Snap back to reality

Saturday 29^th August 2015

This morning I left Vietnam! I woke up early and checked out. Annoyingly the breakfast wasn’t ready even though it was supposed to start at 6.30am so all I got was bananas.

I shared a taxi to the airport with another girl and checked in straight in and walked about the airport where I bumped into a guy I met in Cambodia we caught up for a while then I went and boarded my plane.

I slept most of the three hour flight but woke up to a swollen throbbing arm I had to wait for everyone to get off the plane as everyone was in a rush to get moving.

I got out of the airport and got on the bus into kl Sentral along the way we stopped a few times to watch the Bersih protest at the station I got the LRT (train) to Pasar Seni and came out in the midst of the protest and had to navigate my way to the hostel.

I checked in and was upset to find I had been allocated a top bunk and also that there was 6% GST on the cost as well making it more expensive. So I had to go out for more cash.

I found some food and chilled in the common area for a bit before going to bed to watch a movie.

Sunday 30^th August 2015

Today was a really lazy day I woke up and waited for ages hoping someone else would wake up so that I could get down from the top bunk without smashing my face. Unfortunately no one got up so I had to brave it and successfully landed on my feet.

I got ready for the day and then went down for breakfast and ended up chatting to a girl for several hours. Eventually I had to go back upstairs to move beds and ended up having a nap for a while when I came down I went out to get some food but it was a struggle to find anything vegetarian.

On the way back to the hostel I picked up some cookies and sat drinking tea and munching all evening whilst watching big hero six.

At about 10.30pm I went out and got some food and watched the end of the Bersih protest and the countdown to Merdeka which was an amazing experience it was like a carnival atmosphere which was really interesting. We spent some time talking to a really lovely family who explained everything and translated things the crowd was chanting etc.

By the time we got back I was exhausted and fell into bed tired.

Monday 31^st August 2015

This morning I woke up needing the bathroom and thinking it was the middle of the night so was surprised when I came out and it was really light and it was actually 8am so I got up.

I had a shower and had some breakfast and then around 10am went to the Merdeka (Independence Day) parade but it was mostly over which was a shame but we saw some huge balloons and lots of people cheering.

I walked through the central market to the train station and got a train to KLCC where I walked around and killed a few hours having a picnic for one in the park.

Back at the hostel I sorted the last of my Vietnam photos and chilled out for a while in the evening I went for dinner in Chinatown then watched a movie in the hostel.

Tuesday 1^st September 2015

I had a last lazy morning sitting around watching CNN news but began to feel a little depressed by all of the stupidity and doom and gloom of the media so headed out.

I got the train to KL Sentral with another girl and we had amazing pancakes at a place in the mall before walking to little India.

We spent the late afternoon strolling along looking in the many shops and chatting to people who stopped me to comment on my tattoo (and take loads of photos)

We weren’t really hungry but a really nice woman recommended a vegetarian Indian restaurant so we had an early dinner before continuing on our way. While we were eating it started to rain heavily and was still drizzling as we walked back to the train station.

Back at the hostel we sat about for a bit then walked to Chinatown to get some fruit then chilled out till it was time to seep.

Wednesday 2^nd September 2015

For some unknown reason I booked a haircut for 11am so had to actually get up and moving. I had a shower and some breakfast then got the train to KL Sentral and found the salon. The result wasn’t exactly what I had in mind but hopefully after a wash I can fix it how I want as currently it’s very sleek.

After the cut I walked around the mall a bit and then went back to the hostel to watch a movie. I sat in the common area and streamed a couple of movies interspersed with occasional conversation with other people hanging about.

In the evening a friend and I went to the mall at KL Sentral to get some food we ended up at a burger bar right next to Celebrity Fitness and stuffed our faces whilst watching spin and Zumba. I’m not sure I’d be happy to exercise while people stared through the windows some people were even filming the Zumba class on their phones…

We felt pretty stuffed so when we got back we took a walk around Chinatown arriving back at the hostel just in time to farewell another friend. I watched a bit of a movie on the TV in the common room and then retreated to bed.

Thursday 3^rd September 2015

So today was my last full day travelling and I spent it doing nothing so spectacular. This girl in my room woke up around 5am and spent an age rummaging around her bag and going in and out of the room only to finally take a shower and go back to bed! It was hugely annoying and I couldn’t really get back to sleep.

Eventually I got up and had a long breakfast before sorting through and packing my bags. Once that was done I sat about waiting for things to charge so I would have movies and books for the plane.

Around 2pm I went for a walk just to get some fresh air and ended up walking to Bukit Bintang which is s huge shopping area. The pavilion mall there is huge and I got lost in there searching for something to eat. I ate and then had to search for my way back out and walk back to the hostel. Along the way I encountered (yet another) literal wanker calming jerking himself off on a bench.

I got back to the hostel and chilled out in the cool ac before getting an early dinner the food was pretty good but overpriced and the place lacked atmosphere so we didn’t stick around long.

We walked through Chinatown and picked up some sacks as we were still a bit hungry and then went back to the hostel and spent the evening watching movies.

Friday 4^th September 2015

Last night it was a bit hard to sleep as I knew that today I would be getting on a plane back to the UK. I got up and dressed and went to meet my old KL flatties for breakfast. We were supposed to meet at 9am but due to traffic there was a bit of a hold up.

Emily and I had breakfast and then walked about ten minutes to the bookshop where she works (as she had to be back at work) and we met the others there. Mic arrived with a friend who is staying with her and a bit later Sidney arrived as well.

We walked to another café close by and I had tea while the others ate and we caught up on the last two years! Around 11.30am I had to leave to get back to the hostel in time to pack and check out. I checked out and then had a shower and got all my things together ready to go.

I spent my last few hours willing time to move a bit quicker and drinking endless cups of tea in preparation for England.

Now I have less than an hour before I leave or the airport! The last 291 days (yip that’s how long I’ve been on the road!) have been amazing! Huge thanks to everyone who has been a part of the journey I hope that our paths will cross again somewhere someday! See you all on the other side (of the world!!!) Peace and Love xxxx

Hanoi

Tuesday 18^th August 2015

I got up at 6am this morning feeling exhausted and threw o some clothes and headed for the bus. All I wanted to do was sleep but I was sat next to a very chatty girl. The conversation was great but all I wanted was sleep. We arrived in Hanoi at the My Dinh bus station which is ages from anywhere. The taxi was expensive and wasn’t a great welcome to the city.

I arrived at the hostel and checked in before making my way to the hospital which was ages away. Annoyingly I had to wait an hour to see the Dr who promptly told me it was fine no surgery needed. He changed the cast to a fibreglass one and gave me a real sling which is much more comfortable than a piece of string. And it was all billed to insurance.

Back at the hostel after yet another taxi ride I spent the afternoon chatting with people in the lounge and trying to stay awake later on I met a bunch of people from my room and we all went and had a meal together at an Indian place.

Wednesday 19^th August 2015

I got up feeling frustrated with my arm which makes me so slow. I had to sort out my insurance claim and try and change a flight but it was all going nowhere and getting me down so I went off to spend the day sightseeing.

There were eight pf us on bikes but we didn’t really see much as everywhere seemed to be closed. I did find an organic shop that has farm projects over Vietnam and spent some time talking to the woman who worked there. We went to a temple of literature but it was so hot and my arm hurt so much I didn’t really take much in.

After lunch which I didn’t eat and a delicious mango shake that I did drink we drove about getting lost in pursuit of the bus station which we eventually found and booked tickets to Cat Ba Island which is in Halong Bay.

On the way back to return the bikes we got lost again and took a huge detour across two bridges which was pretty beautiful. Once the bikes were back I headed to the post office to post my insurance documents and the later we all had dinner together.

brief encounter with beauty

Monday 17^th August 2015

The night bus was supposed to arrive at 6am but I knew that wasn’t going to happen when I woke up around 4am and we still had (according to goggle maps) more than three hours to go. Eventually to long before 7am the driver shouted Ninh Binh and turfed us out on the side of the road.

It was 3km to the hostel so we jumped in a taxi and were soon checked in the dorm was full so I was upgraded to a private room which was pretty nice and had fantastic views! After a quick shower I had breakfast and then chilled out for a short time.

Ninh Binh was the place I was most excited to see so I was disappointed that the river trip I wanted to do was quite far away. But there was one right on my doorstep and it was super stunning it was only 90minutes but that was enough as the combo of extreme heat no sleep on the bus and my throbbing arm was making me wish for the cool ac room.

The boat went up river for about 12km through three caves and then back the same way the natural landscape was amazing and the river was fairly quiet except for the many boats touting beer and other cold drinks.

Back on land I looked through my photos and uploaded some to fb then went and ate pretty much the worst meal I’ve had in Asia before crashing and watching a film.

In the evening we found a nice little restaurant that whipped me up a delightful tofu and noodles dish then I had an early night

Hoi An

 Monday 10^th August 2015

The night bus arrived in about 2.5 hours late but it actually made things better for us to not arrive at 6am we had a hotel transfer which we all piled into only to be taken back to the bus station to pick more people up and eventually get to our hostel. We couldn’t check in until about 11am so I went out to find some food with one of the guys from the bus.

We found a little café in the ancient city and after eating took a walk around for a few hours we didn’t have the ancient city ticket so we couldn’t go inside everywhere but popped our heads through the door and carried on. Around 10.30am we started back to the hostel where we had to hang around for about an hour before we could check in and the staff were super rude about it.

Eventually we could get into the room I dumped my bag and got changed and then went with a couple of other people to rent bikes to cycle the 4km to the beach. The ride was easy it’s a straight flat road so didn’t take much time but when we arrived there seemed to be a bit of a scam to pay to park we did it as it was cheap and that seemed the safest way to ensure our bike didn’t ride away.

We arrived about midday and spent most of the day swimming and sunbathing I took a book from the hostel which kept me occupied and I enjoyed getting a bit more bronzed. Around 4.30pm we set off back to the hostel where I had a shower in a dingy bathroom with a grey towel (this hostel is the worst in Vietnam!!!) and then chilled out a while before dinner.

We went to an India restaurant for dinner which was amazing and the portions were huge and delicious which was just what I needed. After we ate we walked around the ancient city for a while before heading back to the hostel feeling pretty exhausted.

Tuesday 11th August 2015

This morning I woke up and wanted to sleep more but it was one of those days were sleep eluded me and so I got up and had breakfast. It was an all you can eat buffet and I ate all I could eat. After breakfast I booked my next bus and then rented a bike to go to the beach.

We went to Cua Dai Beach which was about 7km away from town and was much smaller than the other one it was a pretty beach but the coastline was clearly suffering from erosion and there was sandbags along long stretches of sand.

We set up a little place on the beach under some trees and spent an enjoyable few hours reading in the sunshine. After a bit a couple of girls I met in Dalat arrived and we sat and talked to them for quite some time before they had to head off and onwards to their next destination.

We stayed sitting on the beach for quite some time and headed back into town around 4pm. After a quick stop at the hostel we went to the ancient town to a café we had been told about at breakfast. It was called reach out café and is run by deaf and speech impaired locals. It’s a silent café and all ordering etc. is done by hand gestures, writing things down and little wooden blocks with words on.

It was a really tranquil place to sit and drink several pots of tea and eat plates of cookies for an hour or so. Afterwards I walked back to the hostel via the post office to post some postcards and then back to the hostel where I had a shower and chilled out before dinner.

This morning at breakfast I had overheard a girl talking about a vegetarian restaurant and had asked her where it was. It was an amazing little place and I had a huge bowl of pumpkin it was so exciting! All the food was Vietnamese but without the stress of making sure it didn’t contain fish so was an absolute win after eating we just headed back to the hostel and I read until late.