Thursday, October 30, 2003
Hi everyone haven't written in a while so here goes.
This week we have continued our search for jobs. On Monday night we went to dinner with Lou's sisters nephew Laurence at Speedy Noodles (cheap and cheerful). He is about to head back to NZ for 3 months. His parents have been in Canada visiting relatives and, to Laurence's surprise, arrived in London to visit him yesterday.
On Tuesday I received a phone call from an agency informing me that I had a 1/2 day of work teaching Excel the next day. I had to rush down to the agency to register that afternoon. The next day didn't start off so well. I was supposed to go to Lotus Supertravel but I was given the directions to Lotus Conferences. Luckily the lady there knew where Supertravel was and gave me directions. Luckily it was only 10 minutes walk away. It turned out not to be teaching but building some spreadsheets for them(which didn't bother me, I am sick of teaching). I started at 9:30 and didn't finnish until 6:30! Still money in the bank and I now have London experience.
Today is our anniversary. Lou and I started going out 4 years ago today. Lou wanted to go on the Millennium wheel (now called the London Eye). We forgot it was school holidays here and the queues were massive. The weather was packing in anyway so we went over the Thames to Westminster, a very impressive building and so was Big Ben. We went on to Westminster Abbey and decided to take a look. It is full of tombs for Kings, Queens and 'Nobel' men and women, some of the rooms seemed over-crowded with them. The ceilings and stained glass windows were very impressive. Tonight we are going to a local India restaurant for dinner.
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This week we have continued our search for jobs. On Monday night we went to dinner with Lou's sisters nephew Laurence at Speedy Noodles (cheap and cheerful). He is about to head back to NZ for 3 months. His parents have been in Canada visiting relatives and, to Laurence's surprise, arrived in London to visit him yesterday.
On Tuesday I received a phone call from an agency informing me that I had a 1/2 day of work teaching Excel the next day. I had to rush down to the agency to register that afternoon. The next day didn't start off so well. I was supposed to go to Lotus Supertravel but I was given the directions to Lotus Conferences. Luckily the lady there knew where Supertravel was and gave me directions. Luckily it was only 10 minutes walk away. It turned out not to be teaching but building some spreadsheets for them(which didn't bother me, I am sick of teaching). I started at 9:30 and didn't finnish until 6:30! Still money in the bank and I now have London experience.
Today is our anniversary. Lou and I started going out 4 years ago today. Lou wanted to go on the Millennium wheel (now called the London Eye). We forgot it was school holidays here and the queues were massive. The weather was packing in anyway so we went over the Thames to Westminster, a very impressive building and so was Big Ben. We went on to Westminster Abbey and decided to take a look. It is full of tombs for Kings, Queens and 'Nobel' men and women, some of the rooms seemed over-crowded with them. The ceilings and stained glass windows were very impressive. Tonight we are going to a local India restaurant for dinner.
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Sunday, October 26, 2003
Well, it's the weekend of mega eating!
On Friday (Joseph's birthday) we had a lovely dinner with Rae and Steve at a restaurant called "Small and Beautiful". On Saturday we went to Pam (my cousin) and Brian's for dinner. And tonight we are going to dinner at my Mum's cousin Antony's.
We both really enjoyed the Tate Modern. I thought that the building would be modern as well so I was a bit disappointed when we got there. The building is actually a converted Powerstation. It is huge. The first piece you see is in a huge rectangular hall. On one side there is a lighted orange semi circle. This is reflected in a huge mirror that covers the whole ceiling so it looks like the sun. The whole hall is misty as well. Lots of people where lying down and looking up at themselves in the ceiling mirror.
We enjoyed seeing works by Monet, Renoir, Dali, Picasso etc plus I enjoyed the work of a couple of German artists who I haven't heard of but where very interesting and prolific. Don't ask me their names. I should have been taking notes!
On Saturday we visited Kew Gardens. The trees were in their Autumn splendour. We enjoyed going into the hot houses which kind of simulated the tropical climate we experienced in South East Asia. We also went on a guided walk with a women who told stories and sang along the way.
Our dinner with Pam and Brian was great. Of course no meeting with Brian is complete with out good wine and beer! It was great to catch up and their house is looking great.
Joseph bought a soccer ball the other day so I think we'll go out for a bit of a kick around before the next meal!!
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On Friday (Joseph's birthday) we had a lovely dinner with Rae and Steve at a restaurant called "Small and Beautiful". On Saturday we went to Pam (my cousin) and Brian's for dinner. And tonight we are going to dinner at my Mum's cousin Antony's.
We both really enjoyed the Tate Modern. I thought that the building would be modern as well so I was a bit disappointed when we got there. The building is actually a converted Powerstation. It is huge. The first piece you see is in a huge rectangular hall. On one side there is a lighted orange semi circle. This is reflected in a huge mirror that covers the whole ceiling so it looks like the sun. The whole hall is misty as well. Lots of people where lying down and looking up at themselves in the ceiling mirror.
We enjoyed seeing works by Monet, Renoir, Dali, Picasso etc plus I enjoyed the work of a couple of German artists who I haven't heard of but where very interesting and prolific. Don't ask me their names. I should have been taking notes!
On Saturday we visited Kew Gardens. The trees were in their Autumn splendour. We enjoyed going into the hot houses which kind of simulated the tropical climate we experienced in South East Asia. We also went on a guided walk with a women who told stories and sang along the way.
Our dinner with Pam and Brian was great. Of course no meeting with Brian is complete with out good wine and beer! It was great to catch up and their house is looking great.
Joseph bought a soccer ball the other day so I think we'll go out for a bit of a kick around before the next meal!!
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Friday, October 24, 2003
It's my Birthday today! I am the ripe old age of 24. Thank you to those who sent emails and cards. It is nice to know I am remembered even when I am not in the country.
I have spent this morning applying for jobs online. But this afternoon we are going to the Tate Modern to see some culture darling, then to dinner at a popular local restaurant. So that should be nice. Lou has baked me a cake to (I think it is chocolate as the I notice the coca tin has moved, I am so cunning).
Yesterday I ventured into the central city on my own to buy our Bill Bailey tickets. On my way home I was crossing Piccadilly Circus when 2 horse drawn carts with red coated guards and mounted police went past. I saw a blonde haired woman in one of them (Lou thinks it might have been prince Edwards wife).
Bill Bailey was great. I like how he includes musical pieces into his routine. He did this drum and bass song with samples of George Bush, fantastic!
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I have spent this morning applying for jobs online. But this afternoon we are going to the Tate Modern to see some culture darling, then to dinner at a popular local restaurant. So that should be nice. Lou has baked me a cake to (I think it is chocolate as the I notice the coca tin has moved, I am so cunning).
Yesterday I ventured into the central city on my own to buy our Bill Bailey tickets. On my way home I was crossing Piccadilly Circus when 2 horse drawn carts with red coated guards and mounted police went past. I saw a blonde haired woman in one of them (Lou thinks it might have been prince Edwards wife).
Bill Bailey was great. I like how he includes musical pieces into his routine. He did this drum and bass song with samples of George Bush, fantastic!
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Wednesday, October 22, 2003
Wow, London is very overwhelming. I'm seeing everything with fresh eyes even though I've lived here before. It's definately going to take time to get used to it again.
There is so much to do here but we have been devoting our time to job hunting activities. Oh joy...NOT!
I won't really feel that I belong here until I get a job. On Monday we both had agency interviews and on Tuesday and today we've been calling others to suss out the market and hopefully get further interviews. It can be very disheartening...I was ready to give up on Tuesday (that's just me being a drama queen!). Hassle agencies, visit job web sites, read job sections of newspapers and utilise networks....that's our job hunting strategy at the moment. We'd appreciate any job hunting tips or any contacts (preferably with high paying jobs perfect for us (o: ) you might have in London!
We are going to apply for the types of jobs we want first but also look for reception and data entry roles....anything really...well maybe not anything. Today in Leicester Square we saw people whose job was to stand in the square with signs pointing to the theatre ticket booths. I don't think we are quite that desperate yet! The good thing is that we have a lovely place to stay and savings.
It's Joseph's birthday on Friday so we are going to take a break from the job hunting and do some sightseeing and then go out to dinner.
We did manage to do some sight seeing today. We picked up our bank account stuff from HSBC and then walked through to Piccadily Circus, Leicester Square and Covent Garden. I got all nostalgic when we saw the Royal Opera House. I went into the ticket office area and checked out the photos of the dancers from the Royal Ballet Company. A few of the people in my year are doing really well. The life that could have been eh.....not the life for me though (o: I will look forward to seeing a ballet at the revamped Opera House though. The Royal Ballet School is now right next to the Opera House.
Tomorrow Joseph is going to see if we can get standing tickets to Bill Bailey in the West End. On Saturday we are going to Pam and Brian's for dinner and on Sunday we may be going to cousin Antony's for dinner. A busy weekend social schedule (o:
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There is so much to do here but we have been devoting our time to job hunting activities. Oh joy...NOT!
I won't really feel that I belong here until I get a job. On Monday we both had agency interviews and on Tuesday and today we've been calling others to suss out the market and hopefully get further interviews. It can be very disheartening...I was ready to give up on Tuesday (that's just me being a drama queen!). Hassle agencies, visit job web sites, read job sections of newspapers and utilise networks....that's our job hunting strategy at the moment. We'd appreciate any job hunting tips or any contacts (preferably with high paying jobs perfect for us (o: ) you might have in London!
We are going to apply for the types of jobs we want first but also look for reception and data entry roles....anything really...well maybe not anything. Today in Leicester Square we saw people whose job was to stand in the square with signs pointing to the theatre ticket booths. I don't think we are quite that desperate yet! The good thing is that we have a lovely place to stay and savings.
It's Joseph's birthday on Friday so we are going to take a break from the job hunting and do some sightseeing and then go out to dinner.
We did manage to do some sight seeing today. We picked up our bank account stuff from HSBC and then walked through to Piccadily Circus, Leicester Square and Covent Garden. I got all nostalgic when we saw the Royal Opera House. I went into the ticket office area and checked out the photos of the dancers from the Royal Ballet Company. A few of the people in my year are doing really well. The life that could have been eh.....not the life for me though (o: I will look forward to seeing a ballet at the revamped Opera House though. The Royal Ballet School is now right next to the Opera House.
Tomorrow Joseph is going to see if we can get standing tickets to Bill Bailey in the West End. On Saturday we are going to Pam and Brian's for dinner and on Sunday we may be going to cousin Antony's for dinner. A busy weekend social schedule (o:
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Sunday, October 19, 2003
Damn Mac computers, I tried to copy and paste my post and lost it all. You have to use the apple key instead of control.
Colombo to London
We hung out at the hotel in Mt Lavinia until 11:30 pm when we took a van to Colombo airport. The flight left at 3:15 am. We slept for about half of the 4 1/2 hour flight to Dubai. Dubai airport is interesting because the building is shaped like half a rugby ball. It is very modern and flash inside but it has those tacky fake torches, like you see in $2 shops, along the walls.
The flight to Heathrow was delayed for about 1 hour because of fog. You could not see anything out the window it was so thick. The 7 1/2 hour fligh was uneventful except for an accident.
Lou was sitting on the aisle seat. She had taken off her headphones and had fallen in the aisle. When the stewardess came along with the drinks trolley and hit the headphone the whole thing went over. Luckily we were at the very back of the plane so there were no passengers behind us for the ice and coffee to fall on. We arived at Heathrow at about 1 pm.
Rachel (Lou`s sister) met us at the airport and we took the tube back to their house in Kilburn. We relaxed for the afternoon and were treated to a lovely lasagne and banana cake for dinner. Our room is big and the bed very comfortable. We are very lucky!
We got Lou`s dad to send some of our stuff over from New Zealand and it arrived a few days before we got to London. It got wet in transit so we had to wash a lot of our clothes to get the mould off.
We managed to stay up to a respectable 8:30 before we succumbed to tiredness and slept for 12 hours.
Day 1 in London
Today we headed down to Kilburn high road, just 2 blocks away, to do some shopping. There are many pubs, restaruants and clothing stores along the street. I bought some work shoes. Lou and I both have interviews at agencies tomorrow so we are getting prepared. Steve (Rachal's husband) has kindly lent me his "starter seuit" the shoulders are a little too wide but otherwise it is perfect. I hope I don't get myself lost on the underground!
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Colombo to London
We hung out at the hotel in Mt Lavinia until 11:30 pm when we took a van to Colombo airport. The flight left at 3:15 am. We slept for about half of the 4 1/2 hour flight to Dubai. Dubai airport is interesting because the building is shaped like half a rugby ball. It is very modern and flash inside but it has those tacky fake torches, like you see in $2 shops, along the walls.
The flight to Heathrow was delayed for about 1 hour because of fog. You could not see anything out the window it was so thick. The 7 1/2 hour fligh was uneventful except for an accident.
Lou was sitting on the aisle seat. She had taken off her headphones and had fallen in the aisle. When the stewardess came along with the drinks trolley and hit the headphone the whole thing went over. Luckily we were at the very back of the plane so there were no passengers behind us for the ice and coffee to fall on. We arived at Heathrow at about 1 pm.
Rachel (Lou`s sister) met us at the airport and we took the tube back to their house in Kilburn. We relaxed for the afternoon and were treated to a lovely lasagne and banana cake for dinner. Our room is big and the bed very comfortable. We are very lucky!
We got Lou`s dad to send some of our stuff over from New Zealand and it arrived a few days before we got to London. It got wet in transit so we had to wash a lot of our clothes to get the mould off.
We managed to stay up to a respectable 8:30 before we succumbed to tiredness and slept for 12 hours.
Day 1 in London
Today we headed down to Kilburn high road, just 2 blocks away, to do some shopping. There are many pubs, restaruants and clothing stores along the street. I bought some work shoes. Lou and I both have interviews at agencies tomorrow so we are getting prepared. Steve (Rachal's husband) has kindly lent me his "starter seuit" the shoulders are a little too wide but otherwise it is perfect. I hope I don't get myself lost on the underground!
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Friday, October 17, 2003
Day 12 in Sri Lanka, Mt Lavinia
Last night we had a nice dinner with Ben and his wife Anna. This was a great way to spend our last night on holiday and we got some great UK tips.
Today we were lucky enough to get a ride to the Anbalangoda bus station from Hikkaduwa. A German couple (also guests at the Curry Bowl) were traveling to visit a friend there and offered us a lift.
Once at the station we hopped on a bus. The system is that the bus leaves once it is full. We waited around 1/2 an hour and then started off for Mt Lavinia.
Along the way we noticed all the 'Anchor' Milk powder advertising covering the dairies. When we mention we are NZer's to locals they are more likely to connect us with Anchor than with the Black Caps or the All Blacks. Near the local school crossings there are big signs to warn drivers that school children use the crossing and they are sponsored by Anchor.
And so now we are back where we started on this Sri Lankan leg of our travels. As Rae said in a recent email "It's time to hang up our traveling shoes" and settle in to London life.
We will continue to update this blog every week. This will ensure we do at least one interesting thing a week and therefore not forget why we are overseas...to do interesting stuff!
Our flight is at 3am on Saturday morning. Aarrgh. I hope we get some sleep on the plane.
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Last night we had a nice dinner with Ben and his wife Anna. This was a great way to spend our last night on holiday and we got some great UK tips.
Today we were lucky enough to get a ride to the Anbalangoda bus station from Hikkaduwa. A German couple (also guests at the Curry Bowl) were traveling to visit a friend there and offered us a lift.
Once at the station we hopped on a bus. The system is that the bus leaves once it is full. We waited around 1/2 an hour and then started off for Mt Lavinia.
Along the way we noticed all the 'Anchor' Milk powder advertising covering the dairies. When we mention we are NZer's to locals they are more likely to connect us with Anchor than with the Black Caps or the All Blacks. Near the local school crossings there are big signs to warn drivers that school children use the crossing and they are sponsored by Anchor.
And so now we are back where we started on this Sri Lankan leg of our travels. As Rae said in a recent email "It's time to hang up our traveling shoes" and settle in to London life.
We will continue to update this blog every week. This will ensure we do at least one interesting thing a week and therefore not forget why we are overseas...to do interesting stuff!
Our flight is at 3am on Saturday morning. Aarrgh. I hope we get some sleep on the plane.
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Thursday, October 16, 2003
Day 10 in Sri Lanka, Day 2 in Mirissa
Mirissa is a lovely beach with just enough surf to body surf, which is what I did for most of the day. I saw this one guy who was not trying to catch waves by thrashing his arms around in a loose free-style but lying with head down, arms out and fingers pointing out. He was catching them right until his belly was scraping the sand. I thought I would have a go at copying his technique as the aforementioned was not going so well. I caught the first wave I tried and the second, this was easy. Then I didn't catch any more for about 1/2 an hour :( The water is so warm you could stay in all day, it is fantastic.
Lou spent the day relaxing by the pool and finishing her book (now she has stolen mine!) Mixed with a couple of brief excursions into the ocean.
Day 11 in Sri Lanka, Hikkaduwa
Well mum we are here after all. We got up reasonably early to catch the 9:25 train. It didn't arrive until 10:30, we weren't too worried the LP had warned us about the Sri Lankan railway system. What really worried us was when we reached Galle (pronounced gar-lee Lou). We found out that the track ends at Galle. Before we knew what was happening we were traveling back the way we came. I flicked through the LP desperately for some mention of this strange occurrence, were we supposed to switch trains? I tried to ask some locals, they didn't speak English but didn't seem worried when we told them we were going to Hikkaduwa. We just rode it out going backwards all the time, going past places we were sure we had already seen. Then the train stopped at a station, and we were there! We had to rush to get out of the train! I have no idea how it happened but I was so relieved that I let the first tout that grabbed us drag us out and into his waiting three-wheeler. Once I convinced the tout that I did actually want to stay at the hotel we had selected, not his "recommendations" we were there.
Lou was not feeling so well after the heat and motion of the train so I left her to bask in the cool of the air-con and hit the beach. The sand is much more coarse than Mirissa and the waves much larger. On my way down the beach I was offered "ganja" twice, probably a common occurrence here but it has not happened anywhere else on our travels (for the record I declined both). While catching some waves I met a Kiwi called Ben who is on his way back to NZ from the UK we had a chat and will meet up for a drink later. I am not going to make a habit of hanging out with Kiwis in London by the way, this is strictly a holiday thing. Time to checkout the shops and stuff.
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Mirissa is a lovely beach with just enough surf to body surf, which is what I did for most of the day. I saw this one guy who was not trying to catch waves by thrashing his arms around in a loose free-style but lying with head down, arms out and fingers pointing out. He was catching them right until his belly was scraping the sand. I thought I would have a go at copying his technique as the aforementioned was not going so well. I caught the first wave I tried and the second, this was easy. Then I didn't catch any more for about 1/2 an hour :( The water is so warm you could stay in all day, it is fantastic.
Lou spent the day relaxing by the pool and finishing her book (now she has stolen mine!) Mixed with a couple of brief excursions into the ocean.
Day 11 in Sri Lanka, Hikkaduwa
Well mum we are here after all. We got up reasonably early to catch the 9:25 train. It didn't arrive until 10:30, we weren't too worried the LP had warned us about the Sri Lankan railway system. What really worried us was when we reached Galle (pronounced gar-lee Lou). We found out that the track ends at Galle. Before we knew what was happening we were traveling back the way we came. I flicked through the LP desperately for some mention of this strange occurrence, were we supposed to switch trains? I tried to ask some locals, they didn't speak English but didn't seem worried when we told them we were going to Hikkaduwa. We just rode it out going backwards all the time, going past places we were sure we had already seen. Then the train stopped at a station, and we were there! We had to rush to get out of the train! I have no idea how it happened but I was so relieved that I let the first tout that grabbed us drag us out and into his waiting three-wheeler. Once I convinced the tout that I did actually want to stay at the hotel we had selected, not his "recommendations" we were there.
Lou was not feeling so well after the heat and motion of the train so I left her to bask in the cool of the air-con and hit the beach. The sand is much more coarse than Mirissa and the waves much larger. On my way down the beach I was offered "ganja" twice, probably a common occurrence here but it has not happened anywhere else on our travels (for the record I declined both). While catching some waves I met a Kiwi called Ben who is on his way back to NZ from the UK we had a chat and will meet up for a drink later. I am not going to make a habit of hanging out with Kiwis in London by the way, this is strictly a holiday thing. Time to checkout the shops and stuff.
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Wednesday, October 15, 2003
Day 8 in Sri Lanka, Ella
We had a great day on a train travelling from Kandy to Ella. The trip took just under 7 hours. We enjoyed chatting to people (both Sri Lankans and other travellers) and the hill top views of tea plantations. People selling food would walk up and down the car saying "Wollawollawolla" (well that's what it sounded like anyway). They sold sweet stuff, Sri Lankan savoury nibbles, mangos and other fruit. When ever we went through a tunnel the children would have fun howling like ghosts. We were in 2nd class and were lucky to get seats. However through out the journey we gave up our seats to an elderly woman and a woman with a baby. It was fun hanging out the train exits too...except for my unnerving urge to jump out!
We checked into a lovely hotel call Country Comfort. We had rice and curry for dinner....surprise surprise...it was delicious. Yesterday at Pizza Hutt the TV had the Rubgy World Cup playing. England vs Georgia. Georgia were getting a thrashing!
Day 9 in Sri Lanka, Mirissa
We drove from Ella to Mirissa. It took about 5 hours and we stopped at Rawana Falls along the way. I didn't enjoy the trip as the AC was on the blink and the roads were very bumpy.
We decided to stay at the Paradise Beach Motel in Mirissa. It is the most expensive at around 2,500 rupees ($50 NZ) a night but this includes AC (a must for me to be able to sleep), breakfast and buffet dinner. Bonus! We had lunch and then ventured out onto the beach. The hotel is beachside so that wasn't so hard! The sea is quite rough here, kind of like some of the surf beaches north of Auckland. We needed boogy boards to ride the surf. Joseph was doing a very good job of body surfing. There is also a pool available which is a nice change from the salty water. It is an idyllic setting here however I am finding it hard to truly relax as thoughts of settling in in London are clouding my mind. Get over it Lou!! (o:
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We had a great day on a train travelling from Kandy to Ella. The trip took just under 7 hours. We enjoyed chatting to people (both Sri Lankans and other travellers) and the hill top views of tea plantations. People selling food would walk up and down the car saying "Wollawollawolla" (well that's what it sounded like anyway). They sold sweet stuff, Sri Lankan savoury nibbles, mangos and other fruit. When ever we went through a tunnel the children would have fun howling like ghosts. We were in 2nd class and were lucky to get seats. However through out the journey we gave up our seats to an elderly woman and a woman with a baby. It was fun hanging out the train exits too...except for my unnerving urge to jump out!
We checked into a lovely hotel call Country Comfort. We had rice and curry for dinner....surprise surprise...it was delicious. Yesterday at Pizza Hutt the TV had the Rubgy World Cup playing. England vs Georgia. Georgia were getting a thrashing!
Day 9 in Sri Lanka, Mirissa
We drove from Ella to Mirissa. It took about 5 hours and we stopped at Rawana Falls along the way. I didn't enjoy the trip as the AC was on the blink and the roads were very bumpy.
We decided to stay at the Paradise Beach Motel in Mirissa. It is the most expensive at around 2,500 rupees ($50 NZ) a night but this includes AC (a must for me to be able to sleep), breakfast and buffet dinner. Bonus! We had lunch and then ventured out onto the beach. The hotel is beachside so that wasn't so hard! The sea is quite rough here, kind of like some of the surf beaches north of Auckland. We needed boogy boards to ride the surf. Joseph was doing a very good job of body surfing. There is also a pool available which is a nice change from the salty water. It is an idyllic setting here however I am finding it hard to truly relax as thoughts of settling in in London are clouding my mind. Get over it Lou!! (o:
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Sunday, October 12, 2003
Day 6 in Sri Lanka (Evening), Kandy
At 6 pm we went to a hall to see the Kandyan dancers. The music was drums and an instrument that looked like a flute but sounded like those instruments the snake charmers use. There were male and female dancers. The women's dances involved a lot of crouching and intricate hand movements. The men were similar but also did some flick-flacks, back flips and lots of spinning. After the dance we went outside and watched the dancers role fire torches up their arms, across their chests and on their tongues, ouch! There was also fire walking, they didn't hurry across either.
Back at the hotel we felt like cutting loose so we went to the attached nightclub called Blackout. We thought it would be some small hole with strange music but was actually quite big and they played modern hip-hop and R & B, (Eminem is really big over here). The drinks were expensive as they always are at hotels. There were some local youngins strutting their stuff. There were 3 women surrounded by guys, some things don't change no matter which country you are in. We had a chat with a Dutch couple who are doing roughly the same circuit as us and we have seen in a couple of other places and hotels. We got up and danced a bit but we had to leave after they put on a house remix of Queens I want to break free.
Day 7 in Sri Lanka, Day 2 in Kandy
We slept in a bit this morning and left at 9:30. The destination was the Botanical gardens. The gardens were full of large trees of different varieties and under each one was a young couple. It seems to be an important part of the Kandyan courting ritual.
This afternoon we visited the local museum and the Temple of the Tooth. The story goes ... A monk saved a tooth from the Buddahs funeral pyre and it was brought to Sri Lanka. It was first taken to Anuradhapura for safe keeping. Since then it has been taken to each capital as the kings have moved. It has been stolen several times by Indian kings. One tried to destroy it with a hammer but it flew up in the air and he became a convert and gave it back.
The Tooth temple is the most sacred place in the Buddhist faith. It was attacked in 1998 by a suicide bomber and they managed to do some damage to the outside. Now there are fences, bunkers and check-points around the temple and bag searches as you enter. There are many elaborate paintings and of course many Buddha statues around but they are in much better condition than the other places we have visited because it is newer. You don't actually get to see the Tooth as it is kept in a small box hidden inside many other boxes of increasing size. There were many Sri Lankans entering to lay flowers and prey. There were two men whose job it was to remove flowers from the alter to make room for more!
Getting Conned in Sri Lanka
People say that most Sri Lankans are genuinely friendly people. This is probably true but then all the people who aren't work in the tourism industry. We have found a few who are genuinely nice but the vast majority of the people we have met want one thing, your money. At most tourist sites as soon as you are out of the car you are surrounded by hawkers selling drinks, post cards and jewelry. You politely say no but they will follow you for 10 m offering constantly berating you. This is annoying but manageable.
The worst by far are the "Guides", these people will come up to you and act very friendly. They try to start a conversation by asking you where you are from, then hassle Lou because she "doesn't look like" a kiwi. They then say we have a good cricket team and proceed to drag you around the site telling you stuff you have already read in the Lonely Planet. When you tell them you don't want a tour then their skill really comes out. They will either pretend not to hear you, not to understand or tell you it is their job insinuating it is free. Once they have followed you around for 5 minutes they will ask for a "donation" or "tip". At this stage you feel embarrassed and stupid and offer some money. They will ask for 3 or 4 times that and you give it. You have just been conned Sri Lankan style.
Our first experience was at Dambulla. Then we got wise. Not wise enough though because at Sigiria I was conned (Lou knew better and stayed away) and here at the Tooth temple it was Lou's turn. We need to come up with a secret way to warn each other when we can see it happening. I guess the problem is that in this way we are very naive because we are trusting, a very dangerous thing in Sri Lanka. It makes traveling here more stressful and less enjoyable, which is a shame because it is a beautiful country.
On a lighter note we have tried some Sri Lankan specialties. The first is "stringy hoppers". These are circular clusters of noodles resembling a rag rug. You put curry in it, role it and eat it with your hands. Next is "egg hoppers" similar in name but quite different, they are coconutty pan cakes with a fried egg on top. We also had yellow coconut milk, like slightly stale water but very refreshing.
Tomorrow we will catch an 8:55 am train to Ella. It is supposed to be very interesting as it passed through the hill tea plantations but is 6.5 hours long. After a night there we will drive 6 hours to Mirrisa. From there it is beaches all the way yay!
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At 6 pm we went to a hall to see the Kandyan dancers. The music was drums and an instrument that looked like a flute but sounded like those instruments the snake charmers use. There were male and female dancers. The women's dances involved a lot of crouching and intricate hand movements. The men were similar but also did some flick-flacks, back flips and lots of spinning. After the dance we went outside and watched the dancers role fire torches up their arms, across their chests and on their tongues, ouch! There was also fire walking, they didn't hurry across either.
Back at the hotel we felt like cutting loose so we went to the attached nightclub called Blackout. We thought it would be some small hole with strange music but was actually quite big and they played modern hip-hop and R & B, (Eminem is really big over here). The drinks were expensive as they always are at hotels. There were some local youngins strutting their stuff. There were 3 women surrounded by guys, some things don't change no matter which country you are in. We had a chat with a Dutch couple who are doing roughly the same circuit as us and we have seen in a couple of other places and hotels. We got up and danced a bit but we had to leave after they put on a house remix of Queens I want to break free.
Day 7 in Sri Lanka, Day 2 in Kandy
We slept in a bit this morning and left at 9:30. The destination was the Botanical gardens. The gardens were full of large trees of different varieties and under each one was a young couple. It seems to be an important part of the Kandyan courting ritual.
This afternoon we visited the local museum and the Temple of the Tooth. The story goes ... A monk saved a tooth from the Buddahs funeral pyre and it was brought to Sri Lanka. It was first taken to Anuradhapura for safe keeping. Since then it has been taken to each capital as the kings have moved. It has been stolen several times by Indian kings. One tried to destroy it with a hammer but it flew up in the air and he became a convert and gave it back.
The Tooth temple is the most sacred place in the Buddhist faith. It was attacked in 1998 by a suicide bomber and they managed to do some damage to the outside. Now there are fences, bunkers and check-points around the temple and bag searches as you enter. There are many elaborate paintings and of course many Buddha statues around but they are in much better condition than the other places we have visited because it is newer. You don't actually get to see the Tooth as it is kept in a small box hidden inside many other boxes of increasing size. There were many Sri Lankans entering to lay flowers and prey. There were two men whose job it was to remove flowers from the alter to make room for more!
Getting Conned in Sri Lanka
People say that most Sri Lankans are genuinely friendly people. This is probably true but then all the people who aren't work in the tourism industry. We have found a few who are genuinely nice but the vast majority of the people we have met want one thing, your money. At most tourist sites as soon as you are out of the car you are surrounded by hawkers selling drinks, post cards and jewelry. You politely say no but they will follow you for 10 m offering constantly berating you. This is annoying but manageable.
The worst by far are the "Guides", these people will come up to you and act very friendly. They try to start a conversation by asking you where you are from, then hassle Lou because she "doesn't look like" a kiwi. They then say we have a good cricket team and proceed to drag you around the site telling you stuff you have already read in the Lonely Planet. When you tell them you don't want a tour then their skill really comes out. They will either pretend not to hear you, not to understand or tell you it is their job insinuating it is free. Once they have followed you around for 5 minutes they will ask for a "donation" or "tip". At this stage you feel embarrassed and stupid and offer some money. They will ask for 3 or 4 times that and you give it. You have just been conned Sri Lankan style.
Our first experience was at Dambulla. Then we got wise. Not wise enough though because at Sigiria I was conned (Lou knew better and stayed away) and here at the Tooth temple it was Lou's turn. We need to come up with a secret way to warn each other when we can see it happening. I guess the problem is that in this way we are very naive because we are trusting, a very dangerous thing in Sri Lanka. It makes traveling here more stressful and less enjoyable, which is a shame because it is a beautiful country.
On a lighter note we have tried some Sri Lankan specialties. The first is "stringy hoppers". These are circular clusters of noodles resembling a rag rug. You put curry in it, role it and eat it with your hands. Next is "egg hoppers" similar in name but quite different, they are coconutty pan cakes with a fried egg on top. We also had yellow coconut milk, like slightly stale water but very refreshing.
Tomorrow we will catch an 8:55 am train to Ella. It is supposed to be very interesting as it passed through the hill tea plantations but is 6.5 hours long. After a night there we will drive 6 hours to Mirrisa. From there it is beaches all the way yay!
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Saturday, October 11, 2003
Day 4 in Sri Lanka, Anuradhapura
We started off at 9am and got out some money to buy a "Cultural Triangle" tourist round ticket. This will save us a bit of money in the long run. The tourist attractions are quite expensive to visit. Plus you are expected to donate everywhere, pay to have your shoes looked after, and are quite often conned, unawares, into a mini tour and asked for payment afterward. Very frustrating. We'd prefer it if people were more up front with us.
We spent the hot part of the day visiting the ancient ruins. These dated back around 2000 years ago. Quite hard to comprehend. Anuradhapura is the oldest capital in Sri Lanka. The dagobas (religious monuments) are bell shaped mounds of bricks and the very old ones are not in very good condition but are being restored. We also visited some ponds and temples. At most of these places you have to take your shoes and hats off. My poor feet! Tip: to train to walk around these places try walking on hot coals!!! I got very hot and bothered and annoyed with the touts constantly hassling you to buy postcards, elephant bangles and "secret boxes"! ("You try to open, secret box, no need to buy....").
There were also many locals visiting these sacred sites as it was Poya day (full moon day), a monthly religious holiday. Very busy. I'm sure they were all chuckling to themselves seeing me hobbling around gingerly!
The most sacred place we visited was the site of the Sacred Bodhi Tree. This tree is the oldest recorded in the world and was planted by the princess sister of the prince who introduced Buddhism to Sri Lanka. Quite incredible, you could feel the reverence when you were walking around. The tree wasn't that tall but the branches were supported by many metal posts.
After lunch we drove through a National Park to get to Giritale. We saw a cute elephant on the side of the road waiting to cross, " Hey don't these humans know that this is an elephant crossing!". Speaking of wildlife we have seen many amazing animals hanging out, i.e. monkeys, squirrels, snakes, a mongoose, bats, a chameleon, deer, porcupines and of course, elephants. You don't get to see many of them back in NZ!
The day ended well as the hotel in Giritale (just out of Polonaruwa) had a lovely swimming pool with a beautiful view of the tank (man made lake built by one of the kings 500 years ago). We floated around and watched the fantastic sunset. Ahhh, heaven.
We had a buffet dinner at the hotel and were serenaded by a trio singing traditional Sri Lankan songs.
Day 5 in Sri Lanka, Polonaruwa and Sigiriya
This is the second most ancient city in Sri Lanka. These places have many Buddhist temples, statues and shrines as Sri Lanka was set up to be a best practice example of the Buddhist faith. I must say that I'm getting a little tired of seeing reclining Buddhas etc.
The ruins here are in much better condition as they are more recent. You can really imagine what it was like in the Kings palaces and the monks monasteries. It also helped that we saw models of what the buildings would have looked like in a museum beforehand. A lot of the exterior decorative stone work is still in tact.
It was 38 degrees today...no wonder I was getting hot and bothered. Actually I survived the heat better today than yesterday as the ruins were more interesting and located closer together.
After visiting the ruins we drove to Sigiriya. We had a rest and freshened up at the hotel and then started the ascent to the Rock Fortress at 4:30pm. This is the perfect time to go as it is less busy and less hot! It wasn't as bad as I thought. There are just over 1,000 steps on the way up the rock. About halfway there are some impressive frescoes and at the top there is a palace complex complete with pool.
The story goes.... A prince killed his father to become king. His mother escaped vowing to have revenge. In fear of an attack the new king built the impressive fortress on top of the rock (think Ayres Rock with a massive palace on top). When the king's half brother eventually attacked the king foolishly rode on a elephant at the head of his army into battle. He took a wrong turn and got stuck in the mud. Left by his army he took his own life. A nice bedtime story for you (o:
Day 6 in Sri Lanka, Kandy
On our way to Kandy we visited a temple and a monastery. The monastery was a bit dodgy as it had a "house of horror" like section that depicted what horrific punishments are handed out to sinners in the afterlife, e.g. prostitutes being drawn and quartered by demons etc ...gross!
We are at the Hotel Swiss Residence on the outskirts of the city and had a nice time in the pool. We also chatted to a nice Dutch couple who were also at the hotel we stayed at in Giritale. You tend to see the same faces at the monuments, restaurants and hotels as everyone with a driver is doing the same tourist circuit.
We've decided that we enjoy traveling on our own more. That way you get to meet interesting people and the experience is more satisfying. Alas, in Sri Lanka, with the time we have available, it has been necessary to have a driver/guide.
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We started off at 9am and got out some money to buy a "Cultural Triangle" tourist round ticket. This will save us a bit of money in the long run. The tourist attractions are quite expensive to visit. Plus you are expected to donate everywhere, pay to have your shoes looked after, and are quite often conned, unawares, into a mini tour and asked for payment afterward. Very frustrating. We'd prefer it if people were more up front with us.
We spent the hot part of the day visiting the ancient ruins. These dated back around 2000 years ago. Quite hard to comprehend. Anuradhapura is the oldest capital in Sri Lanka. The dagobas (religious monuments) are bell shaped mounds of bricks and the very old ones are not in very good condition but are being restored. We also visited some ponds and temples. At most of these places you have to take your shoes and hats off. My poor feet! Tip: to train to walk around these places try walking on hot coals!!! I got very hot and bothered and annoyed with the touts constantly hassling you to buy postcards, elephant bangles and "secret boxes"! ("You try to open, secret box, no need to buy....").
There were also many locals visiting these sacred sites as it was Poya day (full moon day), a monthly religious holiday. Very busy. I'm sure they were all chuckling to themselves seeing me hobbling around gingerly!
The most sacred place we visited was the site of the Sacred Bodhi Tree. This tree is the oldest recorded in the world and was planted by the princess sister of the prince who introduced Buddhism to Sri Lanka. Quite incredible, you could feel the reverence when you were walking around. The tree wasn't that tall but the branches were supported by many metal posts.
After lunch we drove through a National Park to get to Giritale. We saw a cute elephant on the side of the road waiting to cross, " Hey don't these humans know that this is an elephant crossing!". Speaking of wildlife we have seen many amazing animals hanging out, i.e. monkeys, squirrels, snakes, a mongoose, bats, a chameleon, deer, porcupines and of course, elephants. You don't get to see many of them back in NZ!
The day ended well as the hotel in Giritale (just out of Polonaruwa) had a lovely swimming pool with a beautiful view of the tank (man made lake built by one of the kings 500 years ago). We floated around and watched the fantastic sunset. Ahhh, heaven.
We had a buffet dinner at the hotel and were serenaded by a trio singing traditional Sri Lankan songs.
Day 5 in Sri Lanka, Polonaruwa and Sigiriya
This is the second most ancient city in Sri Lanka. These places have many Buddhist temples, statues and shrines as Sri Lanka was set up to be a best practice example of the Buddhist faith. I must say that I'm getting a little tired of seeing reclining Buddhas etc.
The ruins here are in much better condition as they are more recent. You can really imagine what it was like in the Kings palaces and the monks monasteries. It also helped that we saw models of what the buildings would have looked like in a museum beforehand. A lot of the exterior decorative stone work is still in tact.
It was 38 degrees today...no wonder I was getting hot and bothered. Actually I survived the heat better today than yesterday as the ruins were more interesting and located closer together.
After visiting the ruins we drove to Sigiriya. We had a rest and freshened up at the hotel and then started the ascent to the Rock Fortress at 4:30pm. This is the perfect time to go as it is less busy and less hot! It wasn't as bad as I thought. There are just over 1,000 steps on the way up the rock. About halfway there are some impressive frescoes and at the top there is a palace complex complete with pool.
The story goes.... A prince killed his father to become king. His mother escaped vowing to have revenge. In fear of an attack the new king built the impressive fortress on top of the rock (think Ayres Rock with a massive palace on top). When the king's half brother eventually attacked the king foolishly rode on a elephant at the head of his army into battle. He took a wrong turn and got stuck in the mud. Left by his army he took his own life. A nice bedtime story for you (o:
Day 6 in Sri Lanka, Kandy
On our way to Kandy we visited a temple and a monastery. The monastery was a bit dodgy as it had a "house of horror" like section that depicted what horrific punishments are handed out to sinners in the afterlife, e.g. prostitutes being drawn and quartered by demons etc ...gross!
We are at the Hotel Swiss Residence on the outskirts of the city and had a nice time in the pool. We also chatted to a nice Dutch couple who were also at the hotel we stayed at in Giritale. You tend to see the same faces at the monuments, restaurants and hotels as everyone with a driver is doing the same tourist circuit.
We've decided that we enjoy traveling on our own more. That way you get to meet interesting people and the experience is more satisfying. Alas, in Sri Lanka, with the time we have available, it has been necessary to have a driver/guide.
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Wednesday, October 08, 2003
Day 3 in Sri Lanka, Pinnewala and Dambulla
Our day started at 6 am. Our driver arrived at 6:30 am to pick us up. We had to leave early to get to the elephant orphanage at Pinnewala by 9:15 for the feeding. We made it just in time. The Lonely Planet (LP) said it is the most elephants you will see in one place in the country. I counted about 54. First we watched the elphants feed milk formula in a pen. Next we proceeded along behind the heard as they headed towards the river to bathe. Some had chains around their necks and legs, I guess to prevent them kicking or running. Lou go to touch a baby elephant, she thought it was very cute.
Later we went to Dambulla. The ancient kings of Sri Lanka would hide in the caves on the hill when their cities were taken. Later the caves were decorated with Buddah statues to commemorate the kings. There are 5 caves 3 of which were filled with statues 2100 years old. The ceilings were painted with more buddahs 700 years ago. The statues were made from a range of different materials, some teak wood, some bricks and plaster but the earliest was carved from the granite wall. The works are surprisingly well preserved considering their age. Some statues had fluorescent lights directed on their lower half and you could see the paint had faded a lot more.
Our tour guide seems to be nice so hopefully the next 6 days will go well.
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Our day started at 6 am. Our driver arrived at 6:30 am to pick us up. We had to leave early to get to the elephant orphanage at Pinnewala by 9:15 for the feeding. We made it just in time. The Lonely Planet (LP) said it is the most elephants you will see in one place in the country. I counted about 54. First we watched the elphants feed milk formula in a pen. Next we proceeded along behind the heard as they headed towards the river to bathe. Some had chains around their necks and legs, I guess to prevent them kicking or running. Lou go to touch a baby elephant, she thought it was very cute.
Later we went to Dambulla. The ancient kings of Sri Lanka would hide in the caves on the hill when their cities were taken. Later the caves were decorated with Buddah statues to commemorate the kings. There are 5 caves 3 of which were filled with statues 2100 years old. The ceilings were painted with more buddahs 700 years ago. The statues were made from a range of different materials, some teak wood, some bricks and plaster but the earliest was carved from the granite wall. The works are surprisingly well preserved considering their age. Some statues had fluorescent lights directed on their lower half and you could see the paint had faded a lot more.
Our tour guide seems to be nice so hopefully the next 6 days will go well.
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Tuesday, October 07, 2003
Day 1 in Sri Lanka, Day 1 in Mt Lavinia
We arrived at the airport at 2am. We had to catch a bus from the plane to the airport terminal. Once we cleared immigration we were hassled by a few touts (do these guys ever sleep?) and met by a rep from our hotel (relief!).
The drive to Mt Lavinia was more relaxed than it would have been if we arrived in the middle of the day. Even so we swerved to avoid a couple of dead dogs and overtook several people. The traffic here is crazy. Lots of beeping and honking and jostleing for road space. There are no lanes and everyone over-takes everyone else constantly. We had good road crossing training in Malaysia and we needed it! There are pedestrian crossings here but it is still pretty hair raising as most motorists ignore them. I think the ones that do stop feel sorry for us.
We slept the whole morning. In the late afternoon we went to the Mt Lavinia beach. The sea was very choppy and the beach was littered with rubbish but it was still quite a nice beach. Many of the young locals where playing touch rugby.
We walked up to the main street to have dinner and on the way noticed that a lot of businesses have guards. The supermarket had 1, the bank had 2 and the local hair salon had 3!
Day 2 in Sri Lanka, Day 2 in Mt Lavinia
It seems that the best way to see all the attractions in the country is to hire a driver/guide and car to take you around. Our guest house, the Tropic Inn, put us in contact with a guy (the nephew of the owner) who has arranged a 7 day tour for us. It will cost 32, 000 rupees with accommodation included. That's around $640 NZ. Not bad I think. But it's hard to know as we've nothing to compare it with. However the tour is necessary as the public transport in some of the places we want to go to is not as good or easy to use as in Malaysia and Singapore.
After the tour we are going to enjoy the beaches on the southern coast and then make our way back to Mt Lavinia to prepare to fly to London.
When talking with the locals it helps to know your cricket! Advice to those who are planning a visit: brush up on the latest cricket news and players (o: We've enjoyed chatting to our waiters and the hotel staff. I think NZ has a good reputation here (ie. the Colombo plan and the cricket).
Visting these areas has made us really interested in the local current affairs. We've enjoyed reading the local newspapers and learning about the history and current situations of each country we've visited.
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We arrived at the airport at 2am. We had to catch a bus from the plane to the airport terminal. Once we cleared immigration we were hassled by a few touts (do these guys ever sleep?) and met by a rep from our hotel (relief!).
The drive to Mt Lavinia was more relaxed than it would have been if we arrived in the middle of the day. Even so we swerved to avoid a couple of dead dogs and overtook several people. The traffic here is crazy. Lots of beeping and honking and jostleing for road space. There are no lanes and everyone over-takes everyone else constantly. We had good road crossing training in Malaysia and we needed it! There are pedestrian crossings here but it is still pretty hair raising as most motorists ignore them. I think the ones that do stop feel sorry for us.
We slept the whole morning. In the late afternoon we went to the Mt Lavinia beach. The sea was very choppy and the beach was littered with rubbish but it was still quite a nice beach. Many of the young locals where playing touch rugby.
We walked up to the main street to have dinner and on the way noticed that a lot of businesses have guards. The supermarket had 1, the bank had 2 and the local hair salon had 3!
Day 2 in Sri Lanka, Day 2 in Mt Lavinia
It seems that the best way to see all the attractions in the country is to hire a driver/guide and car to take you around. Our guest house, the Tropic Inn, put us in contact with a guy (the nephew of the owner) who has arranged a 7 day tour for us. It will cost 32, 000 rupees with accommodation included. That's around $640 NZ. Not bad I think. But it's hard to know as we've nothing to compare it with. However the tour is necessary as the public transport in some of the places we want to go to is not as good or easy to use as in Malaysia and Singapore.
After the tour we are going to enjoy the beaches on the southern coast and then make our way back to Mt Lavinia to prepare to fly to London.
When talking with the locals it helps to know your cricket! Advice to those who are planning a visit: brush up on the latest cricket news and players (o: We've enjoyed chatting to our waiters and the hotel staff. I think NZ has a good reputation here (ie. the Colombo plan and the cricket).
Visting these areas has made us really interested in the local current affairs. We've enjoyed reading the local newspapers and learning about the history and current situations of each country we've visited.
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Sunday, October 05, 2003
Day 4 in Singapore
I am writing this on one of the PC's that is free between 11 pm and 6 am at Changi Airport, and other people are lining up for the free terminal down the other end of the terminal ahahahah.
We planned to visit Chinatown and Little India today but Lou was not feeling up to it. She was a bit tired and the heat was getting to her. Instead we opted for the air-conditioned cultural experience of the Singapore History Museum. When we got there it was closed for renovations until 2006! This was not our day.
Down the road was the Singapore Art Museum so we headed that way. It was well worth it, I am by no means an art connisseur but I found the art gallery fascinating. There were many works by different modern artists using many mediums. The museums permanent collection includes traditional paintings with very fine detail, Indonesian political abstract paintings, sculptures in wood and a very cool crouching warrior made of everyday steel mechanical parts. On top of this there were two exhibitions. One was a Japanese exhibition which included a chair made from corrugated paper on hydraulics so it moved, quite cool. There was also one about art and science with close ups of cells, the intestinal wall, a human egg after fertilization, DNA etc. It also had stuff on G.E. which was quite objective and some cool 3D and interactive multimedia pieces. Worth the $3 entry fee.
We went back to the waterfront for dinner and shared the one of the best steaks I have ever had. Lou took some photos of what she described in her last post. On the way back we went into a CD store where there was a sale so we spent up large.
It is now time for us to board our flight so I better go, I wonder what internet connections will be like in Sri Lanka? You may not hear from us for a few days, we'll see.
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I am writing this on one of the PC's that is free between 11 pm and 6 am at Changi Airport, and other people are lining up for the free terminal down the other end of the terminal ahahahah.
We planned to visit Chinatown and Little India today but Lou was not feeling up to it. She was a bit tired and the heat was getting to her. Instead we opted for the air-conditioned cultural experience of the Singapore History Museum. When we got there it was closed for renovations until 2006! This was not our day.
Down the road was the Singapore Art Museum so we headed that way. It was well worth it, I am by no means an art connisseur but I found the art gallery fascinating. There were many works by different modern artists using many mediums. The museums permanent collection includes traditional paintings with very fine detail, Indonesian political abstract paintings, sculptures in wood and a very cool crouching warrior made of everyday steel mechanical parts. On top of this there were two exhibitions. One was a Japanese exhibition which included a chair made from corrugated paper on hydraulics so it moved, quite cool. There was also one about art and science with close ups of cells, the intestinal wall, a human egg after fertilization, DNA etc. It also had stuff on G.E. which was quite objective and some cool 3D and interactive multimedia pieces. Worth the $3 entry fee.
We went back to the waterfront for dinner and shared the one of the best steaks I have ever had. Lou took some photos of what she described in her last post. On the way back we went into a CD store where there was a sale so we spent up large.
It is now time for us to board our flight so I better go, I wonder what internet connections will be like in Sri Lanka? You may not hear from us for a few days, we'll see.
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Day 11 in Malaysia, Day 2 in Kuching
In the morning we went up the Civic Centre Tower and went to Fort Margherita on Friday. Both provided good views of Kuching.
In the afternoon we retreated to the air conditioned shopping malls. It pissed down from the late afternoon onwards. We couldn't avoid getting wet, even with an umbrella. It was our first experience being in amongst a good tropical downpour.
Day 3 in Singapore
On Saturday morning we flew to Johor and then caught a bus back to Singapore. In the afternoon we went into town and saw that "Infernal Affairs II" was on. It is the prequal movie to "Infernal Affairs" a Hong Kong cop movie. We may have raved to some of you about it in NZ as we saw it in the Film Festival. The prequel was just as good. Both movies have great stories and characters. We recommend them.
After the movie we went to the waterfront. There are some very flash (everything in this town is flash and glossy!) hotels and business buildings at that end of town. The "Official" Merlion (not the big tacky one on Sentosa Island) was in full glory and we had a quick look at the impressive "Esplanade" theatre complex. From the air the roofs of this complex looks like two bug eyes.
We had dinner at "Thai Express" (anything but!). The seafood green curry I had lit a fire in my mouth but it was very delicious. A free jazz concert in the background provided a great atmosphere.
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In the morning we went up the Civic Centre Tower and went to Fort Margherita on Friday. Both provided good views of Kuching.
In the afternoon we retreated to the air conditioned shopping malls. It pissed down from the late afternoon onwards. We couldn't avoid getting wet, even with an umbrella. It was our first experience being in amongst a good tropical downpour.
Day 3 in Singapore
On Saturday morning we flew to Johor and then caught a bus back to Singapore. In the afternoon we went into town and saw that "Infernal Affairs II" was on. It is the prequal movie to "Infernal Affairs" a Hong Kong cop movie. We may have raved to some of you about it in NZ as we saw it in the Film Festival. The prequel was just as good. Both movies have great stories and characters. We recommend them.
After the movie we went to the waterfront. There are some very flash (everything in this town is flash and glossy!) hotels and business buildings at that end of town. The "Official" Merlion (not the big tacky one on Sentosa Island) was in full glory and we had a quick look at the impressive "Esplanade" theatre complex. From the air the roofs of this complex looks like two bug eyes.
We had dinner at "Thai Express" (anything but!). The seafood green curry I had lit a fire in my mouth but it was very delicious. A free jazz concert in the background provided a great atmosphere.
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Thursday, October 02, 2003
Day 10 in Malaysia, Day 1 in Kuching
Flew in from KK at 10 am, went straight to the hostel where we planned to stay but it was full. There was a hotel right next door so having heavy packs and not knowing the city we decided to check in there. Lou did not seem to upset about the change in accommodation :)
Next a scout around the town. It is very clean, lots of wide roads with paved foot paths. Also a lot of large buildings in Roman style, very similar to Singapore. There is a very nice promenade along the river with ice cream and drink stalls and water fountains.
The history of the area is very similar to Penang. In the late 1800's the Sultan of Brunei was having trouble with a local rebellion. Then along came this Englishman called James Brooke who helped him in the fight. They won. To say thanks he gave Kuching to him, very nice. So it was a British colony except in WWII when the Japanese briefly occupied it. After the war the Aussies administered it for a year (I guess they didn't do a very good job). In 1963 it gained its independence when Sarawak joined Sabah, Singapore and Malaya to form Malaysia.
In the afternoon we took in the Museum. Lots of info about the tribes people of the area. Interesting facts:
>A whole tribe would live in one large building on stilts called a long house
>They had heaps of tattoos, jewelry and stretched ear lobes
>They were head hunters and would hang skulls from the ceiling
>They put strange barbell type jewelry throught the mens' you know what, ouch!
Day 11 in Malaysia, Day 2 in Kuching
Visited the Semenggoh Wild life Rehabilitation center, apparently drugs is a problem :) Seriously, it is mostly for Orangutan that were kept as pets. They are now endangered so it is illegal. People bring their Orangutan to be shown how to live in the wild so they can be released.
We saw the morning feeding. Firstly it was a lot of waiting around then a mother with a baby swing in and grabbed some breakfast, Lou took photos. It is great to see these animals in their natural environment, they look so much more relaxed and happy. While the mother was eating the baby tested out his swinging skills, they still need a lot of work (Lou thought it was very cute). The bonus was we stayed after the tour buses left and saw a juvenile come in. He was much more spritely than the mother but he liked to eat his food in private (maybe he is a messy eater). We could also just see a baby in the distant canopy, maybe the mother left it there while she went out having fun?
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Flew in from KK at 10 am, went straight to the hostel where we planned to stay but it was full. There was a hotel right next door so having heavy packs and not knowing the city we decided to check in there. Lou did not seem to upset about the change in accommodation :)
Next a scout around the town. It is very clean, lots of wide roads with paved foot paths. Also a lot of large buildings in Roman style, very similar to Singapore. There is a very nice promenade along the river with ice cream and drink stalls and water fountains.
The history of the area is very similar to Penang. In the late 1800's the Sultan of Brunei was having trouble with a local rebellion. Then along came this Englishman called James Brooke who helped him in the fight. They won. To say thanks he gave Kuching to him, very nice. So it was a British colony except in WWII when the Japanese briefly occupied it. After the war the Aussies administered it for a year (I guess they didn't do a very good job). In 1963 it gained its independence when Sarawak joined Sabah, Singapore and Malaya to form Malaysia.
In the afternoon we took in the Museum. Lots of info about the tribes people of the area. Interesting facts:
>A whole tribe would live in one large building on stilts called a long house
>They had heaps of tattoos, jewelry and stretched ear lobes
>They were head hunters and would hang skulls from the ceiling
>They put strange barbell type jewelry throught the mens' you know what, ouch!
Day 11 in Malaysia, Day 2 in Kuching
Visited the Semenggoh Wild life Rehabilitation center, apparently drugs is a problem :) Seriously, it is mostly for Orangutan that were kept as pets. They are now endangered so it is illegal. People bring their Orangutan to be shown how to live in the wild so they can be released.
We saw the morning feeding. Firstly it was a lot of waiting around then a mother with a baby swing in and grabbed some breakfast, Lou took photos. It is great to see these animals in their natural environment, they look so much more relaxed and happy. While the mother was eating the baby tested out his swinging skills, they still need a lot of work (Lou thought it was very cute). The bonus was we stayed after the tour buses left and saw a juvenile come in. He was much more spritely than the mother but he liked to eat his food in private (maybe he is a messy eater). We could also just see a baby in the distant canopy, maybe the mother left it there while she went out having fun?
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