orientation of amsterdam and also to the famous coffee shop and red light district. here (dam square) is where we begin...

reggae

this cat couldnt be bothered with us when we tried to wake her up in the souvenir shop

if you click on this picture, you will see thousands of bicycles parked at the foot of this building, just next to the central train station.

madame tussaud

like the scandinavia countries, bicycles are widely used as a means of public transport in amsterdam. bicycle thefts are very common and bikers usually spend a good amount of money on their bicycle locks.

Febo (pronounced as feibo) - a great food wall, that's typical Dutch where you can get food from the wall. snacks like burgers, Dutch Croquet and Cheese Soufflé, are waiting there in little see through boxes which you can open after inserting some coins.

left berlin by bus at 7.30pm and arrived in amsterdam at 5.30am. after an hour's walk, we arrived at the hostel. there was no reception so we rang the bell. a man woke up and was quite unpleasant when he answered the door. he said that we had arrived too early and told us to leave our bags and come back at 10am.
it was dark and cold in the open so i suggested to sk to walk with me to the nearby marriot hotel, just to sit at a warm heated place. while seated, i made myself a cup of hot cappucino (free for hotel guests i think) and ate some of my own bread (which we always carry around). saw some singapore airlines crew checking in at the hotel... good welfare man.
when sun rose a little, we decided to walk to another hostel (flying pigs) to check it out. the people there gave us a warm welcome. although price was a few euros more (29 euros for 2 persons including breakfast) than the other hostel, we agreed the offer as they allowed us to chek in immediately. so... we quickly walked our way back to the hostel, picked up our bags and left. when asked why we were leaving, i had to lie that we were tired and needed a place to sleep now but in fact... it was that unpleasantness that put me off a little... :p
flying pigs... definitely a good hostel to stay in.

17 to 19 nov 2007, berlin

2008-01-07T22:44:00.000+08:00

see Hitler in the car?

Checkpoint Charlie - the most widely used border crossing between east and west germany

do you get what this means?

attempting to push down the berlin wall

Karl Marx Allee - as the road name suggests, one can easily see the communist roads and houses present in the modern world.

Brandenburg Gate - it was the east-west crossing point after the wall was built in 1961. before reunification, it faced east, but has since been reversed.

the back of Brandenburg Gate

a memorial for the Jews

Einstein in lego

then onto a bus to berlin

on a ferry to germany...

15 to 17 nov 2007, copenhagen

2008-01-07T22:02:00.000+08:00

bottom left: Jens (German couchsurfer) and Aksel (our host)

while waiting for the Xmas lightings to be turn on

lovely sunset near the Little Mermaid

Nyhavn - a line of restaurants by the river...

yes, we are about to "enter" the EU once we step out of Christiania

a stupa in the middle of Christiania

Christiania, where Anja, Ibrahim and the hippies of the 70s used to live in. as suggested by Anja, this place has its own unique culture. it looked as if it is not part of copenhagen, it looked like a town of its own. soft drugs (hash) are still widely sold in Pusher's street inside this area though it is illegal.

garlics everywhere on the streets... havent figure out what they were for... so, if you know the answer, please write a comment for me...

see the girl on my right? she was just one of the 20 odd students in this church, trying to sketch and take down details about how it was being refurbished...

this is a colorful cinema, isnt it?

a historic amusement park in Tivoli Gardens - opened for more than 160 years ago

couch surfed at Aksel's white apartment. he's a fun and loveable norwegian.

8 to 15 nov 2007, oslo

2008-01-07T21:22:00.001+08:00

the bus passed through gothenburg. it was covered with snow!

while waiting for the 7.45am bus to denmark

wandering around the botanical gardens...

a famous painting of his: Death of a Bohemian

a self portrait of Munch himself. he had always believed that photos can never replace the art of painting. he died alone at home at the age of 80 where years before that, he kinda suffered from schizophrenia.

Munch museum

view of the oslofjord

view of the harbour

Akershus Fortress has an excellent view of the Oslofjord and the harbour.

noticed that he had shaved his hair? Lars borrowed a hair shaver from his friend and we did the cut in his place!

we met Lotte and Lars on a bus in vietnam, then met them again in beijing hostel, and then... we were invited to stay with them in their nicely furnished apartment close to the city centre. they were such a cool couple.