Day 47 – 1st April- Cottesloe Beach Woke up, got ready, had breakfast – routine is important. We walked on down to the train station where we purchased our smartriders. We made our way to the platform and caught the train heading to Freemantle. It was about half hour trip, followed by a nice steep hill finally arriving to the beach. Jodi carefully picked our spot to lay down, waded in the freezing cold water in between topping up our tans. We grabbed a quick bite to eat in the limited array of cafes, and promptly returned to laying and sunning ourselves. We caught the train back and wandered along our favourite William street to have a shower before heading back out later in the evening. We visited the Night Noodle Markets which were in town. It was heaving but we took in some of the culture (I think) and found a place to eat dinner. Our plan was to eat at the market but this was practically impossible as the queue were long. We went to the Moon Café which in actual fact is a bar, had a very late dinner and took a slow walk back home. Day 48- 2nd April: Penguin Island Had a quick breakfast this morning, was in a little bit of a rush. We needed to catch a train and a bus to Shoalwater to catch our ferry over to Penguin Island which wasn’t going to wait for us if we were late. We ate some lunch on the island before jumping on our speed boat cruise to see wild dolphins and sea lions. We found the dolphins rather fast, it was 2 mothers and 2 calves so we spent a little bit of time following them with the boat. WE moved along to Aladdin’s cave which is a limestone formation holding up fossilised trees. We then move onto the sea lions which was a bit whiffy. Whilst we were there, they were a few little scraps between the boys (they are all male on this little island). There was also a load of different birds like pelicans and sand dippers. We then hit the open water where the boat picked up speed. It was a ridiculous amount of speed which left us feeling rather windswept. It was a bit like a speed cruise. We then found some more dolphins on the way back into the bay. Our boat created waves for the dolphins and they jumped in and out of them. Once back on the island, we went to see the rescue penguins being fed. They were the same penguins we saw on Phillip island, the little penguin. Once that finished, we walked to see some of the viewpoints which ultimately led us back to the ferry. Day 49- 3rd April – Rottnest Island Today we were down for breakfast as soon as it opened as we were being picked up to be taken to Barrack Street port. We caught the ferry over to Rottnest which ended up being just over a 2-hour journey. We would like to say that it was a smooth sail, however that would be lying. It was ridiculously rough and the boat rocked from side to side all the way there. Our bikes were waiting for us at the port on Rottnest, yes, we cycled pretty much the whole of the island. We started off in Thomson Bay, then we continued to ride around and stopped at Bickley bay, Porpoise Bay, Parker Point, Salmon Bay, Stark Bay, Geordie Bay, the basin (where we went for a little dip and ate some lunch) heading back towards the ferry at Thomson Bay. Before we were due to give our bikes back, we stopped off to find some Quokka’s. We had found some right at the beginning of our 17km journey, but it was so busy with tourists we left them be. This was after one tried to get into my rucksack. The scenery on this island was amazing, there are no cars and its virtually untouched. The sea was so clear to look at it from above, you could see the sea floor and coral underneath. All in all, although it nearly being a 12-hour trip, we are very exhausted but brimming as we got our Quokka selfie!
Day 50 – 4th April: Kings Park OMG, do we hurt. The bike ride must have worked every single muscle in our bodies. We were going to head to the beach to chill but Today (we found out) was our last full day in Perth. We thought our flight was tomorrow at 10pm, luckily, we checked and realised it was 5:15am. Our original plan was to head to Scarborough beach; however, we were off to Kings park instead. We started our walk up to Kings park and came across this steepest hill. We stopped at the bottom and questioned whether we could get up it or not. But we did and found Jacob’s ladder. A set of stairs leading up to the top of the hill we were currently on. This was a haven for all of those who are into their fitness. People would run around king’s park and then run up and down these stairs for a little bit. We wandered into the Park and headed towards the sky walk way. We past some stunning views on the way there. We made our way back to the café to stop for a frozen drink and made our way back to the hostel to pack. Went out for our last meal in Perth, set our alarm and tried to sleep. Day 51 – 5th April: Flight to Fiji Flight one: 3 ½ hours Flight two: 3 hrs 40 mins change over time was 45 minutes. Alarm went off at 2:30am and we checked out and waited for our cab. Took us to the airport where we then realised, we were at the wrong terminal! Clearly this time was two pearly for the both of us. Headed over to the correct terminal where we just enough time to grab something small to eat. Boarded our plane – normally with short haul you don’t get any in-flight entertainment. Not with Qantas – in our seat pockets was an iPad from which you can watch films or tv etc. We also got inflight breakfast and snacks too. So that was us sorted until we landed. We had a quick change over time and had to go to gate 15 to catch a bus to take us to the other terminal, where we caught our second flight with Fiji Airways. we also got inflight entertainments, food and snacks too. We reached Fiji’s airport and caught our transfer to the hotel. The 4 hours’ time difference and travelling through 2 different time zones had taken its toll on us so we chilled a little bit and fell asleep. Day 52 – 6th April: First day in Fiji We needed that sleep as we slept for pretty much 12 hours in our Mercure hotel. Anyway, we showered, unpacked and headed to the shop. It’s a local supermarket which is conveniently located close to the hotel. We picked up some essentials such as cereal and yoghurts. We had a look around the supermarket and around some of the other shops in that area. They have a cinema showing lots of the latest films. We walked back to the hotel and caught a film on tv. We felt exhausted and put it down to the heat. We ate downstairs in the restaurant which turns out to be rather pleasant. And that was it for day one. Day 53 – 7th April: Much needed tan day Today, we decided it was going to be a day to catch up with tans. We chilled by our pool which we had to ourselves for the best part of the day. We picked up a couple of books in Perth as well so we read those. Amy caught lovely white bits while Jodi continues to maintain her lovely glow. It’s nice to be doing nothing for a change. (This picture is the view from our room).
Day 54 – 8th April: Nadi Town Okay, we feel we need to clear up the misconception that everyone has about Fiji. Unfortunately, it’s not the blue skies and beautiful sea’s that everyone assumes it is or which social media allows us to think. Don’t get us wrong, the people are so friendly and helpful, however if you are staying where we are staying (Nadi) it is like any other town or developing town. You need to travel to find these paradise places or stay on an island resort (which tends to be much more expensive). We jumped in a taxi which took us up to the main town, only costing us something ridiculous like £3.50. They dropped us off at the infamous Jack’s- the only retail and official souvenir outlet in Fiji. They persisted to tell us several times so now I’m relaying It to you. We had a lady who wanted to know everything about our trip as everyone we have spoken to is fascinated we are from England. They don’t get many people from England so we got the general questions like what’s the weather like or what’s it like to live in London. We must have spent a good half hour in there browsing and answering her questions. We then left and wandered up the high-street where we soon realised, they do not the very many white visitors. The children appear to be fascinated but smile at you when you smile at them, and people will literally walk past staring. In fairness, we only saw about 3 other couples who looked like tourists. We popped into a few shops and then headed to Vodaphone. Picked up a sim for our Wi-Fi box and headed back to the hotel. We had a little bit of a mess around with the swings and the hammocks in the playground area, downstairs from our room. We got ready and went out for dinner. We decided to walk to the restaurant, Awesome grill and soon realised this may have been a mistake. Turns out it gets rather humid while walking in a hot country …who knew. We got a cab home after eating at a cost of £1.50. Day 55 – 9th April: Booking day It was meant to be one of the hottest days while we were here so we choose to visit Nadi beach, book the tours we had picked out and chill by the pool. The beach is a walk away from where we were staying, a very sweaty walk may we add. We took a few pictures and then took a walk back. It’s very green and lush everywhere which makes it feel tropical. We saw our tour desk Rep who works for Rosie Tours. We booked the trips for the next three days and had a good old chat with her too. We went back to our room, quick change and then into the cool of the pool. We grabbed a day bed that was half in the shade half in the sun. People watched for a while, lots more people have joined us which means the pool was busier. Oh well, we still had our space. The Hong Kong rugby sevens has been going on too. The hotel staff can be heard shouting and cheering when Fiji are playing, as can the aussie guests and American guests. Day 56 – 10th April: Cloud9 Today was the first of our trips. We were heading out to cloud9 – a floating double decker platform in the Ro Ro Reef in the middle of the Mammanuca Islands. This was our first real sight of the paradise that everyone dreams of. We boarded our Excitor boat and it took us out over the calm waters. It took us around 35-40 minutes to reach it. Exploring the platform took us all of 10 minutes so we grabbed a couple of free chairs. We took a few pictures while we were up there as the view was pretty cool. 360 of pure blue and clear sea. Got ourselves a drink and chilled in the sunshine before heading out for our first swim. The sea is ridiculously salty so we could pretty much float aimlessly without much effort. From here we were also able to people watch, watch people diving off the top shelf of the platform and watch the marine life underneath our feet. Oh, and we saw our first star fish while looking overboard today. Ordered ourselves another drink and waited for
our pizza. When the pizza came up it was massive. Very glad we only ordered one between us. Chilled a little more and took some more pictures. Decided to go for a snorkel where the water turned rather rough. It became much wavier than it had done before. Anyway, attempted to snorkel and saw some really cool fish in abundance. Climbed back on board in an attempt to dry off when we got our boarding call. Jumped back on our Excitor boat which the really loud, outdated and cheesy music and headed back to shore. Day 57 – 11th April: Beachcomber Trip Another trip another boat. This time it’s a bright yellow catamaran. Our trip to Beachcomber Island was only a half day trip. We board our ship and it takes us to several other islands, dropping others off before reaching a spot in the middle of two island. Our destination is called and we look out to see a small motorised boat approaching us. You should have seen our faces, especially as the sea was rather rough. Jodi climbed aboard first when a big wave hit and drifted the boat away from our catamaran. Back it comes and the rest of us clamber on board. And by the rest of us I mean 5. This was minimal compared to the passengers who got off at South Sea island. More than half the ship cleared when their destination was called. Anyway, we arrived at the island after the engine cutting out twice. And were greeted with a traditional Fijian song and Mama Lesi. We had a quick briefing and a run through of the itinerary (only half for us) and were left to our own devices. There was a snorkelling option but the sea was rather rough so we decided against it. We sunbathed for a little while, Jodi had a dip in the sea and we both cursed under our breath at the amount of coral beneath our feet. The beach and its ‘sand’ must have been pure coral. We grabbed a drink and rested in the shade when the sun became really intense. We took a few photos and listened to the pleasant music coming from the bar. Before we knew it, our lunch was ready. It appeared to be a traditional Fijian lunch and was huge. We shard our table with some rather tame birds. If you were not looking, they stole things off your plate, which happened to Amy – Twice. This is also when we discovered that they may not have been vegetarian as they stole the meat and started fighting over it. Our boat was soon called for us – little bit awkward as we couldn’t see the catamaran anywhere. At this point it was much calmer, so we were happy. There was four of us on this glass bottom boat, us two and the two crew members. They attempted small talk however it was limited – much to Jodi’s relief. Our catamaran pulled alongside us and we got back on board. The tour guide who was on their washed our feet of the coral and splashed the water up Jodi’s legs to get most of it off. She looked very surprised when that happened. We made our way around the other islands, collecting and dropping off others. It was nice to see what they had to offer as Beachcomber is a small backpacker island which can be walked in less than an hour. Day 58 – 12th April: Castaway Island trip Different day, different island. Once aboard the big white ship this time we settled in and enjoyed the view of all the beautiful islands we could see. After stopping at multiple different islands and waiting for people to disembark, we then arrived at mana. Lots of people were heading of at mana as they could do a day sailing trip from here going up to see the uninhabited islands. The next stop was us, we had lots of family’s getting off with us so when boarding the tiny boat there were buggies and small children flying everywhere. Once aboard they took us straight over, when climbing down the stairs and off the boat a whole team of people sing to us with guitars. We then got a small briefing in the lunch area and a tour of the resort, it was stunning! After all this we took our stuff and grabbed some sunbeds, we headed straight into the sea. Which was basically see through may I (Jodi) add, we sat down and lots of clear white fish kept swimming past us. We also when for a walk around the rocky area at the end of the beach. We found multiple crabs and a sea snake which Amy was quite
impressed with. When we were about to head back to the beds, Amy shouted at me, she’d found lots of starfish! Not quite as bright as our blue one we found the other day, these were pretty much the same colour as the sand. God noes how she spotted them. We took some pictures of them and moved them back into the water as they appeared to be baking in the sunshine. After laying down for a bit we headed of for lunch, we picked our table and a lady took our voucher for lunch. Off we headed to explore the buffet. After getting some food they took our drink order, although either these drinks took a while or we ate mega fast! Either way we eventually got our drinks. After lunch, we had a look around the shop before heading back to our sunbeds. We took some pictures and relaxed in the sun. Before it was time to leave we headed up to have another drink at the bar where you can view the entire island, safe to say it was a pretty good-looking view. We then had to meet everyone else and get back onto the boats, we had a few more people with us this time who had spent a few nights at the resort. Once we reached the boat, we jumped on board and grabbed a seat. Little did we know we would be here for a good while. We did some stop offs to pick up other passengers and noticed we were not really following the right route. We ignored this for a little while and watched the sunset from the back of the boat. The sky lit up with colour pinks and mainly orange, looking as if it were on fire! Everyone scrambled around to take pictures. After the commotion of the sky died down it seemed everyone started to wonder why it was taking so long, a long time and a few numb bums later we arrived at the marina. Everyone seemed extremely egger to get off. Before we are let off an announcement on the speakers states another boat broke down so we had to pick up all their passengers and that’s why we were an hour late back. By this time everyone is too exhausted to care, we all begin to get off the boat and walk off to the coaches. It didn’t take long until we were on our way, we had three drop offs to do before ours, this felt like years. Finally, we reached our hotel, starving, tired and salty! We had showers and ate something before chilling out for the rest of the evening. Day 60 – 13th April: Chill day and washing day After a very busy three days and early starts we woke up without an alarm, pure bliss. We had some breakfast and a nice cup of tea before realising there was a rather large pile of washing staring at us. Little did we know this would take us two hours to get through as we chose to wash it by hand. We had a packet of laundry powder left over from Cairns, so we filled up the bath tub and added it in. Jodi set up the washing line on the balcony and the washing procedure commenced. We eventually got through the pile and our balcony now looked like a Chinese laundry, what must the neighbours think. Who cares … Amy just likes it when our clothes smell good or like dove! After this, we decided to go for a swim and have dinner here tonight as we both were worn out and sun-sleepy. We made our way down to the pool and it went very grey and dark. The clouds looked heavy. There were a few spots of rain, nothing to worry about. 15-20 minutes’ past and the heavens started to open. we grabbed our towels and other bits and ran for cover. And that was it for the rest of the day, it rained on and off rather heavily. Luckily our bits were dry enough before the rain started to blow onto the balcony! Day 61 – 14th April: Supermarket sweep and port (Good Friday) Now the hotel we have been staying in, hasn’t really been bustling and heaving, but today it was eerily quiet. There was less staff around the pool area, the streets were not jammed with buses and taxies and the supermarket was pretty much empty. We popped to the supermarket to top up our supplies which is when we discovered how quite it was. We came out and were not hassled by taxi drivers and when we reached the hotel, there was an influx of new residents. It doesn’t feel like we have been here for nearly two weeks and feels like it has been a bit of a whirlwind. We needed this time to chill out, gather our thoughts, read some books and get ready for our next 5 months of moving and hopping between places every three or four days. We went down to the pool, and Amy went for a swim while Jodi people watched. We decided to visit the port from which we departed on our trips as there was lots of shops and restaurants
there. We have a few restaurants around our hotel, however not many of them have great reviews and there is a lot of sea food on offer. We jumped in a taxi and headed down there. We picked up some sarongs and Jodi picked up a tie-dye jump suit as it looks like one of hers is on the way out. We paid £21 for three items, good value for money. We picked the Hard rock café to eat at. We made it for happy hour so we both picked a cocktail. Jodi had a Hurricane and Amy had a raspberry lemonade. Amy had a little mistake with hers as the mixed up the order, so the manager corrected it. The food was good and the cocktails were really strong. So much so that we had to share the Hurricane as it tasted like pure alcohol. Day 62 – 15th April: Pool day Well it’s safe to say we slept rather well last night due to the alcohol consumed. We debated doing another trip within the next few days however the one we wanted to do, Mana island was fully booked up until July! So, we had another look but some of the other islands are up to 3-5 hours travel by ferry from Denaru. We figured out you would get less than 2 hours on the island before having to travel back again, we decided it wasn’t worth it. We were satisfied with what we have done. Down by the pool, Jodi steamed through her book and ended up finishing it! Amy spent most of her time doing short mini lengths in the pool unless the children got in, then she got out. We decided to get something in for dinner, as Amy didn’t feel too great. We chilled and watched an Elvis Presley movie on tv: Easy Come Easy Go. Day 63 – 16th April: Pool day (Easter Sunday) There was not a cloud in the sky today which meant the temperature had gone into the low 30’s without being humid and sweaty. Unfortunately, it also meant that it was a bit intense to lay in. We spent most of the time in the water and debated on how sad it was that we didn’t have a nicer beach to lay on. Our nicest beach was over an hour away and with not many choices with transport we decided to give it a miss. We had a mini picnic in the shade of the tree’s, a drink at the bar and a good old swim. We decided to go to the Port of Denaru for dinner as this is where most of the restaurants are. We went down just before sunset, which we caught on the way through so that we could watch a little show they put on in the middle of the circular quay. They showed us some traditional Fijian dancing as well as some fire dancing too. It was all rather exciting and enjoyable. We then found a nice (and very decently priced) steakhouse called Cardo’s. Sadly, we missed happy hour where the tap beer was $4 which is the equivalent to £1.50 at home! The alcohol was cheap enough anyway. Amy had a few beers and Jodi has some Passion Fruit Daiquiris. A lot of the restaurants had live music going on or Entertainment which was nice to listen too. The rugby 7’s were also on in Singapore so that was also on and the bar areas of the restaurants were quite busy. Day 64 – 17th April: Pool and Port (Easter Monday) Today we were adamant to get rid of our tan lines and this was the aim of today. We washed our last few bits of clothing, Jodi washed her make up bag as her foundation explode. We were also in for another cloud free day which is nice. We caught up with a few bits that had been neglected, such as the diary. As soon as the shade hit the pool we were down there. It was also Malaria tablet day; the day were both dreaded!
Day 65 – 18th April: Last day in Fiji and onto Singapore Flight time 10hrs 15 mins
Well who knew this day would turn out to be so eventful. It was only just yesterday we said how things were going too smoothly. We checked out and sat round the pool for most of the day, had lunch at the hotel, worked on some things that we are creating and eventually headed to BK for some dinner/supper. We had to be at the airport 3 hours before our flight, so we hopped on the coach who dropped us off and stood in the queue. We reached the check in desk and this is when we ran into trouble. She asked us if we had booked our onward flight from Singapore, so we said no but we know our destination and leaving date … her eyes widened and her face dropped. She then informed us that we needed to book it now and here. Luckily, we had our Wi-Fi, so in a panic, Jodi booked our flight out of Singapore. We then had to inform Charlotte of our plan and said she needed to book hers. Anyway, back to the counter – she had clicked out of our confirmation page and we then had to wait for the email to come through. She (the rather rude lady) then took for ever to process our tickets. We sailed through security and then had to get back to Charlotte who was having trouble booking her seat. So, I (Amy) did it for her. Panic over. Jodi then sat researching whether we needed an onward flight as she was adamant we didn’t. She was right, it was the airline hat required us to have the onward flight so that if we ran into trouble they wouldn’t legally have to fly us back to Fiji. Boarding commenced and we were off and away from Fiji heading to Singapore. Flight was alright, bit of dramatic turbulence but good all-round. Day 66 – 19th April: First day in Singapore and Charlotte arrives We landed at 4:50am this morning. Safe to say we were both knackered. We collected our bags and jumped in a taxi, who dropped us off at our hotel, Hotel 81 Elegance. We got our key and headed straight to our room. It was freezing compared to the rather warm outside temperature of 25. Anyway, we both crashed out and had set an alarm to wake up in the morning. The alarm rang way too quick but we were up and out and searching for breakfast. We ended up in Starbucks as there was nothing but noodles or omelettes for breakfast. Attempting to navigate our way around the city, we walked in a massive circle ducking and diving in the malls for some much-needed air con relief. Our aim was to reach the Marina and eventually we made it, hot sticky and dripping with sweat as it was a hot and humid 32 degrees. Took some pictures and found somewhere for a much-needed drink. We watched all the other tourists try to capture the photo where you hold the fountain in your hand or catch the water in your mouth, quite amusing. We then headed towards the F1 track. The track is openly there for people to walk on, we walked round to the pit stops and saw the garages where they work on Hamilton’s, Vettle’s and Buttons cars during the race. We then decided to head back to the hotel as Charlotte would be arriving soon. It took us a while to walk back and even came across a mass of tree ants in the middle of the path. Got back, had a muchneeded shower and waited for Charlottes arrival. This was an unexpectedly long wait. The queues were longer for her than they were for us, but she got here eventually. We had a quick catch up then headed out for something to eat as we were all starving.
Day 67- 20th April: Tourist passes We found that Singapore had unlimited tourist passes which allows you to access all mode of public transport. So, we got dressed, searched for something to eat (again) and headed to the train station named Lavender. We found the ticket office was closed, so we paid for one stop ($1.50 each) and headed for Bugis. The ticket office was open there, so we collected the tickets and headed back on the train towards the marina. We headed to one of the malls to pick up a few essentials like a new rucksack for Amy and then headed to the famous Raffles for a cocktail. The normal area was closed for a refurbishment so we went to the Billiard
rooms. Amy and Jodi had apple martini’s and Charlotte had some tropical thing, we forgot the name of it. Nice bag of monkey nuts of the table which I (Amy) tucked into whilst the girls looked in disgust at the smell of them. We made our way back to the hotel after this as we were going to look for somewhere to eat and head to the marina bay sands bar called SkyPark. Marina Bay hotel is the one which looks like a ship upon three stands. On our way back out, we discovered that it is extremely hard to find a restaurant you had planned to eat at without Wi-Fi to help guide you. We ended up in a food court which wasn’t that bad, everything is just so far apart here. Anyway, we headed up to the bar with the lovely views. It had been a hazy day so we weren’t entirely sure what we would see. But we saw pretty good skylines. We got a table near the edge which was nice. Nice end to a busy day. Day 68- 21st April: What a wet day The weather was less that desirable this morning. We awoke to thunderstorms and heavy rain. Our plans to go and see the gardens by the bay had to be adapted. We waited for the rain to pass with took rather a long time. Once the sun reared its head, we popped out for some fresh air before getting ready to go out. We went for an early dinner and then made our way to the esplanade outdoor theatre to absorbed some culture. They were putting on a range of mini shows which explore different cultures one way or another. We caught the Hawaii one which was nice. Very samey but nice, we saw part of the sunset and then made our way to another roof top bar. This took us to the other side of the bridge and behind all the business buildings. It was very pretty, little bridges lit up and rows of shops and bars which were made to look like houses. We came across the bar which was very inconspicuous. We paid, entered and waited for the lift which was to take us up to floor 62. We arrived at floor 61 and were directed into another lift, which took us up to floor 62. Got some drinks that are included in the admission price, and found a table near the edge. The view was amazing, actually more stunning than the Marina bar most likely because you were by the edge. In the Marina hotel bar, the secondary platform is the better one but it’s not included in the ticket price. So, we chatted, drank, sang, Charlotte air guitar-d and took some pictures. It was a lovely night and we are hoping the weather holds off tomorrow as it doesn’t look to promising.
Day 69- 22nd April: Gardens by the Bay So, this morning the weather wasn’t too great so we decided to Pack in the morning, left around lunchtime-ish after some rain had passed. We booked our accommodation for Phuket and Jumped on the metro and headed towards gardens by the bay. We ended up on the circle line which was an automated service and had no driver. We manoeuvred ourselves off the train and joined the crowd who were heading to the same place as us. Travelled through a long corridor with mirrors and flowers which people seemed to be obsessed with when taking photos. We moved along and came to the open air. The clouds had now cleared and the sun
was shining, none of us had remembered sunglasses. We wandered around looking at the various gardens making our way towards the Supergrove. Snapping away, we arrived at the trees where we took a five-minute breather before heading up onto the walkway which walks you through the trees. We also wanted to revisit them at night so we headed back towards the marina to find something to eat for dinner. Soon after grabbing something and getting lost (once again) in the shopping centres, we were back on our way towards the gardens. We were up against a timer as we had to see the earlier light symphony so that we could get a refund on our tourists passes which was to pay for the cab to the airport tomorrow. With this at the back of our minds, we picked a spot just in front of the trees. The show started and we were all amazed and speechless, it was amazing. The music choice was great, the lights fitted perfectly and it was just awesome. Soon enough we were heading back towards the train station. Or so we thought, we followed the crowd, which us down the wrong way … Once we were back on track we made it to the tourist office and got our refund. Hoorah for refunds! Day 70- 23rd April: Flight to Phuket: Flight time: 1hr 40 mins Moving day has arrived once again. We were up relatively early, had some form of breakfast (snacks we had to finish) and hailed a taxi after checking out. We had a very cautious and chatty driver who was rather hard to understand. We took in the sights of the overfilled work lorries and other taxis before arriving at the airport. We checked in and cleared immigration, wandered through the humongous airport before finding our gate. Cleared security and boarded our plane. We thought it was going to be empty but slowly (and annoyingly) came through and took their seats. The seat next to us was empty, Charlotte was going to join us until the couple in front reclined their seats … why does this always happen to us! Anyway, the flight was quick and before we knew it we were landing. We filled in another immigration form, got our stamps in our passport. Now thankfully we had re-arrange our dates slightly as we found out we had to be out of the country on the 22nd of May. Our flight to Siem Reap is on the 22nd of May … how lucky was that. Jodi does immense research and it clearly pays off. Anyway, we collected our bags which were stationary on the carrousel, hailed a cab and were on our way to our hotel, Best western Patong. We knew it was all going too smoothly. We had a hold up at the hotel as they couldn’t find record of our booking. For some reason, it had been saved under Charlotte’s name. 20 minutes later we had our key cards and were in our rooms, we quickly unpacked and headed for food. We found a nice Irish pub which did a Sunday roast dinner. Jodi and Charlotte were very impressed and the food was great. This is also where we first leant how cheap things were. 3 meals and 3 drinks were less than £30 - £10 each! We had a wander around before heading out for a drink. We headed to the Bangla Road which acts like a strip in Ibiza or Napa. We found a bar with a live band had a few drinks before moving along taking in all the sights and refusing the countless invites to go and watch ‘Sexy ping-pong’.
Day 71 – 24th April: Beach Day
After an amazing sleep in our beds with duvets, soft pillows and air conditioning, we were refreshed and ready for the beach. To get there we had to walk back down the Bangla road and it looked so different from last night. The bars were now market fronts, the prostitutes were nowhere to be seen, the sexy ping pong sellers were now market stall holders and it’s like last night had never happened. We arrived at the beach, a volleyball tournament was in process and we wandered along being offered water sports, henna and aloe Vera sticks. We found an uninhabited spot and tested the waters. They were surprisingly warm, this was a nice change from Australia. We moved into the shade after a bit of sun as it got very intense. A group of lads sat next to us, they were filming with their drone and just started up conversations. They were from America. We chatted for a while whilst breaking conversation to turn down offerings of aloe Vera and ‘coconuttings’. We said our see you later’s and headed back to the hotel to attempt to book a taxi for the big Buddha, change and head out again. Tis lucky we found a hotel in such a good area. The tour desk lady was helpful but at the same time she wasn’t. We figured we should attempt it tomorrow instead. We had another great meal and headed back to Bangla Road. We tried a different bar this time as we knew the lads we met earlier would be there somewhere. This bar was loud, colourful and had strong drinks. Oh, and ladies’ dancing (if you can call it that) on the bar. There were a few pole dancers doing an amazing job, the others were put to shame. Anyway, we fancied some live music so headed back to a bar and bam … we ran into the American guy we met earlier. His friends were at the ping-pong show, he left as he was too traumatised. He was actually a right laugh, he showed us some of his drone footage from earlier which was amazing! We went for a walk up and the down the road where low and behold we bumped into the other two, one of which was very drunk. Anyway, we popped into another bar and had a few more drinks and chatted. We made our excuses and left close to 1am in the morning, it was a pretty good night nonetheless. Day 72 – 25th April: Visit to the Big Buddha We went out for some breakfast after a nice little lay in. We attempted to book our taxi again and we had success. We went upstairs to get ready and by the time we came back down, our cab was arranged for 12. We decided to not do it through a tour as there were so many things we didn’t want to do including elephant rides. So, we chose to hire a taxi instead. It cost us £26 for there and back, whilst he waited for us. We drove up steep hills and down small roads as he gave us a scenic ride up to the big Buddha. We passed a couple of the elephant trekking places which offers rides. This was a big of a shock as they didn’t look very happy, we also passed a sanctuary where they looked much happier. We saw the head of the temple quite soon into the journey so after an hour in the car we arrived at the temple. We walked around and took in the information and the views. We saw the port and some of the other islands, shame it was a little cloudy but it was much cooler up there compared to the town. We took some pictures and then headed up the stairs. The size of the Buddha was structurally amazing. There was an air of tranquillity and peace up there until the tour guides started to call their groups back. We took our time up there, reading the gold leaves, finding the Buddha’s handprints, foot print and seat. We were the centre of a little bit of attention when Amy set up her tripod and used her remote to take some pictures of the three of us, someone actually took a picture of her setting it up. Anyway, we moved on and down the stairs into the section where the monastery starts. There was a monk accepting donations just outside near some other Buddha statues. We found our taxi driver and headed back down the hill. Just in time as the heavens opened when we got in the car. At the hotel, we went up to the pool for a swim and to cool down. It started raining again so we headed in, out for dinner and then chilled in our room and watched a film. Day 73 – 26th April: Market Day
So today we were on the hunt for elephant pants or playsuits. We had breakfast in another hotel just to try it out but it wasn’t much different to ours. We scoped out a few markets and left in pursuit of them. We had a look around the shopping mall and then found one of the markets. They weaved in and out of the streets and sold knock off labels of all kinds including Calvin Klein underwear. We tried several of the stalls before being hounded and hollered at by the market sellers. We understand that they must make a living but there are means and approaches one can use instead of ‘hey beautiful’ or ‘this very sexy huh’. Just let us look and approach us if we look like we are going to buy something. We went onto more markets around the area and continued the search. This was unsuccessful, we found no pants or playsuits in the variety we were searching for. The plan was to then hit the night markets instead. We made our way back to the hotel for a swim and to pack before heading out for dinner and to search the night markets. We had a little bit more success here but not much … still we have a few more weeks in Thailand. We had an earlyish night as we should be up early tomorrow to catch our ferry to our next destination. Day 74 – 27th April: Arrival in Krabi Travel time 2hrs Our transfer picked us up 7:10am as our boat was to leave at 8:30am. We picked up some other guests on our way to the port (if you can all it that). We had to make an emergency turn around as someone had forgot to put their luggage on the mini bus. This was only the first of our problems. We arrived at the port or harbour or boat stop and exchanged our ticket for a sticker. We then had to walk onto the boat by climbing on and walking over two other boats. Not the easiest task in the world when its already 28 degrees and you’ve got a backpack and rucksack to carry. On board, our bags were taken and piled up in a cube formation. We hung back towards the boat just to make sure they didn’t slide away. We pulled of dead on half 8 and we were on our way to Ao Nag, Krabi. It was rather warm in the sun so we moved into the shade abut 45 minutes into the journey. The boat was full of tourists, most with luggage and a handful of day trippers all moving onto different destinations. We passed islands and rock formations on the way and thankfully it was nice and smooth. We arrived at Ao Nang, where the quietest of all the boat employees announced something which no one could hear. Suddenly there was a mad rush. Everyone was moving to the back of the boat, almost trampling us in our seated positions. We stood up and joined the crowd. Basically, we had been split into three groups and all had to get off the back of the boat. Two onto other boats and us onto boats to cross to the land. Typically, people pushed and shoved in the most unhelpful manner when you are trying to get your bag on your back. Eventually we got off the boat, sweating as it had got hotter suddenly and heading towards our transfer. This was a small lorry with the back portion converted into a seating area. We formed a conveyer belt to put our bags on-board and took a seat. It was rather breezy in the back but it cooled us down a plenty. We pulled up to our hotel, Red Ginger Chic Resort and realised we couldn’t check in until 2. We left our bags at reception and went for a walk after our complimentary ginger cocktails. We turned right at the end of the road, and walked along until we reached Nopparat Thara beach. The tide was high so you couldn’t see the sand. We wandered back the other way in search of a drink. We had one at the hotel and could check in half hour early. We settled in and headed straight for the pool. We had a couple of hours in the sun before it started to spit with rain, then out of nowhere the heavens opened. We chilled under the umbrellas before it stopped raining and then laid in the sun which reappeared there before we went out for dinner – what a cheap dinner that was too - £16 for 3 drinks and 3 meals. We were all knackered so we caught up with a few bits, watched a film and fell asleep.
Day 75 – 28th April: Ao Nang beach Breakfast was included in this hotel, so we went upstairs to eat. We decided that we would pay Ao Nang Beach a visit today. We got ready and headed left out of the road. It was about 5-8-minute walk away. It was defiantly warmer today than it was yesterday. The tide was high again so there wasn’t much beach to sit on. We walked along the edge and enjoyed the beautiful view infront of us. We continued our walk along the sand until we reached the edge. It truly was beautiful however the sea was filled with jellyfish. We saw two people with sting injuries and a dead jellyfish on the sand. It was huge. So, we were put-off going for a dip. We walked back up the beach and looked in a few of their shops before heading for another pool session. The heat was so intense the pool is definately what was needed. We booked a couple of tours for the next few days, our accommodation and ravel to Phi phi. Caught up with the diary and got ready to go out for dinner. We headed back down to Ao Nang as they had a bit more choice and a few more bars oh and a night market. Passed lots of drag queens who were obviously touting for their show, primarily aimed at men. Creepy people trying to get you into their restaurants and people who didn’t give a monkeys. We ate at a sports bar in the end as there wasn’t much choice for Amy to eat apart from pizza. It was nice nonetheless. We had a look in some of the shops before heading back to the hotel. Day 76- 29th April: 5 islands and Sunset trip Woke up and had breakfast chilled by the pool for an hour. Got ready to leave for our sunset trip and left to have lunch at the coffee club. We then went to meet everyone for the tour, once everyone arrived they took us to a long boat which would take us to the pirate boat. We got on the boat and found a spot to chill. Once everyone was on we moved to our first spot for swimming except no one was keen to swim because of the million jellyfish that were in the water. We could see them floating from the boat, it was pretty cool. We then moved on to another spot for snorkelling and swimming. We passed lots of different rock formations too. This is also where we watched the sunset, after sunset we had a buffet dinner. We then moved back to our original spot to be taken into another long boat. This boat would take us to see the glowing plankton and then drop us to the beach. Wasn’t so easy or appealing riding in a long boat in the pitch black! When we arrived none of us wanted to swim in the pitch black. So, we asked a few of the guys who swam and they could show us from the boat. No pictures though as it isn’t possible on our cameras! After this we made our way back to shore, got off the long boat and walked home. We were all knackered so we chilled before bed! Day 77 – 30th April: James Bond Island Trip Today’s trip was a full day trip. We had breakfast before leaving and got picked up to be taken to a pier. This pier was further away than the one we were dropped off at. About an hour later, we arrived at the pier, were split into our groups where we discovered that there were 5 people on our tour- 3 of them being us. We climbed aboard our speed boat and headed to our first destination, James bond Island. It is where scenes from the man with the golden gun was filmed. Our boat driver became our photographer and took some photos for us. We did a little cave exploring and moved onto our next point of interest. It included kayaking for the other couple but none of us were keen so we waited for them to finish their little kayaking tour before moving onto the Indian floating village for lunch. After having a short break here we then moved onto Hong Lagoon. A very peaceful place where you swim without the threat of jellyfish. We swam here for about an hour before moving onto Hong Island. We were here by ourselves for a while as they organise it so you miss the large crowds. We snorkelled here and saw some sea life. Another tiring trip before our move to Koh Phi Phi.