Mountains of Java

Our last couple of nights up in Java were spent in the mountains.  Again incredibly beautiful jungle.  Our first night was at Seloliman Nature Preserve which is a little environmental education complex situated in the middle of the rain forest on the side of a mountain.  The bungalows were awesome...I had the Tiger suite complete with furniture from local wood, mosquito nets, and an outdoor bathroom/shower.  The Preserve is all about teaching local farmers, residents, and tourists about organic farming and respect for the jungle and its wildlife.  Really cool spot since it was secluded on the mountain and the whole operation is totally sustainable including all of the food that is grown on site.  The area was also home to some amazing rice paddies.  Overall a very cool spot off the beaten path and one night was not nearly enough.  The only drawback was the gigantic spider in my room!

From the Preserve we headed further into the mountains up to Mt. Bromo which is one of the largest active volcanoes in Indonesia.  We had one night there but there wasn't much sleep to be had since we had to wake up at 3:30 to make our way to the top of Bromo.  I love my sleep but it was worth the early morning!

At 3:30 we hopped into some ancient Jeep 4x4's and drove up the mountain in the dark on roads covered in fine white ash.  After a short ride we hike a ways up to a viewpoint looking down over the mountain and into the valley.  We were so high that we were above the cloud-line and watched the sunrise over the mountains and sea of clouds below.  No doubt the best and most unique sunrise I have ever seen.

After another Jeep ride to the base of the crater we hiked through what looked like a desert in the Middle East although it was not sand but dunes of ash.  In the middle of this desert was a Hindu temple standing all alone before the many steps up to the crater of Mt. Bromo.  The whole journey to the top felt very surreal as there were still not many tourists and it felt like we were actually in another country altogether.  Finally on a precarious ledge overlooking the crater you can look down at the volcano and the sulfuric smoke pouring out of the top.  Bromo was one of the most memorable experiences of the trip and something I will never forget.

It was a great way to leave Java as the next day we head to Bali by ferry.  Really looking forward to Bali as the pace will be a bit slower there and I can hit the beach again!  The party scene shouldn't be too bad either...

Heart of Java - Yogyakarta

After another full day of travelling we found ourselves in Yogya which is a university city with about 3.1 million people.  It is considered the cultural center of the Java region and is known for it's regional cuisine of noodle and rice dishes.

Our first night there we went to a square where thousands of locals hang out at night.  I don't think I saw any other tourists other than our group.  The bizarre attraction there are the rickshaws that you can rent to ride around the square with dozens of other cars that are all lit up with Christmas lights.  Although I was hoping for the rickshaw with Sponge Bob lights, we settled for another and took it for a spin.  Hilarious.  All of these rickshaws dodging cars and motorbikes on the road while they blast Western rap music.  One of the stranger things I have seen but a cool look into the local culture of Yogya.

The main attractions of Yogya are the temples however.  Right outside the city is the world's largest buddhist temple and another Hindu temple that is equally impressive.  The buddhist temple was a previous Wonder of the World.  Both were built around 1,200 years ago.  Awesome.  The pictures speak for themselves.

Buddhist

Stylin in my sarong at the Buddhist Temple

Hindu

Tonight we're going to see what the nightlife of Yogya has to offer before we head up to the mountains tomorrow to ascend the Mt. Bromo volcano.

West Java - Indonesia

After nearly missing my flight to Jakarta after our night out in Singapore, I finally reached the last country of the trip: Indonesia.  After travelling about 10 hours we made it to Pangandaran on the West coast of Java.  It is a small town that once thrived off of beach tourism but struggled since the tsunami of 2004.  The town itself is sandwiched between two beaches: one on the west for sunset and one on the east for sunrise.  Although it is cool to have beaches on both sides, they were a little disappointing as they were kind of dirty and many of the shops there are now closed.  The people there were some of the friendliest yet and the laid-back beach town feel was very noticeable.

The highlight of Pangandaran is nature.  A local guide named Aep took us out on a few treks where we saw some of the most exotic wildlife and locations I have ever seen.  To start our tour Aep, made deer sounds and   dozens of deer grazing in a local field came over and he gave them a kiss!  Super strange but impressive.  The guy is definitely an animal lover.

At one point we went into a cave that was pitchblack and Aep started making his animal calls again.  When he told us to turn our lights on we were in the middle of a group of about 4 porcupines.  Aside from that we encountered bats in a Japanese WWII bunker, macaque monkeys, monitor lizards up to about 6 feet, and even scorpions; one of which actually ended up in my mouth...live.

 

The other highlight was the Green Canyon tour.  You get there by taking a boat up a river with emerald green water lined with lush tropical palms and plants.  The banks of the river then rise up to about 100ft of sheer rock on each side.  Natural spring water drips down from the tops of the walls down into the emerald water below.  At the end is a waterfall that can only be accessed by swimming and climbing over rocks for about an hour.  The canyon surrounding the river was one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen.  A truly unique experience and a must do for anyone travelling in Indo.

Entrance to Canyon

Singapore Sling

Singapore is an interesting place.  It looks and feels like a mix between Tokyo and Las Vegas.  Really modern  architecture and lots to see and do with a few casinos sprinkled in between.  It is actually illegal to bring chewing gum into the country or even buy it on the streets!  Again they have very strict drug laws that are punishable by death and they also restrict people smoking on the street among many other things.  For this reason, citizens are very proud of how clean the city is since there are no cigarette butts or gum on the ground.

Unfortunately Singapore was my first group's last stop so I really only had a day to explore.  I checked out the spitting Merlion statue, the Singapore Flyer ferris wheel and the Marina Bay Sands Hotel and Casino that looks like a large boat suspended in the air.  Marina Bay was pretty impressive and if you gamble you definitely should check it out at some point.  The top of the boat structure has a pool overlooking the Singapore Flyer and the rest of the city.

The street food and nightlife are also highlights of the city.  Even though the city is fairly conservative those people definitely appreciate the party.  Canals run through the modern buildings downtown and thousands of people walk the canal and pop in and out of local bars and clubs.

Seeing as it was my group's last night together before some of us continued on to Indonesia while others went home, our group leader organized a group dinner.  I thought it was a joke at first but we somehow ended up at Hooters whose claim to fame is the first of its kind in Asia.  Felt like home but not as many blondes!  Had a terrible burger that tasted just as bad as in the US.  That dinner marked the first Western food I ate of the trip...can't believe it was Hooters!

Asian Hooters!

Despite the burger, dinner and our last night out with the group was a blast.  We brown-bagged our booze on the canal and went to a small club where the dance floor was put to a serious test.  Sad to lose those of the group that were not continuing on to Indonesia.  Couldn't have asked for a better group to explore Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore.

Melaka - Melting Pot of Cusines

Melaka is in Southern Malaysia and is about 120 miles from the equator. HOT!  But it's only going to get hotter as I head further South.  Melaka is know for it's cuisine as it blends all of the cultures I mentioned in my previous post.  Satay is a particular specialty where you sit around a table with a propane tank and the boiling spiced peanut sauce is at the center of the table.  At Capitol Satay they have over 80 different kinds of skewers that start raw until you cook in the peanut sauce.  Kind of like asian fondue.  Options are chicken, beef, squid, prawns that are about a foot long, and many other possibilities, many of which were total mysteries!  Just had that for dinner tonight...we'll see how I feel tomorrow.

Melaka itself was colonized by the Dutch and has a large river that runs though it that resembles some of the canals in Amsterdam.  Low-key bars and restaurants line the banks of the river where boats pass up and down.

Apart from a couple of churches, there is a beautiful mosque and temple although I have to admit I am a bit templed and mosqued out.  The highlights of Melaka really are the food.  Tons of street vendors selling everything you can think of.  In general, probably some of the best food of the trip and most different from anything I have ever had before.  One of the stranger things I have found in Melaka and some of the other cities is the durian fruit.  It is described as smelling like stinky socks and is actually prohibited from being carried on public transportation!  Supposedly the taste is good so I may give one a try one of these days.

Malaysian Rickshaw with Scorpion on top

Really looking forward to the next stop in Singapore.  Sadly the group will be split and then new travelers will join up in Jakarta.  Hoping for a good group!

Malaysia's Capital - Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur is normally called KL by the locals.  It feels HUGE but is actually only about 2 million people.  It is also by far the most modern city yet.  Lots of the buildings feature modern architecture and KL is also home to the world's third tallest towers.  Really impressive and beautiful by night.

Mosque in Center of KL

KL Towers by night

The diversity of the city was also very apparent.  There are many Chinese, Middle Eastern, Indians, and Westerners all bustling about the streets.

One of my favorite attractions in KL was the Batu Caves which are just outside the city.  You have to ascend about 500 steps past a giant golden statue into the mouth of a cave.  The cave is hundreds of feet tall in some areas and has big stalactites and stalagmites all surrounding Hindu statues that were carved directly into the cave.  At the end of the cave, there is a Hindu temple where the cave opens up to the sky again with wild monkeys climbing about the vertical walls.  Some even had babies holding on to their stomachs as they climbed.  You have to keep an eye on those little guys because they will climb down and try to steal anything they can from you.  Batu Caves was a really special place and I would definitely recommend to anyone visiting KL.

The actual city of KL reminded my in certain ways of Vegas.  Lots of neon lights and plenty of progressive architecture to keep you engaged.  The heat there was also reminiscent of Las Vegas.  REALLY hot!  Once things cool down at night, the night markets open up and whole streets are set-up with tables for visitors to sit down and enjoy the delicious street food from the many cultures represented in KL.

Next stop is Melaka in Southern Malaysia, about 120km from the equator.  I hear they are know for their food there so I'm hoping try as much as possible.

Sober?  Actually yes.

Onward to Malaysia!

Sorry for the delay on the posts...my camera got a virus from an internet cafe so I had no pics!

So this morning we drove a few hours from Krabi to the Thailand-Malaysia border.  We had to walk across but the crossing was pretty uneventful.  The only thing of note was that there was a large warning sign declaring that possessing drugs in Malaysia is punishable by the death penalty!  Malaysia is much more strict than Thailand and many of the other countries in SE Asia.  Malaysia literally mean "Mountain Asia" and hosts about 26 million people.  Islam is the dominant religion at about 60%.  The remaining 40% is mostly Hindu and Buddhist.

After crossing the border, we drove a couple more hours to Penang which is an island off of the Western Coast of Malaysia.  It has many luxury high rises and modern construction on one part of the island and then an older historic center in a neighborhood called George Town.  This was at one time an English colony so many of the streets, signs, statues, etc. are all in English or revolve around historical western figures.

Golden Buddha at Burmese Buddhist Temple

45 m Gold Plated Thai Buddha

It's also possible to go up Penang hill via funicular which is about 800m above the city.  Scenic views and a Hindu temple and mosque await at the top.

View from Penang Hill

Python Head

The group is getting along fine so far considering spending the past week together.  Our guide, Khag, is a good-humored Thai woman from Bangkok who maybe not so surprisingly has a deep love for karaoke!  We actually went out for karaoke one night in Penang and had a good time.  Liz, in your honor, I sang Sweet Child Of Mine with an Aussie buddy and ripped it up.

Overall, feel very lucky with the group dynamic and even though we are all very different, we seem to have a blast together.  Khag is always the life of the party and sometimes the instigator!

Thailand's Legendary Beaches

Although it was hard to leave the beauty of the National Park behind, I was really excited to see what Thailand's beaches had to offer.  A few hours south of the park, we arrived in Krabi on the coast of Southern Thailand.

One of my personal highlights in Krabi was the Chang Bar.  A reggae bar by day and dancing on tables and pogoing to house music by night.  We burned that place down that night.  Good times.

The next day we woke up early to catch a speedboat to some islands off of Krabi.  These islands were the real deal and looked like they were out of movies.  And a few of them actually were; we went to Maya beach which although crowded with tourists and speedboats is probably one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen and was the location where "The Beach" was filmed and the James Bond movie "The man with the Golden Gun".  Truly paradise.  The nicest thing about that island was that no one is allowed to develop on or live on that island.

Maya Beach

After a couple more islands, the boat stopped at Koh Phi Phi.  Shout out to Steve and Linny for telling me how incredible the island was.  It totally lived up to my expectations.  Myself and a few others from the group actually strayed away from the tour itinerary to spend the night on Phi Phi.  Once the group left on the boat we found simple rooms in the center of the small town.  We tried to sleep in these gorgeous beach bungalows but they were all taken by that time.

Phi Phi itself is a smaller island with two public beaches that are connected to each other by a small town in the middle.  Parts of the island look like the jutting mountains of Khao Sok park although the water was crystal clear so incredibly warm (almost 85 degrees!)  Again pretty touristy and packed but there were a lot of really cool beach bars located literally on the sand and lively restaurants that served up spicy curries and beer.  It is definitely a backpacker's Mecca and the perfect place to party.

After a great Panang curry for dinner at the Papaya restaurant we headed to the beach.  Many of the bars have fire dancers so we sat down to enjoy the show with buckets for drinks.  Buckets are usually Red Bull, whiskey, and coke or sprite and hold maybe about 5 drinks.  They definitely did the job.  The fire show was awesome and then the bar played some games that involved people losing articles of clothing.  Pretty entertaining but the buckets hadn't gotten me to that point yet!  From there we headed to a beach party where pogoing is a requirement seeing as all of the music was house and trance.  Again a very surreal experience with all of the neon lights and people dancing on the beach.  These parties are the site of the famed full moon parties in Thailand.  Hope to catch one next time.

Dinner @ Papaya

Phi Phi

Phi Phi was a bit spring breakish but in a great way and one night was just a tease.  Definitely planning on coming back.

It's sad to say goodbye to Thailand after having such a great time but tomorrow we head to Penang in Malaysia and I'm really looking forward to seeing what it has to offer.  Maybe buckets and beach parties if I'm lucky ha.

Southern Thailand - Khao Sok National Park

From Bangkok we took the overnight train south to Khao Sok National Park.  The train was a good time.  Lots of travelers looking to party and plenty of Chang beer for all.  The drive to the park was really nice through lush rural areas through valleys between impressive mountains with sheer rock faces.  Our accommodations there were bungalows set back in the rain forest.  Each had a hammock out on the porch surrounded by tropical flowers.  Really amazing spot.  It was called the Misty Morning Resort.

Part of the group on the longtail

So the first afternoon we took a hike through the park that was about an hour long.  Honestly I was a little bit disappointed by this walk.  It was a well traveled trail and we didn't see much wildlife except leeches!  Lucky me I was the first to get one and got a few more.  They were not quite as gross as the ones in the States; they look more like small earthworms.  Still not pretty but apparently they are harmless.  We attempted to hike up to a waterfall but had to turn back due to time.

It was ridiculously hot so once we returned from the hike we went tubing in the river that runs through the park.  The group may not have been as redneck or intoxicated as Missouri float trips can be but it was definitely just as fun.  It felt so refreshing to cool off from the hot and sticky jungle.  We even saw some monkeys and snake overhead as we floated down stream.  At one point we found a rope swing that everybody tried.  I had one scare along the way as I was bitten by something under the water and all I could imagine was those snakes we had seen earlier!  No cause for worry though as the guide said it is common for the fish to do that.

Later that night we had drinks at a bar overlooking the river while bats flew by.  The bartender was playing classic American rock as we all traded stories as we drank Chang.  It was all kind of surreal.

The next day we woke up early and took a longtail boat through the lake to an isolated lodge with beach huts for rent.  The ride couldn't have been more scenic; the mountains were rising straight out of the water.  Looked like the pictures I've seen of Ha-Long bay in Vietnam only on clear fresh water.  One of the most beautiful places I have ever seen.  Before a lunch of fried, local Gourami at the lodge we went for a swim in the lake.  Finally we went with a guide on a pretty serious hike through the rainforest.  We waded through streams and thick jungle.  The bamboo there was poisonous so we had to be careful what we touched.  Along the way we saw huge caterpillars and even a chameleon.  Very beautiful.  At the end of the hike we went into a cave where we waded through chest high water with headlamps in the pitch black.  Not going to lie it was a little scary when you couldn't see and things were floating past you in the water.  On the ceilings were stalactites and huge hunter spiders about 6 inches in diameter.  Not poisonous but they would definitely put the hurt on if you were bitten.

Khao Sok was one of the most spectacular places I have ever seen and it would be totally worth the trek to get there on your next trip to Thailand.

From there we headed to Krabi on the southern coast of Thailand and Phi Phi island.  I'm going to try to make a post soon but the computer at the internet cafe corrupted the memory card to my point and shoot camera.  Really hope I can show the photos though because I think they are some of the best yet.

Conquering Bangkok

My latest flight took me to Bangkok from Barcelona.  I flew through Doha, Qatar and it was about 12 hours total flying time.  Wish I could have spent some time in Doha but I had a tight connection.  Crazy hot there though...it was still 102 degrees two hours after sunset!

Arrived in Bangkok Friday morning and was dead tired but decided to make the most of the day.  I was on my own this weekend until I meet with my group on Sunday but I took Bangkok by storm in tuk tuks (3 wheel motorcycles for hire).  The drivers are really funny guys.Made about 8 stops all over my area and it only cost about $3.  Everything is insanely cheap here.  Indonesia is supposed to be even less expensive but I can't even imagine.  Those tuk tuk drivers are hustlers though!  They try to take you to the "lucky buddha" temple that is only open one day a year ha.  All part of the experience.

Buddhist Temple

Tuk Tuk Tim

I stayed in a small hostel type place near Khao Sarn Rd. which is super touristy area but actually really interesting.  They are hawking everything you can imagine...t-shirts, coconuts, scorpion on a stick, nunchucks, and even tazers.  AMAZING people watching.  Great street food too.  Plates of Pad Thai, meat skewers, thai potstickers, etc for all about $1.  I think that's actually where they filmed Hangover 2 also.
Yesterday I went to the Grand Place and Temple which completely blew my mind.  It was an enormous compound filled with extremely elaborate and ornate buildings of all shapes and sizes.  It kind of seems like the SE Asia version of Magic Kingdom ha.  Really an amazing place.

Grand Palace Temple

Temple of the Emerald Buddha

Grand Palace

So for all you worriers out there ;) it's worth mentioning that they are having elections in Thailand today (Sunday).  The blue party is in power and they red are hoping to win today.  I'm sure you heard about the riots last year because of the political parties.  Whoever wins there may be some chaos that ensues but rest assured I am catching a train out of Bangkok in a few hours to go to Khao Sok national park in Southern Thailand.  Not many riots in national parks so all should be well.
Because they are having the election today they actually banned all alcohol sales from 6pm Saturday until midnight tonight.  Bummed.  But I went to a Muay Thai kickboxing match last night that apparently didn't get the message.  People were getting rowdy...not in an agressive way but in a way where the Thais would scream at the top of their lungs with Thai Baht bills clenched in their fists and the fighters go at it.  While the kickboxers are fighting music plays that sound almost Indian...kind of like snake charmer music.  It's almost trance-like.  The fighters themselves range from about age 25 down to about 14!  These 14 year olds kick some major ass.  One kick from them and they would probably break me in half.  They all have 6 packs already!  All in all one of the most unique,exciting, and surreal experiences I have had yet.

Temple Ruin in Ayutthaya - North of Bangkok

Silly Elephant Show in Ayutthaya

Gotta go catch my sleeper train now...10 hours :(  But Khao Sok park is supposed to be reminiscent of Ha-Long bay in Vietnam with all of the beautiful rock formations shooting straight up out of the water.  Should be a few days til my next update.

Happy 4th!