It was a complete shock to the system but surprisingly, we slotted into the life here quite easily and quickly. The main thing which, to some, may be the biggest thing to become accustomed to, was the absence of Wi-Fi on the...
Tag: travels
Living on an orchard – the highs and lows of apple picking

So we had chosen the orchard! We arrived on our big old coach into the eastern coastal city of Napier. Having suffered a really bad earthquake in 1931 the city’s architectural landscape is made up of a large number of...
Failed hitchhiking, weird hostels and finally getting a job

Carless and moneyless, weird fish cheek champion Les got us to jump in the back of his van to take us to Kaitaia where we were going to hitchhike to Auckland. Just us and the rucksacks off on an adventure!...
Northland – Loss and gain on 90 Mile Beach

The Welsh guy had a job hiring out canoes along the beach. At first when I heard this I was jealous at both how easy it had been for him to find work as well as the thought that hiring...
Acclimatising to New Zealand – The First Week in Auckland

So, we’d had the fun, relaxed, extended holiday part of the trip where, in a nutshell, we walked around with backpacks behaving like we were about to climb Everest before heading to the 4-star hotel we’d booked on Expedia a...
Koh Phi Phi – How not to do it!

Koh Phi Phi, the little smudge of an island made famous by the film The Beach (the one where there’s a beach and Leonardo DiCaprio is cute as hell) sits in the Andaman sea next to Phuket and is where...
Phuket, Patong Beach – Ping pong and Christmas abroad

Okay so I’m not proud of it but I am one of I’m sure very few people able to claim, not one but two, visits to the infamous ping pong shows. I know once is more than enough and shameful...
Koh Samui – viewpionts, booze and wanky Australians

And on to Koh Phangan's more commercial and therefore generally more expensive sister island, Koh Samui. We couldn't afford anywhere as central here so stayed in a complex of huts up on a hill just outside of Cheweng Beach. Not...
Seshing in Koh Phangan

It was time for the party part of the trip, which being the organised person I am, had been carefully planned and scheduled into the itinerary. Time dedicated to doing nothing. No tourism and 'cultural experiences' just pure sesh time....
Khao Sok National Park and Cheow Lan Lake

In the midst of what can safely be described as one of the worst hangovers I've ever had, we made our way to Bangkok train station to board the overnight train to Surat Thani in the South. By this point...