Phi Phi is mental. Just that.

Koh Phi Phi! Now I had heard a lot about this little island for some time and in the end I decided it was worth a visit (above all to make my sister's boyfriend really bloody jealous).
It's maybe not the place to go if you are looking for a relaxed little getaway, mostly because it's mad as toast. You would be forgiven for thinking that this island could be the tranquil island of your dreams, particularly on first impressions when sailing up to the harbour. Step off the boat though and prepare to a) never sleep and b) do things that you probably wouldn't do if you weren't on Phi Phi.



Damn you Koh Phi Phi and your decieving beauty! Damn you!

Stepping off the boat I was greeted by a monkey in a dress. This should give you some idea of the magnitude of mental that this island exudes.

We were collected by a very nice man who took our bags on a little trailer thing and pulled them all the way up to our hostel. (I pretended not to see him struggling from the sheer weight of Rachel's bag alone.)
Our bungalow was along the 'Tsunami Escape Route' which was nice to know, although i'm not sure anyone would really escape a high speed wall of water coming at them but whatever. I guess there's some level of reassurance seeing the signs.

Phi Phi is a really good place to make friends and everyone is lovely. We met people here that we've stuck with for the last few weeks now. Days were spent sun bathing on Long Beach (the beach furthest away from the nightlife therefore in our minds the cleanest) and drinking copious amounts in the evening and eating our weight in Pad Thai. I fail to see what else you can do on this island. I fail to see what more you would want from this island to be honest!

We all know that with copious amounts of alcohol comes copious amounts of irrational thinking. We've all had that moment when it just seems like the best idea in the world, Phi Phi encourages this. That's why I take no responsibility for the following:

taking no responsibility.....it was Phi Phi

Yes Phi Phi made Rachel get a tattoo. A bamboo tattoo at that! http://www.bambootattoo.co.uk/history-of-bamboo-tattoo.php - here's a brief history. I can't be bothered to explain.

I don't even like cats?!

It also made me hold a cat in a somewhat 'loving' fashion. It must have been Phi Phi's influence though because I've not had the slightest inkling to risk my life like that again.

I'm sorry for taking ages to blog. Rachel has gone frolicking off to play with tigers today so I have a whole day of sorting out my life! Ahh organisation, how I have missed you!

Laura xx

A quick link to get me to Thailand....

Apologies for the complete neglection of the blog, I have been somewhat distracted by all of the ridiculously awesome things going on around me. I return though with tales of wonder and joy which will hopefully convince anyone who hasn't been to South East Asia to get here and experience it!

After Bali, Rachel and I had our hearts set on Thailand. We decided rather than head to Vietnam and work our way back down, we would work our way up instead. We made a two day stop in Kuala Lumpur. (although anyone who's anyone will just shorten it these days to KL. I like to think it makes me cool and establishes me more as a 'traveller'.)

KL was good, as cities go it was rather similar to most. A famous landmark dubbed 'the twin towers' (i have no words) some pretty impressive live music, the odd brawl (westerners of course) and a wave of sewage every few minutes.

Look dad! It's the Starship Enterprise!

The hostel we stayed in was right in the centre and was an absolute steal! They did everything they could to make it homely. You felt you were staying in a bedroom at home which was lovely, mostly because I was tired and dreaming of the double I left behind.......sigh.

In the middle of playing "hit me baby one more time". Look how happy he is!

Lost in Ubud 2....a high risk jaunt to monkey forest

Lost in Ubud......

Turns out if you ask your taxi driver to take you nearer the coast, he will in fact drive you into the centre of Bali to a small but perfectly formed town called Ubud. (Just something to take into account anyone contemplating a visit to Bali.)

This place is a beautiful place to be lost in. The town itself is really small but there are a number of villages that surround it that could be mistaken for part of Ubud. It is steeped in culture and despite its modest size, holds its own as the Balinese capital of the Arts. You honestly couldn't go a second without walking past an art gallery or a temple or a FIRE DANCER! As you can imagine, I was in my element! Not because of the fire, I'm not a pyromaniac.

The village is surrounded by rice paddies and as it's still the rainy season the whole area is just suffused with every shade of green you could imagine. This is unquestionably my favourite place yet.

It's a far cry from Kuta. Eveything is much more relaxed and you can be strolling for at least ten minutes before anyone even looks at you and contemplates asking if you would like a taxi. (where to I have no idea, everything you want is right on your doorstep there is literally one road through the whole of the town.)

Of course this little visit wouldn't have been the same without a bit of drama would it (by drama I mean me overreacting). Now Rabies is still rife here, just like the rest of Indonesia. Some sort of crazed epidemic within the dogs and the monkeys. They're getting it under control but Bali has been hit badly with it. I'm not very confident with animals at the best of times but when I know they are all roaming around mental out of their faces ready to bite and I haven't been injected with the Rabies vaccination...it's a little disconcerting.
With that in mind Rach and I decided it would be a fine idea to go and visit the sacred Monkey Forest just down the road....and feed them. (it's okay though because there was a lady selling the bananas right outside and she hadn't been arrested so it must have been legal, I do promise never to do it again.)

Laura xx

Bali and our search for the perfect beach.....

After a very busy week in Singapore, consisting mostly of running around embassies, booking hostels and sorting visas (we're wild!) we felt it was time to take a break from the madness of city life and find ourselves some pristine beaches to spend some days relaxing and obviously replenishing our vitamin D levels (healthy body, healthy mind people).

Our first destination was Kuta. We arrived in the early hours of Tuesday morning. After being accosted left, right and centre by a million hungry taxi drivers (they just come out of nowhere!) we found a 'reputable' and 'fairly priced' one and headed off to the hostel.

Now everyone knows that as a general rule places and people (it's true) all look better at night so with all the tiredness (impairing our vision) and sparkles and outlines of temples lining the streets we were in high spirits!

Wednesday 23rd February: 08:00. I thought I was dreaming at first but alas no, there was a massive drill doing its utmost to wake me from my much needed beauty sleep and ruin any sort of routine I was trying to implement into this travelling rigmarole. I am alright at dealing with such 'surprises' but hell hath no fury like a Rachel woken from her slumber....you don't mess with this woman!

We chose a hostel that was right in the centre of Kuta and two minutes from the beach. Convenient if it wasn't for the moped filled streets. You could never really seem to switch off and just walk (a common habit of mine) as you have to be so cautious of the unrelenting sea of traffic, they have no driving etiquette, the rules are pretty much 'find a space and drive'. Whole families squashed on to one bike. Cheaper form of transport though isn't it and needs must.

So I've just moaned this whole blog, but Kuta was quite frankly not what I was expecting! I guess I should get used to that and embrace it. (It's only going to get more extreme let's be honest!) I do understand why people come here though, especially Aussies I've found. It's definitely a surfers paradise and although Kuta beach is not astoundingly beautiful it seems clear that the reason people come here is for the waves, the unbelievably cheap prices and of course the night life. Unfortunately it turns out Rach and I might be getting a little bit old as mostly we just wanted to sit in a nice restaurant with a cold glass of wine, eating loads of weird stuff. (cringe at our sadness!)

So much more of Bali to see, I'll try and write more soon.....our search for the most beautiful beach in all of the land continues!

Ooh and we bought a guitar!! I can only play three chords and that's at a push so we'll see how that develops...or not.

Lots of Love, Laura x