Perhentian Islands – Another piece of perfection

One of the girls I met in Penang Kelsey wanted to go too so we booked our tickets ourselves at the bus station to save money. (Most hostels advertise trips to the Perhentians for 150Ringit) Our ticket from Penang to Kota Baru was only 40ringit. The bus took 10am and took almost 8hours. The bus station is quite far from the centre of Kota Baru so we decdied to hitch hike. I had never done this before and was a bit apprehensive but Kelsey (a pro at this) was great and our driver dropped us off at a friends hostel (KB backpackers) and gave us his card in case we ever had trouble in Malaysia. Our hostel owner was very helpful with our trip to the Perhentians. He gave us our return boat tickets to the Perhentians (70 ringit return) and showed us which bus to take to get to the ferry terminal.

paradise

The next day was a very early start to catch our bus (439) to Kuala Besut. It was only 7ringgit for an hour and a half bus ride. This bus also left us outside the boat ferry. It is advisable to get to the ferry terminal early as it gets quite busy. Also an early arrival will give you more accommodation options when you finally reach the islands. The boat was a 30 minute hair raising ride. The boats drag raced over big waves which had everyone holding onto their seats.

Once we reached the islands we knew we were staying on long beach and stayed on the boat until this stop. The boat captain (if you can call him that) said that you have to pay 5 ringit go to get to land. This is only on long beach. If you don’t mind a short 5 minute walk get off at Coral bay (on the other side of the island) and walk across to Long beach to avoid this charge.

Once we got to long beach we found accommodation in Oh La La. This is a bar on the beach which also has accommodation. For myself and Kelsey we paid 35ringgit (split between us) per night. Once settled in our room we set off in search of dive schools as we both wanted to dive here. The Perhentians supposedly has great diving but as we arrived just after Monsoon Season the visibility wasn’t great.

Sunrise on our first morning in the Perhentians!

In the end we dived with Bakawan divers on Coral Bay. They are a newly opened dive school replacing (Steffan Sea Sports) and for about 80 ringgit for a fun dive we didn’t complain. Our dive master was Jerry and he was brilliant. He showed us around  temple of the sea as well as the sugar wreck. The temple of the sea had decent visibility (although we thought it was bad at the time) but, we only realised after we did the sugar wreck. Still it was quite exciting to dive another place in the world.

Kelsey and I – Dive buddies

Just keep swimming! 

With Jerry, our dive master! 🙂

Sugar Wreck

The rest of our time on the Perhentians was spent snorkelling in which we go to see turtles and different types of fish!

 

 

Definitely the Perhentinans was a highlight of my time in Malaysia. I really enjoyed the lazy island lifestyle. Unfortunately on the way to the ferry my shitty phone and my kindle got covered in water due to a leak in my bottle. Both didn’t survive the attack. This time I really couldn’t give a crap (I was a little annoyed by my kindle as reading definitely kept me sane on this trip.)

Needless to say I was very upset to leave this paradise. Yet another island steals my heart! 🙂

Hostel:

KB backpackers: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/malaysia/peninsular-malaysia-east-coast/kota-bharu/hotels/kb-backpackers-lodge

Oh La La – Perhentian Kecil – http://www.ohlalaperhentian.com/

Bakawan divers – http://www.bakawandivers.com/

 

Penang – delicious street food

It was about a 20 hour trip but once we got to Penang we noticed there was street food everywhere, so it was definitely worth it! That was my favourite thing about the city. There was good and cheap food everywhere.  Penang itself is a great backpacker spot and it was really easy to meet other travellers, great restaurants, museums and street art was everywhere!

kiss that cute kitty nose!

My first hostel in Penang was a hostel with no name in the centre of Chinatown. Chinatown is also a stones throw from Little India which had AMAZING food!  The hostel was basic but did me for two nights until I moved. I met so many other travellers from Belgium, America and the UK just to name a few. It was great to walk around this small city and it had lots of fun street art painted on the walls which was really fun to try and find.

Nights were spent at the night food market and wandering around the town. There is also a reggae bar that offers free spirits and mixers for girls during their happy hour which is great for the ladies! The food market is a really great place to meet other travellers but the locals love it too and they are so friendly. This is a thing I really enjoyed about Malaysia. Everyone has a really good level of English and will not hesitate to help you.

Penang was nice but I was just dreaming of beaches again! 🙂

After 3 days I moved on again. I was bound for the Perhentian islands on the east coast of Malaysia. One of the girls I had met in Penang, Kelsey was travelling with me.

My first hostel didn’t have a name. It was pretty basic including a large mouse/small rat that used to make the odd appearance. My second hostel heritage 56 (very close to love lane) was ok but boiling hot at night. There was not enough fans/ventilation at all. There is no website available for it!

 

Koh Tao – Advanced Open Water

My next stop again was Koh Tao to do my advanced open water course. I was glad to go back to this island again as I felt so at home there the last time. When I went back to Alvaro diving to book my course I was met with smiles, laughter and hugs. The staff remembered me and thought I might not come back but with the service I had the last time it would have been rude not to return. My advanced diving course took three days and I got to dive with other members of the alvaro staff. For my advanced I had to do dives for buoyancy, underwater navigation, a night dive, a deep dive  and a computer dive. Once I had these completed I officially had my advanced certification that would allow me down to a maximum of 30meters.

Koh Tao…probably the place where I felt most settled on my travels. I had to go back for round 2!

During my time in Koh Tao it was St. Patricks day so I took my tricolor down for an underwater picture. It was about time that it spent some time underwater as it has travelled around the world overland with me. St. Patricks night I spent on a boat watching some Dive Masters in Training losing their training wheels. This is done through a snorkel test where a bucket of alcohol is poured through a snorkel which has to be drank in one go. Quite the test but definitely fun to watch. Although there was some protest with the drinks poured in the snorkel afterwards everyone did quite well. The banter on the boat was brilliant and looking back it was a Paddy’s day on the leagues of Korea.

Wreck dive – Sattakut

St. Paddy’s day selfie!

Fishies on the buoy line!

DMT’s about to do their snorkel test

Big thanks for Lio, Judith and Sascha for helping me with my diving technique and getting me up to scratch for my advanced cert! The day after St. Patricks day I went on two fun dives. I had only planned to go on one but Judith told me I should take the second one because she would show me a turtle. On my second dive I saw just that. It definitely made my day!

First turtle! 🙂

Later that day I made plans to leave Thailand as my visa was due to run out in the coming days. I booked a boat and bus from Koh Tao to bring me to Penang in Malaysia, a guy from my hostel Terance came with me so I was not alone. 20 hours by myself would have been hell with no one to talk to or talk at!

Hostel:

Koh Tao Hostel: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g303910-d4843831-Reviews-Koh_Tao_Hostel-Ko_Tao_Surat_Thani_Province.html

 

Krabi, Koh Phi Phi and a quick stop in Koh Lanta

The next stop was Bangkok to catch a bus to Krabi which again was a lazy town with many small reggae bars. The thing I enjoyed about Krabi was its close proximity to Railay a part of Thailand famous for its beautiful beaches and rock formations that rock climbers travel from far away for. Apart from seeing Railay beach the place I found the most beautiful in Railay was the lagoon. Located in the middle of the island you must rock climb using ropes to climb up and down to get to this lagoon. It’s worth it for the crystal blue water. Although I was filthy coming back from the lagoon if I had more time in Krabi I would have visited Railay again.

Chilling out in Railay lagoon

From Krabi I took a boat to Koh Phi Phi an island famous for being near Maya bay for which  the movie “The Beach” starring Leonardo Di Caprio is famous. The island itself is absolutely beautiful but very croweded  with backpackers. I was lucky enough to meet three boys I had met on a bus from Bangkok so we all headed to the view point in Koh Phi Phi together and also headed out that night to party in which my handbag with my phone and brand new go pro were stolen.

last photo taken on go pro number 1 😦

I saw someone standing close by in the dark and next thing my whole bag was gone. I was helped by a really nice Argentinian guy who was with me when the bag got stolen. We asked locals to help but they all rang each other on their phones and talked amongst each other when I was asking where to go to find the police so it really made me think that robbery on the island is an inside job with the locals and the police. When I finally made it to the station the police were mostly rude and quite unhelpful which really made me angry.

But, although I was angry about my belongings I would go back to Koh Phi Phi. The day after I went on a sunset boat trip in which I got to see lots of beautiful scenery, snorkelled and saw Maya bay. 

 

Maya bay!

pretty boats

crowds

Another awesome sunset

That was certainly a highlight along with two amazing dives with adventure club dive school in Koh Phi Phi. It was my first time to see some reef sharks so it was definitely a high! The handy thing about Koh Phi Phi is that the dive schools all have a price agreement across the island.  The main problem is trying to choose a dive school itself! After waiting a couple of days to see if my bag resurfaced I sadly left Koh Phi Phi to head to Koh Lanta empty handed for two days.

Koh Lanta was a quiet stop for me. I managed to replace my phone only to find out a few days after that it was a “duplicate” phone….and also a piece of shit. I use my phone to keep in contact with my family on the go so I was glad to have a phone again although it was quite laggy. I booked my onward ticket to Bangkok to just replace my gopro. An expensive loss but with hindsight I do not regret doing this. I talked to the same girl that sold me my first go pro and she asked why I was buying again and when I told her my story she gave me 600baht off my new go pro! Some little bit of success came from my loss!

Hostel:

Mr. Local Dorm Room: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g303908-d3930177-Reviews-Mr_Local_Dorm_Rooms-Ko_Phi_Phi_Don_Krabi_Province.html

I wouldn’t really recommend this place to anyone unless you just want to put your head down to sleep for a few hours. Beware of bedbugs! I was bitten alive here! 😦

 

 

Chiangmai

After 2 days I was glad to head on to Chiang Mai. I met a fellow traveller in my hostel  and we headed to a hostel in Chiangmai together. I spent one day wandering around the town and I was pretty unimpressed. The only highlight to my trip to Chiangmai was my trip to Dante elephant camp.

A friend had recommended this elephant trekking camp to me but I struggled to find information for contacting them online. I went to a tour agency called travel hub and they sorted my booking. The price was about 2500 baht but it includes pick up, lunch, trekking and learning about the elephants for a few hours. It was amazing!

My pick up was at about 8.30am. It took about an hour to get to the camp itself. We spent about 2 hours learning how to command and ride the elephants before a break for lunch. After we rode the elephants up some hills and then down to a local river for a swim and a bath!

Myself and my elephant – “dancing girl”

The baby was a cutie!

I am now of the opinion that elephants are much better than tigers when I compare my time at the elephant camp compared to the tiger temple!

 

Hostel:

SoHostel Chiangmai: http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/So-Hostel-Chiangmai/Chiang-Mai/65017

 

 

 

 

 

Back to Bangkok and Pai

Arriving back in Bangkok I headed for CheQinn hostel. It is located by nana MBT station. I booked this hostel as a guy in my hostel in Yangon was on my flight and we could split the cost of the taxi. I would not stay in this hostel again. The area is definitely very seedy. Lots of bars with horrific looking lady boys, old men with thai girls and these guys look old enough to be their grandfather. The hostel was nice inside but had unstable bunkbeds which shook way too much when you turned in your sleep and the bed was far from comfortable.

My next two days in Bangkok was spent wandering around and treating myself to a new GoPro underwater sports camera at the MBK shopping center. I wanted one for a while but since diving I wanted one even more as I really wanted to take pictures of what I see underwater!

Go Pro Hero 3+ – via google images

Happy with my new purchase I headed north to Pai to chill out after Myanmar and see an old friend Doug who I hung out with in Korea. I had to travel to Chiangmai over night and catch a connecting mini bus to Pai itself. Exhausted after the night of travelling I slept through this mini bus ride and awoke to wretching. Many people get quite car sick on the way to Pai due to the 762 bends between Chiangmai and Pai.

Pai is a sleepy little town. It’s become quite famous in the past few years due to the Asian film “Pai in Love” so lots of Asian tour groups come to take pictures! I quickly checked into a room and met my friend Doug  for a good catch up.

After this a group of us (some Aussies and another American) headed to a pretty cool waterfall which you could slide into. The rest of the day was spent chilling out and doing nothing.

Pai waterfall…via google images

 

The night life in Pai is pretty dead and I didn’t really feel like partying as I felt indifferent to it. (I think I was a little culture shocked from Myanmar itself for some reason!) What is really amazing about Pai is the hippie influence. Some would call it cool I found it just so infuriating. Some of the people who thought they were “hippies” seemed like they were trying WAYY TOO HARD to me. I don’t understand why people try to be someone else while travelling.

The next day we decided to head to fluid a swimming pool and general chill out area just outside Pai. For 60 baht you can go into the pool area, lie in the sun, drink beer and snooze to your hearts content. Some nice music plays in the background. It was perfect to cool off and talk to people.

Afterwards we headed for Pai canyon to watch the sun set. It was really pretty. Definately worth the ride during the day.

My driver for the day

Yours truly at the Pai canyon

Sunset friends

Hostels:

Bangkok – CheQinn hostel – http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/CheQinn/Bangkok/56261http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/CheQinn/Bangkok/56261

Pai – Common grounds – http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Common-Grounds-Pai/Pai/81682

 

 

Yangon

The bus to Yangon took about 13 hours and I headed straight into town to my guest house Chan Myaye. This hostel is expensive but Myanmar definitely needs more of these style premesis. It was comfortable, it had HOT SHOWERS, quiet and very central.

Once back in Yangon I was quite lazy due to the stupid amount of travelling I had done in the past few days. I did go out with a few people from the hostel and ended up at a club and it was quite boring. The next day I decided to take the circle line  train which I thoroughly enjoyed! I went with two people from my hostel and only stopped in one place (Danyingon station) and got stranded for a few hours. We really got to see local life and again the foreigners were the stars of the show!

playtime

Lovely lady at the train station…she didn’t have a word of english!

The next day was time to go home.   Taxi’s from the bus station or to the airport from downtown Yangon are quite expensive ; roughly 8,000 kyat but I decided I wanted to save money! I decided to exchange my money with another traveller in return for baht and decided to take the adventurous way to the airport. Local bus and pick up. I took the bus number 51 from merchant street west of the Sule Pagoda. I had a picture of number 51 and people pointed me in the right direction. I was told it would cost 200 kyat to ten mile market by the airport but an old lady who spoke English paid my way and had a chat with me. When I arrived at the ten mile market I couldn’t find a pick up to take me to the airport so I took a taxi for a dollar. So my saving was a grand total of 7,000 kyat. Definitely an adventure and a cheap one at that!

Myanmar numbers….very different! – Via google images

My accommodation was Chan Mayaye guesthouse. It was lovely but expensive for a dorm at $12 for a bed. It is central just south of the Sule Pagoda but definately not noisy!

Telephone: 95-1-382-022

 

 

Sittwe – Mrauk U – Sittwe – Thaunggok

The next morning was a 6am start to be at the jetty before 7. The boat was due to leave at 7.30am and I needed to book my bus ticket from Thaunggok to Yangon. I had two full days in Mrauk U before I had to leave  to go back to Sittwe. The boat took about 3 hours from Sittwe to Mrauk U.

Below is a picture of the time tables between Sittwe and Mrauk-U. This is correct as of February 2014. The ferrys run daily, I would book ahead if you can. The ferry actually leaves at 7.30 from Sittwe but you have to be there at 7am for check in.

Shwe Pyi Tan takes 2-3 hours and is $20. Quite a comfortable boat.

Aung Kyaw Moe takes 4-6 hours and is $10.  This is very basic. Hard wooden seats line the top deck while the locals sit on the ground.

Government ship is $6 and takes 5-7 hours. Probably more basic than Aung Kyaw Moe! I didn’t take this boat so I can’t comment on it!

TImetable for ferrys between Sittwe and Mrauk U – sorry for the scribbles!

On arrival to Mrauk U I had to walk for 5 minutes to my guest house Royal city. A single room was $10 here. Immediately I dropped my bag and went off to explore with Takuma and another traveller Paul on bikes.

Lunch was at Moe Cherry by the city walls in Mrauk U. 4,000 kyat for a meal with unlimited rice and baby potatoes. It was expensive compared to other restraunts in Myanmar but definitely worth it. Cycling around on the bike I could see why Mrauk U is known as “little bagan” It doesn’t have as many huge temples as Bagan but its padogas are built on top of little hills which make the scenery very pretty.

Inside the HtukKanThein Temple

Koe thaung Temple

Koe thaung Temple

Shite thaung Temple

The sunset at Mrauk U Was spectacular. We did end up chasing it on our bikes for a better view but failed miserably!

An early night was had again to be up for the sunrise of my second and final day in Mrauk U. Although we got there in plenty of time we never saw the sunrise. It was too cloudy. We did see some fantastic rays though the clouds. Defeated we marched down and back to the hotel for a little breakfast. I headed off again to get lost in little villages, interact with some locals and take pictures of some delighted and giddy children.

These boys followed me up a hill to watch me taking photos!

I couldn’t find these on the map and the locals couldn’t name them.

The kids were very excited about the camera

Family photo time

goofs

Just after lunch it got painfully humid which meant only one thing…..a huge downpour. Caught about 15 minutes from my hotel I was soaked to the bones by the time I got back much to the amusement of onlookers and the hotel staff as I peddled my bike as hard as I could back. The rest of the day was nonstop downpour but I felt that I had got most of what I wanted to see covered. I managed to do a huge loop of the area on my bike!

The next morning was another early rise. My ferry to Sittwe was due to leave at 7am. I was on the boat for 6.30 watching all the passengers push and shove their way onto the boats. About 5 scooters were loaded onto the boat. About 3 people had to wheel each scooter onto the ferry on a plank of wood. There was a few hairy moments were I thought it would fall off into the water but they all made it safe and sound!

Mrauk U jetty

Getting a scooter on the boat

The ferry took about 5 hours and was 10USD. It was a two decked boat and the journey was very cold. The locals cuddled up together in a crowd with blankets and hot drinks and I shivered under my scarf. The sunrise was very pretty this time round. It lit up the whole area and it made me sad that I couldn’t spend another day there.

pretty

The sunrise I wanted the day before

At midday I got off the boat and headed for my guesthouse Sun Moon which I’d booked two days before. The staff here are very friendly and the woman has passing English….even though the room was definitely not nice I would stay here again in a heart beat as the owners are so lovely. Exhausted I took a nap and woke up in time to get to The Point for the sunset. The owners of Sun Moon gave me their bike for free and pointed me in the right direction. The cycle took about 20 minutes.

I enjoyed 2 hours in the dwindling sun paddling in the water of the Bay of Bengal, posing with locals on the beach, playing with dogs, watching some beach soccer and reading my book. The sunset was spectacular also.

Met a group of girls on the beach. They wanted a picture with me….I wanted a picture with them

canine companions

Back at the guest house I met a tour guide who gave me a history lesson on Rhakine state, educated the owners on where I was from and also my relationship status (they were very shocked that I was travelling alone) and gave me a history lesson on Myanmar and spoke a bit on the genocide that happened in the state at the hands of Muslims.(I didn’t feel entirely comfortable with the conversation as political talk can get people into trouble) After this I said my farewells and I was given lots of water and snacks for my trip back and even a hug from the woman at the guest house. Being the first Irish girl at the premises had its perks.

5am I was collected from the guest house to be at the jetty in time for the boat which was due to leave at 6. It didn’t leave until 6.40 and it was thoroughly packed! The boat again took about 10 hours and due to a little bit of food poisoning and or motion sickness it was a long ride indeed. The boat arrived in at 4pm which was also the time that my bus left for Yangon. In a panic the immigration officer put me on the back of a moto taxi. The driver reeked of whiskey as he flew down the road. He managed to get me on my bus just before it left (late again!) at 4.20 and he laughed as I thanked him profusely in Burmese  Jay Su Thim Ba Day!

Unfortunately I don’t have the contract details for Sun Moon guest house. But if you ask one of the locals who speak English they should be able to direct you!

In Mrauk U I stayed at Royal City Guesthouse. It is only about 5 minutes walk from the jetty. A single room with a shared bathroom is $10 and it included breakfast. The staff were really friendly and helpful.

Telephone: +95 502 400

 

 

Thaunggok to Sittwe

For my journey to Thaunggok I had to make 5 copies of my passport for border checks. Rakine state is a restricted area due to genocide in the past and they want to see who is entering and leaving the area. The bus took roughly 7 hours, we arrived at Thaunggok at about 4am had to wait at the bus station for a tuk tuk to the boat.

The boat to Sittwe from Thaunggok was 30USD…A return ticket costs 50USD but I opted not to buy it because there was confusion about the return days from the ticket seller. He really struggled to tell us what days the boat ran in English. I decided to be safe and book it on the other side! The boat left about 6.40am. (it was due to leave at 6 or so I was told)

I was impressed by the boat itself It was comfortable and warm. The journey took about 10 hours with two stops to pick up other passengers. We had coffee and snacks for breakfast, rice and chicken for lunch and another snack before we left the boat. This was all included in the price. Not bad.

On arrival to Sittwe I met Sam one of the managers of the ticket agencies in Sittwe. He put myself and Takuma (a Japanese guy who I met on the boat) on a tuk tuk to find some accommodation. Before you travel to Sittwe book a place in advance. Most hotels will be$ 40-$60 at least. An absolute rip off. There are guest houses but many can’t take foreigners and the ones that can fill up quick. Myself and Takuma ended up getting a twin room for 25usd each as everywhere was full.

Immediately I booked my ticket to Mrauk U for 20USD and my boat back to Sittwe for 35USD. I wanted to book everything so I wouldn’t be stressed in Mrauk U.

After a look at the market and some dinner I booked a little guest house called Sun Moon guest house for my next night in Sittwe.

Little poser!

 

My hotel in Sittwe was Noble Hotel. It was actually really nice but not friendly for a backpacker budget. It was $50 for a twin room for the night. This was the cheapest possible find as the other places had filled up quick. A nice buffet breakfast is available from 6am.

Telephone: +95 432 3558

 

 

 

Pyay

This post will be short and sweet as Pyay was a very basic, quiet town.

It took about 8 hours from Bagan to Pyay stopping every so often. When we did eventually arrive in Pyay one girl left for her guest house. Myself and Lydia who I met on the bus decided to walk around and look for a place to stay. An hour later we had checked several places all saying “no foreigner” and we wandered aimlessly around. Two boys passed on bikes and gave us a lift to Yoma royal hotel. They had a room available at the price of $5 per person. Perfect.

Walking to our room we noticed doors opening and faces peering out….all male. It seems that we stayed a night in an all male lodging house but for the cheap price we did not care!

The next day (Valentines day!) I booked my bus ticket to Thaunggok/Taungup (two spelling for this!) for about $13 I was due to leave at 8.30pm. The rest of the day we spent wandering around the town seeing everything and nothing!

big buddha near the Shwesandaw Pagoda

Found a little arcade on the side of the street!

Valentine’s chocolate date!

Myself and Lydia with some girls we met in a temple!

 

Yoma royal hotel  was my accommodation here. At $5 I really couldn’t complain.  The toilets left a lot to be desired and it is badly in need of repair. A tired backpacker would be happy to see this place!

Telephone: +95 532 1824

Some drivers and people might say that Yoma royal hotel doesn’t take foreigners. It must have recently got its license!