A load of old junk in Halong Bay

Halong bay - one of the big hitters for any Vietnam travel itinerary but could it really live up to the hype? Or would the thousands and thousands of tourists have taken their toll on the magical bay? We had heard the good, the bad and the downright ugly – from a majestic paradise to a litter-ridden congested highway for worn out karaoke boats filled to the brim with screaming tourists!

Would Halong Bay live up to our expectations?

John and I definitely wanted to check it out for ourselves but we wanted to make sure that our experience didn’t involve bad karaoke – just to be clear though, we love karaoke but there is a time and a place. We wanted to find a company that had a different route to most and would therefore let us explore the gorgeous karsts and caves without too many others. After some research online we decided – 3 days 2 nights on the Dragon’s Pearl, a gorgeous old Chinese junk boat, which promised to deliver a ‘road less travelled’ route. A little out of our backpacking budget but this was our last splurge in SE Asia and we reckon you get what you pay for…or we hoped so anyway!

To avoid any confusion our boat wasn’t a piece of junk – it’s just the old name for the traditional boat from this area. But when you see some of the wrecks sailing around Halong Bay it can definitely be used both ways!

Dragon's Pearl 

After a 4 hour journey from Hanoi we arrived at the jetty to be ferried out to our junk – we were instantly disappointed to see most of the boats anchored in the bay had been painted white. We were expecting a mysterious and ancient pirate ship not a plastic fantastic wannabe eyesore! Okay that is probably a tad harsh but you get the point - we don’t like the white paint! We later learnt this was a decision taken by the Halong Bay tourism department. Who thinks the Director of Tourism probably has shares in a paint factory??? We do!

Stressful at sea

Once on board our junk was amazing, gorgeous interiors, relaxing sundecks and the cabins were perfect. It definitely exceeded our expectations and we couldn’t wait to get underway. We set off whilst munching on our first of many lovely meals and as our lovely tour guide Ha explained the activities over the next few days – lots of kayaking, relaxing and swimming.

The first few hours were spectacular, the scenery really is breathtaking and the mist made it even more magical and mysterious. We anchored up in a gorgeous quiet spot as Ha told us to get ready for kayaking, it was pretty cold so after getting on our coats we jumped in to our two man kayak and set off to explore some of the caves and fishing villages. It was great fun and there was a brilliant bunch of people – a hilarious Iranian/ American couple and a Kiwi couple – and amazingly we still hadn’t seen another boat. Who said Halong Bay was congested?!

Guess who did most of the paddling?

After around 2 hours kayaking it was back to the boat to chill out before dinner. Dinner was another spectacular feast of seafood, some of which we have no idea what it was but it tasted good! All washed down with yummy wine – happy days!

Next on the cards was squid fishing…bamboo stick, a length of string and a light bulb is all you need! Inevitably this turned out to be a battle between nations – the Kiwi’s vs the Scots vs the Yanks. Things got pretty intense and after a hard fought battle it was

Yanks - 2 (Also known as Indian squid whisperers)
Scots - 1 (It was a giant squid though – we tried to argue victory)
Kiwis - 0 (no pity, they have rugby!)

It was a great end to a perfect day.

Day two was an early start with breakfast at 8:30am, a feast of Pho Ga, eggs and toast whilst we cruised to visit one of the few permanent floating fishing villages in Halong Bay. Once we arrived we were greeted by lots of lovely ladies in rowing boats waiting to take us on a tour of the village. These places are incredible – a group of around 20 houses all floating on pontoons where generation after generation of families live for their entire lives raising children, going to school and making a living from the sea without setting a foot on dry land except to get supplies of water, vegetables and clothing. We were welcomed so warmly by the village elder who served us green tea as he explained to us what life was like here and their efforts to keep Halong Bay clean in their very own water world. The little children were adorable too and it was a privilege to visit such an amazing place.

One of the amazing floating houses

They put our rowing to shame!

After lunch it was kayaking time again – this time it was to one of the gorgeous beaches where the junk would come to meet us. This was also where we would have our evening meal…it a candlelit cave! After around 1 hour kayaking we got to the beach as the sun was beginning to set – a gorgeous little patch of white sand. After chilling for a short time we decided we would brave the cold water and swim back to the boat around 30m out. Jesus it was cold – we had to run straight in before we chickened out but we quickly got used to it. It was then a race to the hot shower, but not before jumping in from the top of the boat!

Sunset on our final kayak

Our romantic cave dinner

At around 7pm in the pitch black we all jumped in the little tender boat for our cave dinner. John and I were excited but weren’t expecting much, just a BBQ in a cave with a few candles. We were wrong, it was magical. As we squeezed through the tight entrance we were greeted with a walk way of tea light candles all the way in to the cave which opened up in to a gorgeous space of golden stalactites covered in candles and was quite possibly one of the most stunning settings for dinner I had ever seen! The evening was brilliant - good food, music and chat in such a romantic setting!

Our last day had arrived we were served a delicious breakfast once again as we cruised back through the stunning scenery. We packed up and relaxed on deck taking the last photos of gorgeous Halong Bay.

We would definitely recommend anyone heading to Vietnam to check out Halong Bay, but choose your boat and itinerary wisely. Research online, read reviews and make sure the company is reliable. There is a cruise for everyone, if you want a relaxed few days then book the Dragon’s Pearl or if you want more of a party boat then head to the Hanoi Backpackers on Ma May Street to book.

We found the articles at Travelfish really useful during our research - click here

Everest Base Camp or bust

It’s John here again. We are a little out of sync with some more India posts still to come but I thought I would write a bit about our Everest Base Camp trek in Nepal.

For years I have wanted to do the EBC trek and when we decided to head to Nepal I got all excited thinking that we may be able to complete one of my many dreams. However looking online it seemed that we had missed the trekking season which runs from Sept - end of Nov. On arrival in Kathmandu we soon realized that many companies were still offering the trek and although it was going to be very cold, the end of December would provide us with very clear skies and great views.

Speaking to a few people who had completed the trek, I was keen to do it without a guide, but after chatting it over with Lindsay and reading a few bits of info on doing the trek at that time of year we decided to take a guide from the excellent company Earthbound Expeditions in Kathmandu. After a day of rushed preparations we were armed with rented down jackets, sleeping bags, thermals, water proofs and wind breakers, we were ready. The next day we flew out to Lukla on the scariest flight in the world to begin our 11 day trek. Check the landing out...

Namche Bazaar (3440m)

The flight from Kathmandu to Lukla was delayed by two hours due to fog. Fortunately for us we were on the second flight of the day which meant the visibility was good for the landing at Lukla. Many people call the first flight of the day, 'fondly' named, the test flight, which did not fill us with confidence but everything went without a hitch. After our exciting landing at the Tenzing Hillary Airport we started our trek heading for our first nights stop of Phakding 3 hours away. Constantly meeting and speaking with people who were just completing the trek was not such a good thing. Stories of altitude sickness, -20 temperatures and helicopter rescues made us wonder what we had signed up for. 

Our first glimpse of Everest!

Our next day walking was great but very tough ending the day with a steep climb of 700m in height. We had very nice weather and just before Namche (3440m) we got our first glimpse of Mount Everest. It seemed so far away and actually not very impressive considering the spectacular mountains surrounding it, particular Ama Dablam (6812m). Our acclimatisation day in Namche was cancelled as our guide was not feeling well so we had to continue on to a small village called Khumjung (3790m) where we met our new guide Ajay. Khumjung is a very small village a little way off the normal EBC route, Lindsay and I both liked it for its charm and lack of tourists. Hilary set up a small school here and in the morning kids could be seen walking for miles to make it to class on time. 

No school bus here

The next day, with our brilliant new guide, we continued onwards and upwards, however on a few occasions we had hours of decent only to climb for even longer. At the village of Thengboche (3867m) we were lucky enough to watch Buddhist monks at the monastery taking part in their hours of daily chanting, only stopping to sip their local tea. It was a privilege and great experience, but very cold. The temperatures where already below freezing and we were only at 3900m/12795ft.

Monk at Thengboche

Another day trekking and 500m higher we had our first acclimatization day at Dingboche (4400m/14435ft), this should have been our second but with our guide changeover we missed the first. Basically this is a rest day with a short trek to a higher altitude and returning to a lower altitude to sleep. For our short trek we climbed to a Buddhist stupa at an altitude of 4800m and read our books in the sunshine. Out of the wind and wearing thick jackets it was very nice and warm and so peaceful. It was from Dingboche that I started to suffer with the altitude. Bad headaches, loss of appetite and occasional dizziness were a bit worrying especially since we still had another 1000m to climb. Lindsay however felt fine and seemed to be coping very well with the altitude. Sat round the only log heater in a tea room we were introduced to a Sherpa who had climbed Everest 4 times. We were both star stricken. I had loads of questions I wanted to ask him, but I just sat back and listened to what he had to say. 

Two days of trekking later via Lobuche (4928m/16164ft) we were at our final leg. Both excited we seemed to be walking with a spring in our step. It actually turned out to be a very long and hard day. We passed a helicopter which had crashed days before in the thin air trying to rescue someone which brought to light just how high we were. Dropping our bags off in the afternoon at Gorakshep (5150m/16929ft) we set of for the base camp. At approximately 4pm on Christmas day we had made it to Everest Base Camp at an altitude of 5464m/17926ft, 4 times the height of Ben Nevis. Staying for around 15 minutes was long enough due to the cold and wind. Just enough time to take some great pictures of the Khumbu Ice fall and of us at the camp with our Merry Christmas signs.

We made it - Merry Christmas everyone!

Snug as a bug...kind of!

That night we returned and slept at a tea house in Gorakshep. Here we experienced our lowest temperature at night which was -20’C in our bedroom. We woke at 6 am to find ice on the outside of our sleeping bags and our water bottles frozen solid. That morning a quick (2hr) climb up to the summit of Kala Patar (5550m/18208ft) was on the cards. Starting the trek in the cold and dark was not one of my highlights wearing every bit of clothing I had. After a grueling 1hour 45minutes we were on the summit and a great view of Mt Everest welcomed us. Lucky to not have any wind we stayed on the summit for half an hour taking pictures and soaking up the view.

Sunrise over Everest - she is the dark one on the left...honestly it is the highest mountain in the world!

The next three days descending where some of the hardest and longest days we had faced yet, covering the same distance as we had on the 8 days up. Having to make our scheduled flight meant we had to put in the hours with early starts and late finishes. We had met some amazing people throughout the trek, in particular a group of lads from Canada and Ireland and a Scottish girl, Clare. We all seemed to be walking at the same pace back down to Lukla and so stayed at the same tea houses in Pheriche and Namche. This was a great laugh, even more so in Namche where we decided to visit the local pub. The night ended messily with Nepalese dancing, getting trapped in someone's garden and being locked out of our tea house and waking up our land lord in the early hours. Needless to say the last days trek to Lukla was tough with a pounding headache, but we were welcomed with a cafe latte at the world’s highest Starbucks.

Would we recommend the EBC trek? Definitely. It was one of the best things we have ever done. A lot tougher than I ever imagined but well worth the sickness, pain, freezing temperatures and long days. We have been left with wonderful lifetime memories of the stunning scenery, the friendly and resourcefulness of the local people and the unbelievable strength of the porters & sherpa people.

Amazing local people

Everything has to be transported by porters - they can carry up to 110kg. Incredible.

A little slice of heaven in South India

Gorgeous Varkala

Varkala is a stunning little village perched on a cliff side above a beautiful white beach in the South of India.


All we really can say is go there! An amazing little town with a gorgeous beach, delicious seafood, lethal cocktails & candlelit yoga on a rooftop overlooking the surf – paradise! No wonder a few days turned in to weeks!

Poser

Kerala backwaters

We arrived in Cochin exhausted after two days of travelling and very little sleep. Our journey took us from just outside Hampi by sleeper bus to Bangalore, then sleeper train the following evening on to Cochin in the state of Kerala. Bangalore was just another large bustling Indian city to us, which we are quickly learning doesn't really do it for John & I. Aside from a quick grope from a passing local, a crazy white guy wearing a union jack helmet assaulting a local & a trip to the cinema there isn’t much more to report from Bangalore!

Majestic Chinese fishing nets in Fort Cochin

We chose to stay in the Ernakulam area of Cochin, a bit of a mistake we later figured out as a quick ferry ride across the bay was Fort Cochin, a gorgeous spot with beautiful buildings, cool cafes & the famous Chinese fishing nets. John saw this as a bonus – we would have to get the boat here every day to hang out, damn! A few days quickly passed just hanging out by the fishing nets, exploring the Jewish quarter, catching a Kathakali show & drinking lots of masala chai in a gorgeous café called Teapot.

Our next stop was Alleppey to the south of Cochin where we planned to explore the Keralan backwaters, an endless series of canals & waterways created to help flood all the paddy fields & to allow the rice to be transported out more easily.

Our beautiful rice boat

After a nail biting three hours on the bus from Cochin we arrived. Alleppey was a bit of a dump but we planned to spend most of our time on a houseboat or canoe so we didn’t really care. The biggest challenge was going to be choosing a houseboat from the thousands available – this turned out to take ALL day! The choice was overwhelming and by the end of it our heads were spinning & we couldn’t even remember which boats we liked & which had the best price! We had always planned for this to be a treat so in the end after sleeping on it we headed back to the boat jetty & chose a gorgeous two bed converted rice barge boat for R6500– around £85 – for two days & one night. The grotty, cheaper ones were still around 4500 rupees so we thought the extra was money well spent! We agreed to head off the next morning at 11am.

With the rest of the day free we thought we would explore the smaller canals, after a lot of haggling we set off with a hilarious local guy for a three hour cruise for R600/ £7.50. The trip was awesome and so relaxing, we saw loads of wildlife - water snakes, humming birds, kingfishers & water buffalo but the best part was all the village life. People bathing, women washing clothes & hundreds of school children spilling out of tiny boats waving, shouting & blowing kisses!

Gorgeous boat on the backwaters

That night we packed up ready for the houseboat & headed out to buy a few supplies from the booze shop which turned out to be quite an experience. In Scotland you might pop out to your local Tesco’s for your booze – other supermarkets are available – but in India you need to head to the Government liquor shop which sounds pretty normal but in true Indian style it was chaos. We arrived at this hole in the wall with huge metal bars to find a crazed crowd of men jostling to get to the front. From the shocked stares it was pretty obvious women never come here. Queues don’t exist in India so we knew that to have a hope of getting served we were going to have to get amongst the scrum! After a while struggling in the crowd we saw the rusty side door open up and a man gestured for us to come in, relieved we pushed our way through to the calm of the bottle store & quickly got our hands on a crate a beer!

Doing the dishes Indian style

The next morning we were greeted at the boat with a gorgeous fresh coconut to drink & told to just relax upstairs for the morning taking in the scenery before we would be served lunch…we could get used to this! The next two days were pretty much more of the same, relaxing, eating gorgeous food, drinking cold beer & watching the world go by from the boat. Pure indulgence & worth every penny!

Once we returned to Alleppey we headed to the bus station to figure out where next, with no plan it would probably be wherever the next bus was going – turns out it was Varkalar, a cliff side village with a stunning beach four hours south. It’s a hard life but someone has to do it!

Herding ducks -  hilarious to watch!

The highs and lows of a week with an Enfield Bullet

Our trusty steed

Hi all, its john here. Lindsay told me to get off my arse and write a bit in the blog so here is my bit about or week with a Royal Enfield.


Since we arrived in India we have talked about renting an Enfield and doing a trip. There is something quite romantic about heading off to the hills on a classic looking bike, but the reality is that there is nothing romantic about riding a bike in India. Instead its hard work, noisy, dirty, dangerous, but most of all great fun.


We hired the bike from a friendly guy called Ivon at I-Ones Two Wheeler's (get it? Ivon, I-Ones?) in Fort Kochin. At just under £6 a day we were more than happy with our a excellent looking 2005 model, 4 speed, single cylinder, 350cc, Enfield Bullet with luggage racks and importantly for Lindsay it was the right colour! The helmets that were offered to us looked more like builders helmets so with a 'buy back' deal arranged with Ivon we bought two full face helmets from the market which were surprisingly cheap. Fingers crossed we weren't going to check out how strong they were.


With a rough plan of heading to Periyar then Munnar we set off, the bike looked good with its panniers on - a real adventure bike. Our first stop was only 1km away at a petrol station. This is when we had our first problem - for some reason the bike would not start after re-fueling it. I kicked and kicked it over, occasionally it would fire up, but it wouldn't stay running. I was checking everything over, trying to get the bike going but nothing seemed to work. Before long we had a crowd of Indian men around us, fascinated, and all offering advice - I'm sure thinking, silly foreigners on our Indian bikes! One offered to give starting it a go and of course he got it going on the first kick, but to my pleasure it stopped again. A friendly man was soon on the phone to Ivon, who quickly turned up and started adjusting the timing. After only a few minutes our trusty steed was running again and we set off. Our steed however was not so trusty and only 15 km away it stopped never to start again. We pushed the bike for about a mile to a local engineer who had a look at it, but he was not too impressed and gave Ivon a call who arrived half an hour later with a newer, better looking Enfield with a back rest which Lindsay was more than happy about.


By the time we transferred the fuel and our luggage it was about 3pm and it was not looking like we would make Periyar, so we set off with a plan to stop around sunset. Riding the bike was more than tricky than I was used to. For a start the gear pedal and brake pedal are on the wrong side compared to most bikes and the gear selection is 1 up 3 down rather than 1 down 5 up. This took me a good few hours to get used to and Lindsay had to put up with some harsh gear changes. With a average speed of 40 miles a hour on the main highway the slow revving bike sounded lovely. Main highways in India are not like in the UK. We were often met with buses heading towards us in our lane (once causing us to do a bit of off roading before joining the tarmac again) and a few cows who prefer the highway to fields. Indian drivers do not use their rear view mirrors, but instead rely on the person overtaking to beep their horn to indicate they are there. Needless to say the roads are incredibly noisy.

Bit of off roading

Just after sunset we found a hotel in a small town half way towards Periyar which was clean and Rs450 a night. We were both knackered and covered in dust from the road so a warm shower and comfy bed was more than welcome, even if it was covered with suspect stains! After a great nights sleep and egg curry for breakfast in the only restaurant in town, we set off again to cover the last 50 miles to Periyar. The road was amazing, steadily climbing in altitude and passing through forests, tea plantations and over high mountain peaks. The bike sounded great as we slowly ate up the miles. We arrived in Periyar about 1pm and had lunch a very nice hotel before searching for accommodation for the next few nights. There are many homestays and guest houses in Periyar, but we settled on a very nice room at Mundakal Paradise for RS400 a night (Just over 5 pounds).


Periyar seems to be the spice capital of India. Every shop was selling spices of all kinds. Lindsay loved this and spent a good while examine all the different types. Our first afternoon in Periyar was spent looking at all the various tour packages to do in the wildlife sanctuary at the Eco-tourism office. After thinking it over with tea and cake we settled on a bamboo rafting trip and booked it up for the next day. That evening we went to see an Indian martial arts display, called Kalaripayattu. For one hour we were entertained with men fighting each other with knives, swords and fire. A really good show which should not be missed if you are ever in the area.

The trekking-rafting trip started at 7am with a walk through the forest. As we walked we could hear the sound of the black monkeys calling to each other which was amazing and we were lucky enough to see one jumping from tree to tree. After a 3 hour trek we boarded our bamboo rafts and were slowly paddled along the lake bank hoping to see some wild elephants, but it was not our lucky day. We did however see a tree that had recently been used by a tiger to keep its claws in shape, a couple of deer, some wild hogs and plenty of birds.


The next day we were back on the bike heading to Munnar, 70 miles away along another great road passing over various mountains with some great drops either side. Throughout the journey we could feel the temperature drop as we slowly climbed up to 1500 metres.  The local buses take 4.5 hours to do this so we thought it may take us a good 5/6 hours (anyone who has been on an Indian bus will know how crazy the drivers are). In fact we were due to get there in around 4 hours as the bike seemed to fly by the buses on the hills. However, accidentally taking a 20 mile detour put us back to 5 hours.

Tea plantations of Munnar

Munnar town was a bit of a dump, but the surrounding area is full of lush green tea plantations planted by the British back in 1880s. Keen to explore the surrounding mountains and countryside we booked a early morning mountain trek for the next day. The trek was a brilliant, we started early at 0630 and followed a river to a tea plantation where we slowly started to climb and reached a peak of 2100 metres. The view was amazing overlooking the town below and surrounding mountains. We were served a breakfast of boiled eggs and bread at the top by our guide who told us all about the history and people of Munnar, before heading back down to the town below.   


Our last day with our lovely Royal Enfield had arrived and we packed the panniers for the last time and set off for Fort Kochin. The journey to start with was perfect with quiet roads and gorgeous scenery, but it was not long before we found ourselves dealing with crazy city drivers and trying to find our way with next to no road signs. Eventually after 6.5 hours on the bike we arrived back at Ivons and sadly returned our two wheeled friend, happy however that it was running on fumes!


Despite the numb bums, near death experiences, dust filled lungs and ringing ears we had an amazing week and would recommend the freedom of touring India on a bike - but perhaps only for a week at a time!

Check out our map

We are trying to keep track of our travels via the Our Map page. We will add more details as and when we can (and figure out how!) but check it out so far! More blogs to come soon guys.

View Globetrotting in a larger map

Happy in Hampi

Hampi

Our last few days in Palolem were immense - more glorious sun, sea, food and ...dolpins! Our boat trip with Mr Max was amazing, up early at 7am we set sail as the sun was rising hopeful to see a glimpse of the local dolphins. We were not disappointed, spotting around 5 or 6 including a mother and calf playing just in front of the boat.


We could have easily stayed in Paloelm for many more days but feeling we should really move on we booked the sleeper bus to Hampi, a ruined Hindu city set amongst a landscape of huge erractic boulders in the next state, Karnataka.


We met the 'tourist' sleeper bus from the near by town of Chaudi, at Rs700 per person it is definitely not as good value as the sleeper train. The bus was extremely basic, noisy, cramped & toilet-less. Our bunk for 2 was incredibly small with little room for us both to lie down unless on our sides - thank goodness we could share together otherwise you would have to spoon a stranger! Despite this the bus was quite exciting & felt like an adventure! The road to Hampi was extremely bumpy and we were relieved we hadn't chosen to travel there ourselves on a motorbike as I am not sure our spines could have taken it. According to John at one point we were both airborne, needless to say I slept through most of the journey. That is with the exception of a midnight outing of my Whiz Freedom, quite a skilled operation as we thundered round the corners on two wheels. Too much information I am sure but any ladies reading this about to go travelling - take a Whiz!


As we drew closer to Hampi we realised we were being followed by an army of rickshaw drivers all calling out to us, trying to stake a claim on our business before the bus pulled up - 'Sir, madam, I am here, I saw you first...', as we fought through them to get off the bus we chose a young guy at the back waiting far more patiently than the rest and agreed on Rs10 to the main bazaar area to grab some breakfast - resisting his pleas to take us to see some rooms, where of course he would get some baksheesh (commission).


After some yummy breakfast of eggs, toast & masala chai at the New Shanti cafe we started to wander down to the get the small boat across the river. Hampi is split in to two main areas by the Tungabhadra River, the main temple & baazar area where we had arrived and the far quieter Virupapuragadda (also known locally as Hampi Island although part of the main land) where most of the chilled out guest houses are situated - they only get power for 4 hours a day at best which was quite appealing to us for a few super chilled days.

Lakshmi getting his morning bath

Our first glimpse of the river revealed a hive of activity - families washing clothes, children bathing and a small Indian man scrubbing his elephant, nothing is unusual in India! We later found out that this was Lakshmi the main temple elephant. After a quick crossing on the boat for Rs20 which we shared with a very colourful & jolly Indian man singing & playing an accordion type instrument we started looking for a room. We quickly found a gorgeous room at Bobby Guesthouse at the bargain price of Rs200 (under 3 quid).


That afternoon we got chatting to a couple of locals who told us about a gorgeous fresh water lake perfect for swimming only four kilometers away. Keen to check it out and cool off we hired 2 very classic looking single

Cliff jumping

speed push bikes. The cycle there was brilliant, taking us through a rural village with beautiful local children running after us and giving us high fives. At the top of an extremely steep hill (sweat fest with a single speed!)we finally found the stunning lake and joined a few people who were jumping off a bridge into the water ignoring the 'Beware of the crocodiles' sign. With an audience of locals we went for it - the water was gorgeous and jumping in was great fun! John even ventured up on to the high rocks to jump - I wasn't quite brave enough.

Our trusty steed

The next day we decided to hire a motorbike to explore the Hanuman (Monkey) Temple a little further a field. The bike was hilarious, a tiny little TVS Heavy Duty, which looked more like a push, pedal & pop bike and couldn't even make it up the hills without John using his legs to push too. I was providing moral support giggling on the back! I suppose at Rs100 for the day you can't expect too much power. The Monkey Temple perched high on the top of a hill had around 600 steep white washed steps to reach the top. The views on the walk up were stunning and we met lots of locals springing up with ease and wondered if the do this daily to worship at the temple? We met a couple of black faced monkeys en route before reaching the breathtaking summit.

Monkey Temple

Everyday between 12:00 - 14:30 the Hindu men who live at the shrine to Hanuman chant and play the drums, so our timing was perfect and the calming sounds made the temple extremely atmospheric. This was our favourite spot in Hampi.


The next few days were extremely chilled just wandering around the many ruins and temples, swimming in the lake and sitting playing cards eating delicious food in an amazing cafe called The Mango tree. A perfect spot on the banks of the river with sensational views and traditional thalis & coconut currys! A few days could easily turn to weeks in Hampi.

Getting blessed by Lakshmi

Our final day was one of the busiest & best - we visited the main Sri Virupaksha Temple which dominates the skyline of central Hampi. After paying Rs20 entry we explored the many rooms & shrines watching the hundreds of pilgrims pray & whisper to which ever god they favoured. One huge crowd revealed the location of the gorgeous temple elephant, Lakshmi, who we had watched get his morning bath just days before. The locals explained that if you pay a small donation Lakshmi will bless you...a much longer blessing for notes rather than coins. Clever elephant! True enough we stepped forward and passed him a Rs5 coin which was expertly passed to his keeper and then gently he blessed you on the head. We then passed him a Rs10 note which was followed by a much slower & lingering blessing, not before passing the cash to his keeper of course. I couldn't get over just how gentle he was.


After John's first Indian hair cutting experience, which only drew a little blood, we decided to explore some of the ruins which are only accessible from the river due to a flood in 1992. You do this on the local coracle boats which are basic bowl shaped boats made from woven grasses, slightly wobbly to get in and out of but cool looking boats. Our guide, a young local boy, was excellent and explained so much about Hampi & the Hindu faith. We were so relaxed at the end we didn't want to get off.


That night we had organised to move on from Hampi to Cochin (also known as Kochi) further south in Kerala by sleeper bus to Bangalore followed by the sleeper train the next night to Cochin. We were slightly disappointed to be leaving as it was the Diwali festival, the festival of light which to us basically meant hundreds of fireworks & firecrackers being exploded by every family & group of children on every street corner. Totally mental but quite exciting - I wonder how many kids burn themselves or worse! It was like being thrown in to a war zone as we boarded the bus, rockets shooting past us from every direction. I was a nervous wreck!


Next stop Cochin...

Konkan Express to Goa

Sorry for the delay in updating on our trip to Goa – we have been far too busy doing nothing!

Just over a week ago we caught the Konkan Express sleeper train to Thivim in North Goa from Mumbai. What an experience! We chose to travel 2nd class sleeper, non A/C, for the bargain price of Rs560 for the 2 of us which is around 7 pounds – not bad for a 14 hour train journey.


The train was extremely basic, with simple fold down beds just wide enough to cram yourself and your rucksack on and a series of fans to keep the heat at bay…. slightly worrying that they sparked all night, but that’s India for you! The toilets were surprisingly nice & clean much to our relief after my horrendous experience just before boarding the train – I will tell you about that in a sec - but slightly un-nerving for a clumsy girl to see a large hole straight to the track. Explains the fruity air at the station platforms!


So, back to the toilet experience…..by far the worst to date! As we arrived late in the evening to catch our sleeper train I thought I would quickly use the station toilet before boarding. After paying the attendant Rs2 (approx 2 pence) I ventured in to the tiny cubicle, having to crouch to fit, locked the door to be faced with shit all over the walls, an overwhelming smell of urine, rats running around the back of the squatter and a ventilation grill at head height with rat tails handing out and the haunting squeak that I have only just recovered from! I have never peed so fast, nor have I ever been left shaking from the experience! Note to self – avoid station toilets at all costs!


The train was extremely well run and efficient with our names on the side of our carriage, a constant supply of food - dahl, chai, samosa, chai, cold drinks, chai, naan, chai, baji, chai, chai, CHAI – India runs on chai! I wouldn’t be surprised if the trains are fuelled by chai too - a gorgeous sweet milky ginger & cinnamon tea and we love it!


We both had the top tier bunks across from each other which was a complete winner as the two bunks below have to be folded away by 6am, and we could read & play cards whilst observing the chaos and sellers undisturbed from our elevated spot! Surprisingly I slept like a baby on the train but John didn’t – apparently there was a high pitched domestic between the Indian couple across from us in the middle of the night which I managed to miss! The women in India definitely seem to wear the trousers….or saris!


We arrived at Thivim at around 11am the next morning after spending some time freshening ourselves up by hanging out of the doors & watching the world go by – John’s favourite moment so far!


A short auto-rickshaw ride from the station brought us to our first stop in North Goa – Arambol. We picked a cheap & cheerful guesthouse called Ivon’s, a stone’s throw from the beach, perfect at Rs250 a night (just over 3GBP a night) – although in the heat the lack of water to cool down with a shower was tough!


The beach was lovely, a long sweeping crescent shaped bay with not too many buildings to spoil the setting. That said there was a lot of building work underway which we later found out is due to the main season not starting for another month (something our rough guide never mentioned – along with quite a few other errors. I am considering lonely planet for the first time!) and the Goan authorities making the locals take everything away at the end of every season, only to have to rebuild it all again after monsoon.


Our first stroll down to the beach was quite hilarious, as we started to walk down the dunes to the shore we were greeted by a local fisherman’s bare arse squatting in the surf taking his morning dump – lovely! We decided to leave the swim till a little later on! Four days relaxing in the sun, exploring the local area on our scooter (the popular Anjuna beach south of Arambol is definitely not worth a visit – seedy, with drugs an obvious issue!) and enjoying lots of lovely food & kingfisher beer past quickly in Arambol and we soon found ourselves on a local train heading to South Goa.


We caught the train from Pernem to Margoa at the ridiculous price of 35 pence each for over an hour before our first bus ride to Chaudi. What can I say about the bus other than…oh god please don’t let me die with this Indian man’s crotch in my face! The driving is insane and how they cram so many people in is an art form! We were relieved to finally arrive at our next stop, Agonda, in one sweaty piece!


Agonda was a bit of a ghost town with the season not quite kicked off and we quickly made our first error of the trip listening to a local man saying only one place was open with rooms. Heading there we were seduced by the beautiful setting, groomed gardens, good-looking beach huts and clean white linen sheets and agreed to stay for two nights at a budget busting Rs1600 (approx 20GBP), John wasn’t too pleased about this at first until he clocked the kayaks for guest use…..needless to say they were rarely out the water for the next 2 days! Surf kayaking is brilliant fun! Keen to find accommodation a lot cheaper we explored the back streets to find a pretty decent place for Rs250 (3GBP) called Cupids Cabin and an Indian Delboy called Lucky Singh who could get us anything we needed at anytime. Just don’t ask for an Enfield bike though! We stayed here for another couple of days just chilling and exploring on another scooter before moving on to Palolem where we are now.

It is so hot here, too hot to sunbath so John and I just been hanging out reading, planning & playing cards in the many bars and cafes and head to the beach at around 3pm to catch some sun and swim! The beach is gorgeous - the most picturesque yet and we can see why so many people mean to stay for a few days and are here months later!


There are some gorgeous restaurants too which are much more presentable than the average Indian eatery.........which gives you a bit more confidence! Talking of cool restaurants – John has sent me out to earn my keep!


We ate in this amazing restaurant called Cheeky Chapati's a few nights ago, a beautiful place with hundreds of fairy lights and candles. They mentioned they were short staffed and before I could stop myself I offered to help out! I thought it would be a great way to meet some locals and also meet some other travellers & expats who work there too. I had my first sweaty shift last night. The place is ridiculous busy! I swear I must have walked the equivalent of a half marathon last night ...all for Rs500 (just over 7quid). You get a meal too which saves us cash whilst the small wage tops up the daily budget of 20GBP! My first shift was great fun, a brilliant bunch of people and the mojitos through service helped! John was propping up the bar waiting to collect the wages at the end of the shift! Cheeky!


Tomorrow morning we are thinking of heading out with a local fisherman guy called Mr Max at 7am (forgotten what that time looks like as John & I never rise before 9:30 at least here!) to see some dolphins which are apparently really common off the coast of Palolem. Fingers crossed we will see some! Then after a few more days here ....and shifts...we are thinking of heading to Hampi which is in the next state called Konataka. Hampi is meant to be amazing - a ruined city with lots to explore and great places to stay and chill out! We will either get the sleeper bus there or see if we can get a Royal Enfield motorbike - proving to be quite elusive in South Goa!

Mumbai - the home of Bollywood

John & I have arrived safe & sound in Mumbai. It is hot & hectic but watching the indian way of life is fascinating! We have been here for 4 days now and have loved it but we are ready to move on and hit the beaches for some R&R.


Here is a quick run down of our 4 days in Mumbai.....We arrived early on Sunday morning after a quick hop flight from Dubai with Emirates. After thankfully spotting our bags and arranging our prepaid taxi ticket we headed to the taxi rank tired but extremely excited! The car journey to Colaba was brilliant, we were in a 'PAL' car - very vintage looking thing with no 'mod cons'...and no A/C (sweat!!!). The driving needs a strong stomach and maybe some ear plugs! They toot constantly - not that it does much good!!


We had booked two nights at the Sea Shore Hotel, Colaba which on arrival was good...and clean, which is all we wanted!


The first day went by in a bit of a blur of power naps & strolls around the streets of Colaba. We experience our first Thali at the Madras Cafe, a pretty grotty looking cafe but it came highly recommended by the locals, the food was delicious!! Oh, and I experienced my first grope at the night market...best get the first one out the way!


Before we conked out for the night our hotel receptionist guy asked us if we fancied being extras in a Bollywood movie the next day....the biggest film this year apparently! Aye right! Keen to experience as much as we can of Mumbai we jumped at the chance...not to mention the free meals all day and the 500 rupees payment (around 7 quid!)


We were collected at the crack of dawn from our hotel & after a very bumpy 1.5 hour bus journey arrived at the Bollywood studio. The day was long but a great laugh and a brilliant insight into a crazy world. Watching how the stars have a 'wallah' for everything is hilarious but quite wrong - shouting their water boy, or the boy who mops their brow, their boy with the white gloves who holds their suit jacket....the list is endless! I did take some pics but I got spotted and told to delete them. John ended up being made the saxophone player and was on stage as part of the band! What a laugh watching John have to dummy play the sax whilst dancing on stage ....in gold trousers and a green & gold suit jacket!!! I hope he makes the final cut! The film is called Housefull 2....god we are in a sequel.


The next day we headed to Elephanta island which is around 1 hour boat ride from the Gateway to India. As you can imagine John was pleased to get his first boat trip underway - he was very excited to hear the skipper ringing the bell to tell the engineer in the engine room what to do with the engines......apparently this is very old school! The island has cave carvings dating back to 6000AD which are amazing and, after a hot hike to the top of the island there are some spectacular views back to Mumbai! The island is full of monkeys who are very curious & cheeky...in fact one stole my banana - damn monkey! Unfortunately the island is covered with litter which is a shame as it could be gorgeous - it seems Indians dont care where they drop their litter.


We were exhausted after the day on the island - it doesnt take much to exhaust you in this heat so decided we would check out a Bollywood film. Need to know what to expect when our Bollywood careers take off. The film was called Gangster and was in Hindi, so we didnt understand a single word! But it wasnt at all what we expected....ranchy, violent and only one song! One highlight was the national anthem which was played before the movie started...I wish they played Flower of Scotland at the Xscape Odeon! ...John might think differently being British!


Tonight we are catching the Konkan Express sleeper train to Goa in 2nd class which we are both really excited about, lets hope it meets our expectations! We will write soon to update you all on the experience!