After 16 flights, 15 different airports, 5 weeks of nonstop travel, and only 1 travel snafu, we are back in Brisbane with all of our stuff and our health!
I will admit that our trip began with a bit of a rough start - getting exiled from our house at the last minute for the last two days before a big trip (aka our travel prep plans were completely unsettled) and having to go on a scavenger hunt for a missing passport hours before departure. However, the rest of our trip was a wonderful, exciting, and easy-going adventure.
Our trip began in beautiful Bali. I was quite excited about this destination after so many years of applying to schools here, and since stopping through here saved us literally hundreds of dollars on our flight to Vietnam, Bali was an extra bonus destination. But before spending a couple days in Ubud, we ferried to the Gili Islands, off the coast of Lombok, to test out my new diving certification. While Gili Trawangan, the most populous of the 3 Gili Islands, was a charming little place with its no-car streets and jingle-belled horse buggies, the place was crawling with tourists. And what better way to escape the noisy backpackers than to submerge yourself underwater?! Ha! So, our days there were spent diving among coral formations, schools of fish, sea turtles, and even black-tip reef sharks. Manta Dive company did a great job, and I felt very safe with their equipment and local guides. I can see how addicting this sport can be....
The next couple days were spent in Ubud, Bali, exploring Hindu temples, watching traditional Balinese dance, swimming under a waterfall, and for me, getting robbed by a macaque. I just wanted to have a seat to rest while watching the monkeys at the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary. Innocent me sat down with my water bottle, unaware that the male macaque next to me was so thirsty. Before I knew it, he snatched the bottle out of my hand, showed me his gigantic, sharp teeth for good measure, and then unscrewed the cap with a practiced hand. "Look-Ma-no-hands" style and using only his mouth, he tipped the bottle up above his head, spilling water all over himself. I couldn't help but smugly laugh at his failed attempt. More and more tourists began taking pictures as I stood there bamboozled, watching that monkey drink all my water. Like watching pennies going down the drain. Luckily, I have opposable thumbs too and some cash, so I just went and bought myself another bottle, unlike the poor monkey we saw later on who was fervently slamming the water valve with a rock, unable to figure out the twist valve on the side.
Next stop: Hanoi, Vietnam. Or as I will now refer to it: the most polluted city I've ever been to. Even on a sunny day, the smog was so thick, we couldn't even see the blue of the sky. Paco and I both came down with sinus infections after only a few days there! We were able to escape on a cruise of Halong Bay before getting sick, and Paloma Cruise company surprised us with the royal treatment. Somehow, we got put in the best room on the ship! The ship was small, maybe only 30 or 40 people, but we won the room lottery - a corner room with a private bathroom, living room, and two walls of windows looking out over the iconic mountaintops jutting out from the bay. (If you're a nature nerd like me, you will enjoy this article on the unique geological formations here!). The five-course meals were delicious, and we explored caves, went kayaking, and even managed to dance some salsa on deck (while the crew and Taiwanese passengers awkwardly filmed it...). If you're even in the area, I highly recommend this tour! Other than Halong Bay, this area's only other real redeeming factor was the copious amounts of tasty (and extremely cheap) street food. Sidewalks here are for anything but walking, and many stalls and restaurants set up cheap plastic mini-stools and makeshift dining tables right on the pavement. One of our greatest finds was a corner serving out of what seemed like someone's basement. We ordered 2 of whatever they were cooking, and to our delight, ended up with the best wanton soup I've ever tasted, complete with a crispy slap of fried wanton on top.
My favorite leg of the trip was Laos. We flew from Hanoi to this cute town on the Mekong River, Luang Prabang. Here we saw a super old Buddhist temple with tons of hand-painted, golden scrollwork on every surface, a stuppa on top of the mountain that overlooked all of town and the Mekong, and the most beautiful waterfall I've ever seen. Kuang Xi waterfalls are actually a series of limestone pools, created by the high levels on limestone running over the falls. The main falls are over 200 feet high, and then flows into turquoise pools that are perfect for swimming. Words really can't do this place justice, so you'll have to check out the photos in my soon-to-be-updated Flickr album! Don't worry, I'll re-post the link on my blog so you won't miss it.
From Luang Prabang, we took an 8-hour bus ride up to Luang Namtha, a small trekking outpost on the outskirts of the Nam Ha National Protected Area. Over the next 4 days, we kayaked and trekked through the jungles here, eating traditional Lao meals with our hands off of banana leaf "tablecloths" on the ground. We stopped at hill-tribe villages for visits and overnight stays, where I spent most of my time playing the overflowing litters of village puppies. The last night of our trek was spent in a village on the crystal clear Nam Ha River where we rang in the new year in a way I would have never imagined.
On New Years Eve, our dinner was prepared over a cook fire in a one-story bamboo hut situated so close to the river that you could here the gentle trickling of water over shallow rocks. We were served at an uneven, wooden picnic table just outside the hut and were joined by our tour guide and two villagers. Dinner was laid out (among our bottles of celebratory BeerLao) which included dishes of local pumpkin, morning glory (or possibly some other type of bitter green, like collard greens), roasted chili peppers, and the featured proteins: forest rat soup and grilled river-frog legs. Talk about local and organic foods! Of course the frog legs were just-charred to juicy perfection, leaving me wanting more, but I was a bit hesitant to try the rat soup. Curled claws stuck out here and there, as well as many other...well...variables. But I didn't feel good about passing up such a unique opportunity, so I reached across the table, spoon ready in hand. First the broth...Hm, a bit game-y, but well spiced, with a touch of forest in it. Overall, worth another visit. This time, I tried a piece of rat....Surprisingly TASTY! Again, it was slightly game-y like the darkest meat of a turkey (or like that Guinea pig I ate in Ecuador a while back), but very fresh and woodsy tasting! So good, I actually dared to go back for more!
We slept happy and cozy while the clock chimed midnight, but unbeknownst to us, the party wasn't over. We were up and ready to finish our trek at 9am, and our guide informed us that one of the families had invited us to join their front porch circle to try homemade rice wine. A clay jug sat in the middle of the circle, with a layer of rice on top and two bamboo straws poking out. They offered us the straws and we sat down cross-legged on hand-high wooden stools. How could we resist a try? Two hours later we had been peer pressured into another jug of rice wine, rice whiskey, snacks, and an early lunch of more rat soup. So much for getting an early start, but I enjoyed ringing in 2016 with a once-in-a-lifetime experience. They say that how you spend January 1st is how you will spend the rest of the year, and this year, I hope that's true! (Although I hope not literally...haha!)
After roughing it in the jungle, we met up with some of Paco's former students in the Lao capital of Vientiane. Our host, Ms. Pat, spoiled us rotten, and we got the inside scoop on Lao life. A supposed lunch with 5 of Paco's students turned into an entire afternoon, eating, partying, swimming, and singing karaoke on a boat on the Nam Ngum lake with about 50 friends and family members. At 4am the next morning, we were up before the sun, sitting on the curb giving alms to the Buddhist monks in a rainbow of orange robes. We saw temples and ate an amazing spread of new dishes, and we even had lunch at a temple with the monks as well. Ms. Pat showed us her fruit farm down by the river too. She helped us cross the border and was thankfully by our side for the one flight delay nightmare we encountered. We are extremely thankful for her hospitality!
Here ends our solo trip and begins the Ramos-Meyer family vacation! Paco's brother, Rafa, teaches in Korea, so we all met up in Thailand for a two week visit. I was lucky enough to be able to join in, and it was so nice to have some family time, even if it wasn't my own family. I felt quite at home with two brothers who speak in movie-quote banter and like to pick on me all the time! Haha!
The first leg of our trip was spend in Chang Mai, another charming, smaller city with great weather. The daily schedule involved getting super cheap massages, visiting temples, eating good Thai food, and repeating. Paco's mom and I agreed that it would be worth it to move to Thailand just to be able to afford massages every day! Next, we visited the world-famous Angkor Wat ruins. My favorite of these temples was the Citadel of Women (Banteay Srei) and Bayon Temple (which we nicknamed "House of the Many-Faced God"). We also saw Ta Prohm, the infamous tree-covered temple where Tomb Raider was filmed. Of course, THE Angkor Wat was incredible, and if you're interested in learning more about the Khmer history, you may want to read the historical fiction Temple of a Thousand Faces.
My favorite spot we visited in Thailand was of course Koh Tao island, and you can probably guess why I have a renewed obsession with islands....more diving opportunities!!! Yay! After a quick ferry, we were snorkeling in front of our hotel by lunchtime, and if snorkeling here was any indication of what we would see diving, we knew we'd be in for a treat. Dive 1 was a combination review course for Rafa, and fun dive to Japanese Gardens, named for its colorful coral gardens. Dive 2 at the Twins was spent swimming among schools of brightly colored fish, relaxing and taking in the views. Dive 3...well, they do say "third one's the charm" but unfortunately, this was not the case for us....Paco got sick the morning before and was not able to go, but luckily for him, he didn't miss much as we were blown so off course that we ended up swimming out in the middle of super deep ocean with nothing to see. Our guide was apparently new, and the current was strong, so we didn't actually ever make it to the dive site from the boat. Thankfully, the company refunded us for this one, but it was a bummer we missed it when all the other groups got to see it. Our guide was able to redeem himself for the last dive, which was a beautiful mix of both corals and fish. We saw giant grouper hiding behind rocks, purple and orange angel fish, false anemonefish (fake Nemos), black and yellow striped bannerfish, giant clams, and tons of different species of corals. Did I mention that I think I'm hooked??!
Our last day was spent in Bangkok, shopping a huge market for Thai shirts and other trinkets. We were sad to see Paco's family go, but we had a great visit! Our destinations on this trip include the awards of "Best Diving" (to date haha), "Best Wanton Soup," and "Most Beautiful Waterfall I've Ever Seen." After lots of laughs, discoveries, adventures, challenges, and successes, this trip was sooooo worth all the planning and money spent! They say you can't buy happiness, but this trip was definitely an exception!
Just because we are back from vacation doesn't mean things are going to slow down, not yet at least. Tomorrow, Paco goes back to work while I get things moved into our new, beautiful apartment! I am beyond excited to have our own place where we can cook together, be ourselves, and hang out on our porch! Did I mention we're only 100 meters from the Brisbane River?? Then, on Thursday, I will be going in to see my new office space and plan lessons for next week. I start my new job teaching intermediate English to adults on Monday! Whoohoo! The next few weeks will be a new mini-adventure as well, and I am so looking forward to the new start this new year!
I will admit that our trip began with a bit of a rough start - getting exiled from our house at the last minute for the last two days before a big trip (aka our travel prep plans were completely unsettled) and having to go on a scavenger hunt for a missing passport hours before departure. However, the rest of our trip was a wonderful, exciting, and easy-going adventure.
Our trip began in beautiful Bali. I was quite excited about this destination after so many years of applying to schools here, and since stopping through here saved us literally hundreds of dollars on our flight to Vietnam, Bali was an extra bonus destination. But before spending a couple days in Ubud, we ferried to the Gili Islands, off the coast of Lombok, to test out my new diving certification. While Gili Trawangan, the most populous of the 3 Gili Islands, was a charming little place with its no-car streets and jingle-belled horse buggies, the place was crawling with tourists. And what better way to escape the noisy backpackers than to submerge yourself underwater?! Ha! So, our days there were spent diving among coral formations, schools of fish, sea turtles, and even black-tip reef sharks. Manta Dive company did a great job, and I felt very safe with their equipment and local guides. I can see how addicting this sport can be....
The next couple days were spent in Ubud, Bali, exploring Hindu temples, watching traditional Balinese dance, swimming under a waterfall, and for me, getting robbed by a macaque. I just wanted to have a seat to rest while watching the monkeys at the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary. Innocent me sat down with my water bottle, unaware that the male macaque next to me was so thirsty. Before I knew it, he snatched the bottle out of my hand, showed me his gigantic, sharp teeth for good measure, and then unscrewed the cap with a practiced hand. "Look-Ma-no-hands" style and using only his mouth, he tipped the bottle up above his head, spilling water all over himself. I couldn't help but smugly laugh at his failed attempt. More and more tourists began taking pictures as I stood there bamboozled, watching that monkey drink all my water. Like watching pennies going down the drain. Luckily, I have opposable thumbs too and some cash, so I just went and bought myself another bottle, unlike the poor monkey we saw later on who was fervently slamming the water valve with a rock, unable to figure out the twist valve on the side.
Next stop: Hanoi, Vietnam. Or as I will now refer to it: the most polluted city I've ever been to. Even on a sunny day, the smog was so thick, we couldn't even see the blue of the sky. Paco and I both came down with sinus infections after only a few days there! We were able to escape on a cruise of Halong Bay before getting sick, and Paloma Cruise company surprised us with the royal treatment. Somehow, we got put in the best room on the ship! The ship was small, maybe only 30 or 40 people, but we won the room lottery - a corner room with a private bathroom, living room, and two walls of windows looking out over the iconic mountaintops jutting out from the bay. (If you're a nature nerd like me, you will enjoy this article on the unique geological formations here!). The five-course meals were delicious, and we explored caves, went kayaking, and even managed to dance some salsa on deck (while the crew and Taiwanese passengers awkwardly filmed it...). If you're even in the area, I highly recommend this tour! Other than Halong Bay, this area's only other real redeeming factor was the copious amounts of tasty (and extremely cheap) street food. Sidewalks here are for anything but walking, and many stalls and restaurants set up cheap plastic mini-stools and makeshift dining tables right on the pavement. One of our greatest finds was a corner serving out of what seemed like someone's basement. We ordered 2 of whatever they were cooking, and to our delight, ended up with the best wanton soup I've ever tasted, complete with a crispy slap of fried wanton on top.
My favorite leg of the trip was Laos. We flew from Hanoi to this cute town on the Mekong River, Luang Prabang. Here we saw a super old Buddhist temple with tons of hand-painted, golden scrollwork on every surface, a stuppa on top of the mountain that overlooked all of town and the Mekong, and the most beautiful waterfall I've ever seen. Kuang Xi waterfalls are actually a series of limestone pools, created by the high levels on limestone running over the falls. The main falls are over 200 feet high, and then flows into turquoise pools that are perfect for swimming. Words really can't do this place justice, so you'll have to check out the photos in my soon-to-be-updated Flickr album! Don't worry, I'll re-post the link on my blog so you won't miss it.
From Luang Prabang, we took an 8-hour bus ride up to Luang Namtha, a small trekking outpost on the outskirts of the Nam Ha National Protected Area. Over the next 4 days, we kayaked and trekked through the jungles here, eating traditional Lao meals with our hands off of banana leaf "tablecloths" on the ground. We stopped at hill-tribe villages for visits and overnight stays, where I spent most of my time playing the overflowing litters of village puppies. The last night of our trek was spent in a village on the crystal clear Nam Ha River where we rang in the new year in a way I would have never imagined.
On New Years Eve, our dinner was prepared over a cook fire in a one-story bamboo hut situated so close to the river that you could here the gentle trickling of water over shallow rocks. We were served at an uneven, wooden picnic table just outside the hut and were joined by our tour guide and two villagers. Dinner was laid out (among our bottles of celebratory BeerLao) which included dishes of local pumpkin, morning glory (or possibly some other type of bitter green, like collard greens), roasted chili peppers, and the featured proteins: forest rat soup and grilled river-frog legs. Talk about local and organic foods! Of course the frog legs were just-charred to juicy perfection, leaving me wanting more, but I was a bit hesitant to try the rat soup. Curled claws stuck out here and there, as well as many other...well...variables. But I didn't feel good about passing up such a unique opportunity, so I reached across the table, spoon ready in hand. First the broth...Hm, a bit game-y, but well spiced, with a touch of forest in it. Overall, worth another visit. This time, I tried a piece of rat....Surprisingly TASTY! Again, it was slightly game-y like the darkest meat of a turkey (or like that Guinea pig I ate in Ecuador a while back), but very fresh and woodsy tasting! So good, I actually dared to go back for more!
We slept happy and cozy while the clock chimed midnight, but unbeknownst to us, the party wasn't over. We were up and ready to finish our trek at 9am, and our guide informed us that one of the families had invited us to join their front porch circle to try homemade rice wine. A clay jug sat in the middle of the circle, with a layer of rice on top and two bamboo straws poking out. They offered us the straws and we sat down cross-legged on hand-high wooden stools. How could we resist a try? Two hours later we had been peer pressured into another jug of rice wine, rice whiskey, snacks, and an early lunch of more rat soup. So much for getting an early start, but I enjoyed ringing in 2016 with a once-in-a-lifetime experience. They say that how you spend January 1st is how you will spend the rest of the year, and this year, I hope that's true! (Although I hope not literally...haha!)
After roughing it in the jungle, we met up with some of Paco's former students in the Lao capital of Vientiane. Our host, Ms. Pat, spoiled us rotten, and we got the inside scoop on Lao life. A supposed lunch with 5 of Paco's students turned into an entire afternoon, eating, partying, swimming, and singing karaoke on a boat on the Nam Ngum lake with about 50 friends and family members. At 4am the next morning, we were up before the sun, sitting on the curb giving alms to the Buddhist monks in a rainbow of orange robes. We saw temples and ate an amazing spread of new dishes, and we even had lunch at a temple with the monks as well. Ms. Pat showed us her fruit farm down by the river too. She helped us cross the border and was thankfully by our side for the one flight delay nightmare we encountered. We are extremely thankful for her hospitality!
Here ends our solo trip and begins the Ramos-Meyer family vacation! Paco's brother, Rafa, teaches in Korea, so we all met up in Thailand for a two week visit. I was lucky enough to be able to join in, and it was so nice to have some family time, even if it wasn't my own family. I felt quite at home with two brothers who speak in movie-quote banter and like to pick on me all the time! Haha!
The first leg of our trip was spend in Chang Mai, another charming, smaller city with great weather. The daily schedule involved getting super cheap massages, visiting temples, eating good Thai food, and repeating. Paco's mom and I agreed that it would be worth it to move to Thailand just to be able to afford massages every day! Next, we visited the world-famous Angkor Wat ruins. My favorite of these temples was the Citadel of Women (Banteay Srei) and Bayon Temple (which we nicknamed "House of the Many-Faced God"). We also saw Ta Prohm, the infamous tree-covered temple where Tomb Raider was filmed. Of course, THE Angkor Wat was incredible, and if you're interested in learning more about the Khmer history, you may want to read the historical fiction Temple of a Thousand Faces.
My favorite spot we visited in Thailand was of course Koh Tao island, and you can probably guess why I have a renewed obsession with islands....more diving opportunities!!! Yay! After a quick ferry, we were snorkeling in front of our hotel by lunchtime, and if snorkeling here was any indication of what we would see diving, we knew we'd be in for a treat. Dive 1 was a combination review course for Rafa, and fun dive to Japanese Gardens, named for its colorful coral gardens. Dive 2 at the Twins was spent swimming among schools of brightly colored fish, relaxing and taking in the views. Dive 3...well, they do say "third one's the charm" but unfortunately, this was not the case for us....Paco got sick the morning before and was not able to go, but luckily for him, he didn't miss much as we were blown so off course that we ended up swimming out in the middle of super deep ocean with nothing to see. Our guide was apparently new, and the current was strong, so we didn't actually ever make it to the dive site from the boat. Thankfully, the company refunded us for this one, but it was a bummer we missed it when all the other groups got to see it. Our guide was able to redeem himself for the last dive, which was a beautiful mix of both corals and fish. We saw giant grouper hiding behind rocks, purple and orange angel fish, false anemonefish (fake Nemos), black and yellow striped bannerfish, giant clams, and tons of different species of corals. Did I mention that I think I'm hooked??!
Our last day was spent in Bangkok, shopping a huge market for Thai shirts and other trinkets. We were sad to see Paco's family go, but we had a great visit! Our destinations on this trip include the awards of "Best Diving" (to date haha), "Best Wanton Soup," and "Most Beautiful Waterfall I've Ever Seen." After lots of laughs, discoveries, adventures, challenges, and successes, this trip was sooooo worth all the planning and money spent! They say you can't buy happiness, but this trip was definitely an exception!
Just because we are back from vacation doesn't mean things are going to slow down, not yet at least. Tomorrow, Paco goes back to work while I get things moved into our new, beautiful apartment! I am beyond excited to have our own place where we can cook together, be ourselves, and hang out on our porch! Did I mention we're only 100 meters from the Brisbane River?? Then, on Thursday, I will be going in to see my new office space and plan lessons for next week. I start my new job teaching intermediate English to adults on Monday! Whoohoo! The next few weeks will be a new mini-adventure as well, and I am so looking forward to the new start this new year!
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