We are extending our trip!!! - like we haven't been jammy enough so far! We've decided to stay on a bit longer (6 weeks in fact until 21st of Feb 2010) as we realised quite early on that we are trying to pack an awful lot into 9 months. So I have managed to extend my career break (thank you work), and we are in the process of moving flights (thank you Travel Butler) and apologies parents - we will be back soon - promise.
This extra time means we can spend about a month in China, a few days in Hong Kong and 7 weeks in Australia. Rebecca and Australian cousin's - we will let you know the details when we have them confirmed, but look forward to being able to spend more time with you and do Australia justice!
Friday 22 May 2009
17/05/09 - 20/05/09 Darjeeling, India
It was lovley and a great place to relax for a few days. We can see why the British picked this hillside 7,000ft up - the climate is very similar to home with mist and rain and sub-zero temperatures in winter. It also has the most amazing view of Khangchendzonga (India's highest mountain and the 3rd highest in the world), but I'm afraid we have yet to see it as the aforementioned mist ruined our chances.
The Scottish (not so much British) have also left their mark across town. We saw a very presbyterian St Andrew's Church, the 5* Elgin Hotel, Frank Ross's Cafe, Highlander's Inn, Glenary's Restaurant and a house called Gleneagles! There's also a "Big Ben" like clock.
But we couldn't come to Darjeeling without indulging in sipping tea and eating cake - so we went for High Tea at the Elgin - very posh. We also took a tour round the Happy Valley Tea Estate to see how the "old brew" is made (before this particular variety is sent on to Harrods). We bought a little - so once we get our hands on a tea strainer we can make it on the move!
Another must here was the Toy Train. This was where the Indian's came into their own as our fellow passengers were so excited about being on a steam train that doesn't get over 10 miles per hour!! It was hilarious - and the wee kids were loving it. It seems to be a "must do" for the Indian tourists as well.
We also sampled Indian bureaucracy at its best here (but thankfully we had the time to find it amusing). We are going north to Sikkim next but it is in a key location as it borders Nepal, Tibet and Bhutan - so they keep strict tabs on who goes there and who comes back! But for us Westerners they've made it simple - firstly you have to get a taxi across town to the Office of the District Magistrate to fill out a form and get it stamped. Next, you go back across town to the Foreigner's Regional Registration Office so they can write your name and passport number in another book (have they not heard of the phone or fax, let alone email?). So now its time to go back to the District Magistrate for the actual permit - by this point you're wondering why you're bothering. But after all that effort we're definitely going, Sikkim here we come (loaded with all the necessary paperwork!).
The Scottish (not so much British) have also left their mark across town. We saw a very presbyterian St Andrew's Church, the 5* Elgin Hotel, Frank Ross's Cafe, Highlander's Inn, Glenary's Restaurant and a house called Gleneagles! There's also a "Big Ben" like clock.
But we couldn't come to Darjeeling without indulging in sipping tea and eating cake - so we went for High Tea at the Elgin - very posh. We also took a tour round the Happy Valley Tea Estate to see how the "old brew" is made (before this particular variety is sent on to Harrods). We bought a little - so once we get our hands on a tea strainer we can make it on the move!
Another must here was the Toy Train. This was where the Indian's came into their own as our fellow passengers were so excited about being on a steam train that doesn't get over 10 miles per hour!! It was hilarious - and the wee kids were loving it. It seems to be a "must do" for the Indian tourists as well.
We also sampled Indian bureaucracy at its best here (but thankfully we had the time to find it amusing). We are going north to Sikkim next but it is in a key location as it borders Nepal, Tibet and Bhutan - so they keep strict tabs on who goes there and who comes back! But for us Westerners they've made it simple - firstly you have to get a taxi across town to the Office of the District Magistrate to fill out a form and get it stamped. Next, you go back across town to the Foreigner's Regional Registration Office so they can write your name and passport number in another book (have they not heard of the phone or fax, let alone email?). So now its time to go back to the District Magistrate for the actual permit - by this point you're wondering why you're bothering. But after all that effort we're definitely going, Sikkim here we come (loaded with all the necessary paperwork!).
Monday 18 May 2009
1 down 12 to go!
1st country over! - time is flying past so fast. We really enjoyed our time in Nepal - it is a beautiful country with the most amazing scenery and warm hearted people. But it is very disparate and changing fast - albeit different parts at different rates - from the remote villages in the Foothills to crazy Kathmandu and partying in Pokhara. We also found it a pretty unsettled country at the moment with strikes, protests and effigy burning happening quite a bit, which seems to be due to disillusionment with the current Maoist government. But hopefully they will find a peaceful way forward as Nepal has so much to offer. Although, it does this at a cost and we found it a bit tough on the purse strings (at least compared to India). Saying that we did get the chance to do things we've never done before and we have lots of great memories.
We also think we may have made it into the Guiness Book of Records while in Nepal! Lets just say its not easy to get around fast as those pesky hills get in the way, and we spent "the most time on a bus with the shortest distance travelled" - we turned a 6 hour journey into 14 with the help of a broken crankshaft, landslide and traffic jam!
Anyway, we are back in India for the next couple of weeks (currently in Darjeeling sipping tea and eating cake!). Although true to form within 24 hours of being back we've had dodgy stomachs - good to see we've built up a bit of resistance!
We also think we may have made it into the Guiness Book of Records while in Nepal! Lets just say its not easy to get around fast as those pesky hills get in the way, and we spent "the most time on a bus with the shortest distance travelled" - we turned a 6 hour journey into 14 with the help of a broken crankshaft, landslide and traffic jam!
Anyway, we are back in India for the next couple of weeks (currently in Darjeeling sipping tea and eating cake!). Although true to form within 24 hours of being back we've had dodgy stomachs - good to see we've built up a bit of resistance!
Thursday 14 May 2009
09/05/09 - 11/05/09 - Chitwan National Park, Nepal
Eventually we waved goodbye to Pokhara and we did so in style, in a very unusual form of transport for us - a car none the less (its been so long). But it wasn't to last. We had a puncture within half an hour! But there was a spare. Although the tyre had to be fixed before we went any further as with these bumpy roads another puncture (which was pretty likely) would have meant disaster.
So we arrived in Chitwan which is home to a host of wild beasts, including about 70/80 Bengal Tigers - but we were confident that the smell of Graham's feet would entice them out into the open so we could be the lucky few who get to see them. But Tigers were booked into the schedule for later - Elephants were the first attraction.
We saw 3 month old twin baby elephants at the breeding centre - they were so cute. And not daft either as they knew cookies and mineral water are much tastier than what their keepers give them. Graham even managed to get up close and personal with one of them and got his hand covered in elephant snot - trust him. We were also due to go for a ride through the jungle on an elephant but the Mahout's who look after the elephants are on strike - just our luck. But we're going for a jeep safari tomorrow instead, which apparently takes us deeper into the jungle.
So Day 2 started early with a trip up river in a dug out canoe and we silently floated past a few crocodiles! (the Gharial type). The marshes were also covered with loads of different types of weird and wonderful birds such as storks. It was then time to disembark and get the "dos and don'ts" of the jungle before we started our walk back. However, afterwards I'd be damned if I could remember if you should climb a tree for a Rhino, make a noise for a Sloth Bear, take a detour for an Elephant or s*** your pants for a Tiger! Hopefully somebody would remind me which course of action to take if the need arose.
And sure enough not 10 minutes into the jungle and we saw a big croc (a Mass Mugger) - now he could have been going to rob us of our belongings as his name implies but we didn't enjoy his company for long enough to find this out. We then saw a whole group of Macaq Monkeys, but watching them was short lived as we were accompanied by another rare beast - a lesser spotted lanky legged dutchman whose stealth like movements scared them off (along with everything else in the jungle).
So by this point we were just about giving up hope of seeing any "biggies" - when bingo, we spotted a wild rhino casually enjoying a snack. But like all good jungle stories we had to run for our lives to the safety of the observation tower (which just happened to be nearby) - but to be honest we don't think the Rhino even noticed us. But saying that we did watch a group further up the path having to climb a tree (so I would have needed reminding on what to do after all). It was brilliant to watch the Rhino in the wild before it sauntered off to its watering hole.
We were reliving this encounter when the walk was over but things got better - there just happened to be an Elephant getting washed on our walk back to the hotel. Great - we didn't need to be asked twice, we were changed into our bathing gear and joined the Elephant for a dip! Graham sat on the Elephant and was sprayed clean before being thrown in the water. I mentioned earlier that I can't swim so I just splashed some water on the Elephant from a safe distance. This was great fun - Elephants are such amazing animals (Jennifer you would have been jealous).
After lunch we were back on the road and off on the jeep safari - now we were lucky here (must have been our day), we saw all of these: -muntjacs (barking deer), chitals (spotted deer), jarayos (sambar), guars (wild oxen/bison), rhesus macaque and lanquar (mokeys), peacocks, kingfishers and an Asian Paradise Flycatcher. And......3 more Rhino....and a herd of 10 wild Elephants (even our guide hadn't seen them before).
In the end, we did also see a Bengal Tiger - but she was in a cage. Her mother had been a Man Eater and ate 4 humans in 20 days!
Also, to top things off our jeep broke down - now we weren't confident that the AA would cover us for this, but half a dozen Nepalese men can fix a car no bother and before long we had a new battery connection. Good - we were going back to the hotel in one piece for our dinner - not as dinner!
And finally, bizarrely our dinner was Swiss Raclette as our hotel owner was from Leysin - David and Irene just up the road from you!!
So we arrived in Chitwan which is home to a host of wild beasts, including about 70/80 Bengal Tigers - but we were confident that the smell of Graham's feet would entice them out into the open so we could be the lucky few who get to see them. But Tigers were booked into the schedule for later - Elephants were the first attraction.
We saw 3 month old twin baby elephants at the breeding centre - they were so cute. And not daft either as they knew cookies and mineral water are much tastier than what their keepers give them. Graham even managed to get up close and personal with one of them and got his hand covered in elephant snot - trust him. We were also due to go for a ride through the jungle on an elephant but the Mahout's who look after the elephants are on strike - just our luck. But we're going for a jeep safari tomorrow instead, which apparently takes us deeper into the jungle.
So Day 2 started early with a trip up river in a dug out canoe and we silently floated past a few crocodiles! (the Gharial type). The marshes were also covered with loads of different types of weird and wonderful birds such as storks. It was then time to disembark and get the "dos and don'ts" of the jungle before we started our walk back. However, afterwards I'd be damned if I could remember if you should climb a tree for a Rhino, make a noise for a Sloth Bear, take a detour for an Elephant or s*** your pants for a Tiger! Hopefully somebody would remind me which course of action to take if the need arose.
And sure enough not 10 minutes into the jungle and we saw a big croc (a Mass Mugger) - now he could have been going to rob us of our belongings as his name implies but we didn't enjoy his company for long enough to find this out. We then saw a whole group of Macaq Monkeys, but watching them was short lived as we were accompanied by another rare beast - a lesser spotted lanky legged dutchman whose stealth like movements scared them off (along with everything else in the jungle).
So by this point we were just about giving up hope of seeing any "biggies" - when bingo, we spotted a wild rhino casually enjoying a snack. But like all good jungle stories we had to run for our lives to the safety of the observation tower (which just happened to be nearby) - but to be honest we don't think the Rhino even noticed us. But saying that we did watch a group further up the path having to climb a tree (so I would have needed reminding on what to do after all). It was brilliant to watch the Rhino in the wild before it sauntered off to its watering hole.
We were reliving this encounter when the walk was over but things got better - there just happened to be an Elephant getting washed on our walk back to the hotel. Great - we didn't need to be asked twice, we were changed into our bathing gear and joined the Elephant for a dip! Graham sat on the Elephant and was sprayed clean before being thrown in the water. I mentioned earlier that I can't swim so I just splashed some water on the Elephant from a safe distance. This was great fun - Elephants are such amazing animals (Jennifer you would have been jealous).
After lunch we were back on the road and off on the jeep safari - now we were lucky here (must have been our day), we saw all of these: -muntjacs (barking deer), chitals (spotted deer), jarayos (sambar), guars (wild oxen/bison), rhesus macaque and lanquar (mokeys), peacocks, kingfishers and an Asian Paradise Flycatcher. And......3 more Rhino....and a herd of 10 wild Elephants (even our guide hadn't seen them before).
In the end, we did also see a Bengal Tiger - but she was in a cage. Her mother had been a Man Eater and ate 4 humans in 20 days!
Also, to top things off our jeep broke down - now we weren't confident that the AA would cover us for this, but half a dozen Nepalese men can fix a car no bother and before long we had a new battery connection. Good - we were going back to the hotel in one piece for our dinner - not as dinner!
And finally, bizarrely our dinner was Swiss Raclette as our hotel owner was from Leysin - David and Irene just up the road from you!!
08/05/2009 - Pokhara, Nepal
Pokhara has been our base since arriving in Nepal and we have found it difficult to tear ourselves away - we just keeping staying on for another night. It gives us a little bit of western comfort, Nepali style! So after the trek I spent the day relaxing with wi-fi and updating the blog, and unusually Graham left the technology to me and went off sailing with a guy from Paisley!! Of all the places to meet a fellow Buddy.
As you may have guessed the sailing trip on Lake Phewa is worthy of a mention as it didn't provide the chilled out relaxing time which had been planned. No - Graham, his new friend from Paisley and their pal, Bob, were out kayaking in a freak storm!! And from all accounts this did not provide a smooth ride but instead involved water onboard, a bucket, a lot of steering, a scramble up a hill, thorns in the hands and shelter with a local Nepalese lady who gave them tea and biscuits!!
All I can say is - glad I gave it a miss (particularly being a non-swimmer!). Although I did get a bit concerned when a gale blew through the cafe I was in, and our friends from Leith (Ed & Kelly) said they had not been able to make it more than a few metres from shore in their boat. But I was distractred with some chat, a beer and a slice of pizza so I didn't give it too much more thought - at least not until Graham had been away for 4 hours for his 2 hour boat ride!
I was just about to send out the search parties when a protest blocked the road and the effigy burning got underway - and hey ho Graham turns up covered in scratches, a little pissed and in need of another beer!
But alls well that ends well and we ended the day with the best Chateaubriand Steak we have ever tasted (for less than £10 for us both - although I did have to share with a Duff - you never come out a winner in that situation).
Anyway, Graham is on a roll now after the trek and the sailing escapade and he thinks he's invincible - so never a better time to go Rhino spotting!! (We've also renamed the Lake - "Lake Whewa" seems more appropriate now).
As you may have guessed the sailing trip on Lake Phewa is worthy of a mention as it didn't provide the chilled out relaxing time which had been planned. No - Graham, his new friend from Paisley and their pal, Bob, were out kayaking in a freak storm!! And from all accounts this did not provide a smooth ride but instead involved water onboard, a bucket, a lot of steering, a scramble up a hill, thorns in the hands and shelter with a local Nepalese lady who gave them tea and biscuits!!
All I can say is - glad I gave it a miss (particularly being a non-swimmer!). Although I did get a bit concerned when a gale blew through the cafe I was in, and our friends from Leith (Ed & Kelly) said they had not been able to make it more than a few metres from shore in their boat. But I was distractred with some chat, a beer and a slice of pizza so I didn't give it too much more thought - at least not until Graham had been away for 4 hours for his 2 hour boat ride!
I was just about to send out the search parties when a protest blocked the road and the effigy burning got underway - and hey ho Graham turns up covered in scratches, a little pissed and in need of another beer!
But alls well that ends well and we ended the day with the best Chateaubriand Steak we have ever tasted (for less than £10 for us both - although I did have to share with a Duff - you never come out a winner in that situation).
Anyway, Graham is on a roll now after the trek and the sailing escapade and he thinks he's invincible - so never a better time to go Rhino spotting!! (We've also renamed the Lake - "Lake Whewa" seems more appropriate now).
Friday 8 May 2009
1/5/09 - 07/05/09 Annapurna Base Camp, Nepal
We are just back from a 7 day trek to Annapurna Base Camp, which is at 4,130m (about 14,000ft), it was amazing! And more amazingly we walked all the way, although the blisters and our sore knees are going to need a bit more time to recover. Now don't worry, it is still the same Graham and Irene you know and love who have been trekking (never thought you would see the day I know, but there you go). But we always knew we'd make it as we have been training hard - I've been to the gym 3 times in my life and Graham has been eating Butter Chicken and Murgh Makahni for the last 4 weeks - no more training needed.
So we set off last Friday with not much research into what we had signed up for, which was really just as well because if we'd known how tough it was going to be I think we may have just gone back to eating Butter Chicken - but as they say ignorance is bliss. However, it became clear pretty quick that trekking in Nepal is not like climbing a Scottish Munro (not that I would know what that is like either), but Graham assured me that it is based around "walk up hill and then walk back down".
The Foothills of the Himalayas however are a bit more annoying and can really get in the way when you are trying to get somewhere. We trekked for between 5 and 7 hours each day but that didn't mean that you would necessarily be higher up than when you had started in the morning (this can get a wee bit disheartening) - as it was climb up, go back down, then climb up again! But we persevered each day and referred a lot to the poem by granny used to sing about "the tortoise and the hare" - not sure if you are familiar with this one but if you are, we adopted the tortoise's methodology with the "slow and sure" approach.
On the way we also picked up a few bits of Nepali terminology from our guide, let me translate for you:- "Nepali Flat" means up and down all the way but it will not kill you and you will come to think of this as easy and, "Little High" means really f***ing steep, with lots of steps which will make you want to cry and your lungs explode (he used little high too often!).
At night we did manage to rest and it also gave us a chance to meet loads of people from all around the world (who could share in our pain) - Koreans (lots of them), Indians, Danish, Germans, Russians, Australians, New Zealanders, French, Slovenians, Americans, Canadians, Ukranians, English and when we reached the top a couple who live round the corner from us in Leith!!! Freaky.
As we climbed higher and higher the accommodation and facilities diminished - no mineral water, showers, hot water, phone signal, oxygen and of course no western toilets!! But we didn't mind when we reached the top as Annapurna Base Camp (or ABC to us eperienced trekkers) is stunning. Or at least being surrounded on all sides by 8,000m high mountains is amazing! We have never seen scenery like it.
But we had to be patient before the mountains revealed themselves to us as for the last 2 hours of trekking we didn't see a thing and the scenery and weather were so like Scotland it was spooky - rolling hills, mist, hail, snow, ice, a muddy path and the only things growing were wee tufts of grass just like heather. The only differences were we were at 4,000m and the air was thin, but this scenery spurred us on as we felt so at home!
It wasn't until we stepped outside in the darkness to go to the toilet that we saw the silhouettes of the mountains, they took your breath away and it gave going for a pee a whole new appeal! Getting up at 5.30am to watch the sunrise was also fantastic - Graham referred to ABC as God's own Ampitheatre!
After breakfast we then started our descent, which was so much faster - what had taken 5.5 hours the day before took 1.5 the next day. Coming back down was so much easier but it wasn't without its drama.
On day 6 we were just about to start trekking when our guide collapsed. This caused us a lot of worry and concern and at first we thought he may be diabetic so we gave him a mars bar! However, when he had a grand mal epileptic seizure an hour later we realised our diagnosis was wrong! This was very scary and we realised how far we were from help - a 2 day trek and an hour's drive to the nearest hospital. It was also a 1.5 hour trek to the nearest telephone point - where's NHS 24 when you need them! Thankfully a couple of Nepali guides stayed back to help and speak Nepalese to our guide. Graham was pretty key in this whole thing as the guides lack of basic first aid knowledge was also a worry - meanwhile I was a sort of headless chicken although I did manage to remember the recovery position and get some Canadians to phone a doctor in Kathmandu for us. So to cut a long story short our guide recovered and was able to trek out himself and the trek ended safely for us all!!! We even managed to relax in the Hot Springs further down - fantastic!
Overall, this was an amazing experience and we are very proud of ourselves for making it to where real intrepid explorers start being intrepid!!! (and Dad, Willie, Chris and Eric - you would have all loved it).
So we set off last Friday with not much research into what we had signed up for, which was really just as well because if we'd known how tough it was going to be I think we may have just gone back to eating Butter Chicken - but as they say ignorance is bliss. However, it became clear pretty quick that trekking in Nepal is not like climbing a Scottish Munro (not that I would know what that is like either), but Graham assured me that it is based around "walk up hill and then walk back down".
The Foothills of the Himalayas however are a bit more annoying and can really get in the way when you are trying to get somewhere. We trekked for between 5 and 7 hours each day but that didn't mean that you would necessarily be higher up than when you had started in the morning (this can get a wee bit disheartening) - as it was climb up, go back down, then climb up again! But we persevered each day and referred a lot to the poem by granny used to sing about "the tortoise and the hare" - not sure if you are familiar with this one but if you are, we adopted the tortoise's methodology with the "slow and sure" approach.
On the way we also picked up a few bits of Nepali terminology from our guide, let me translate for you:- "Nepali Flat" means up and down all the way but it will not kill you and you will come to think of this as easy and, "Little High" means really f***ing steep, with lots of steps which will make you want to cry and your lungs explode (he used little high too often!).
At night we did manage to rest and it also gave us a chance to meet loads of people from all around the world (who could share in our pain) - Koreans (lots of them), Indians, Danish, Germans, Russians, Australians, New Zealanders, French, Slovenians, Americans, Canadians, Ukranians, English and when we reached the top a couple who live round the corner from us in Leith!!! Freaky.
As we climbed higher and higher the accommodation and facilities diminished - no mineral water, showers, hot water, phone signal, oxygen and of course no western toilets!! But we didn't mind when we reached the top as Annapurna Base Camp (or ABC to us eperienced trekkers) is stunning. Or at least being surrounded on all sides by 8,000m high mountains is amazing! We have never seen scenery like it.
But we had to be patient before the mountains revealed themselves to us as for the last 2 hours of trekking we didn't see a thing and the scenery and weather were so like Scotland it was spooky - rolling hills, mist, hail, snow, ice, a muddy path and the only things growing were wee tufts of grass just like heather. The only differences were we were at 4,000m and the air was thin, but this scenery spurred us on as we felt so at home!
It wasn't until we stepped outside in the darkness to go to the toilet that we saw the silhouettes of the mountains, they took your breath away and it gave going for a pee a whole new appeal! Getting up at 5.30am to watch the sunrise was also fantastic - Graham referred to ABC as God's own Ampitheatre!
After breakfast we then started our descent, which was so much faster - what had taken 5.5 hours the day before took 1.5 the next day. Coming back down was so much easier but it wasn't without its drama.
On day 6 we were just about to start trekking when our guide collapsed. This caused us a lot of worry and concern and at first we thought he may be diabetic so we gave him a mars bar! However, when he had a grand mal epileptic seizure an hour later we realised our diagnosis was wrong! This was very scary and we realised how far we were from help - a 2 day trek and an hour's drive to the nearest hospital. It was also a 1.5 hour trek to the nearest telephone point - where's NHS 24 when you need them! Thankfully a couple of Nepali guides stayed back to help and speak Nepalese to our guide. Graham was pretty key in this whole thing as the guides lack of basic first aid knowledge was also a worry - meanwhile I was a sort of headless chicken although I did manage to remember the recovery position and get some Canadians to phone a doctor in Kathmandu for us. So to cut a long story short our guide recovered and was able to trek out himself and the trek ended safely for us all!!! We even managed to relax in the Hot Springs further down - fantastic!
Overall, this was an amazing experience and we are very proud of ourselves for making it to where real intrepid explorers start being intrepid!!! (and Dad, Willie, Chris and Eric - you would have all loved it).
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