New Beginnings

Hello everyone! Sorry I have not written in a while, we have not had much access to the internet and we have been go, go, go! So just a quick wrap up of the last few weeks...

Over the past few weeks we have been to Thailand, Australia, New Zealand and back to Australia. Our entire trip has really been same same but different. This is one of the main slogans in Thailand (you can even get it on a t-shirt) that we didn’t really get at first but once we did we saw how easy it applies to so many things and it soon became our slogan of our trip. *I will use it throughout this blog to help you grasp the concept.

Thailand (cont.)

Koh Phi Phi (Feb 12 - 20)
This was my favourite island! Tiny little island, no cars or motorbikes allowed. You can only get around by foot or bicycle. We stayed at PP Charlie/Princess Beach Resort which was only a few minutes away from the beach, our pool (which overlooked the ocean), our restaurant (where we got free breakfast), restaurants and shops. We mainly just relaxed, spent most of our days lazing by the pool or ocean. We went for a oil thai massage one day, which was similar to the one we got in Phuket (body parts being twisted and turned in ways we never imagined). We also got a foot massage where we put our feet in a fish tank and tons of fish nibbled at our feet and calves. It was such a weird, tickly feeling but our feet actually felt really smooth after! Another highlight of our trip here was we all ended up getting tattoos. All three of us got the first line in an ancient thai prayer which basically means "when at a cross road you will be guided in the right direction." We all got the line on different parts of our back in different ways. (*same same but different!)

Bangkok (Feb 20 - 23)
We only had two full days here so we kept pretty busy. The first full day we went shopping and bought lots of souvenirs and clothing. The second day we had a full day tour where we went to the Jeath Museum, Bridge of River Kwai and a tiger temple. The tigers were what we were looking most forward to. We got tons of pictures with the tigers, up close behind them, walking them. It was a little nerve racking but exciting at the same time!

Australia

Surfers Paradise/Byron Bay (Feb 23 - March 3)
After Bangkok, we headed back to Australia where we said goodbye to our friend Cait and hello to our friend Alex from back home. In Surfers Paradise we didn't get to do too much as it pretty much rained the entire time. We got a few hours at the beach, a little shopping in and went out a couple of nights. In Byron Bay the weather was a lot nicer so we got more beach days in. The one day we went to Nimbin which is a tiny little hippie town about an hour or two outside Byron Bay. Here we got to look at some of the interesting shops, including the Nimbin museum which was all about legalizing marijuana. Quite interesting to say the least. Our last day Alex and Britt did a surf camp while I relaxed by the pool. I am on a strict budget (or at least trying to be) and have already done a couple of surf camps when I lived in Sydney before which is why I decided to pass on this one.

New Zealand (March 3 – 13)
We arrived in Christchurch at about 1:00am on March 4th. For our trip we hired a campervan from Britz to tour as much of the south island as we could in our ten days. To save money we decided to sleep (or try to sleep that is) in the cold airport and pick up our campervan at 8:00am that day. The campervan was actually fairly roomy for just the 3 of us. It had 3 seats in the front, two double beds (one in the roof), kitchen with a sink, stove top and microwave. Our first day we spent in Christchurch doing circles around the city (we really got to know Christchurch), went for breakfast then went to the market. At the market I ended up buying a much needed fleece and scarf as the weather in New Zealand was cold! It was about +10-15 degrees Celsius the entire time, really cooling down at night (now remember my Canadian family and friends, I had been living in +30 weather for the past month and a half).

Throughout our trip we worked our way around the south island, going west through Arthur’s Pass, stopping in Franz Joseph, Wanaka, Queenstown, Dunedin and Lake Tekapo. First off, the drive alone was just amazing! Many of the New Zealander’s who we talked to who had been to Canada said New Zealand is basically a compact Canada. (*same same but different!) And it really is…there is all kinds of landscapes; from fields to rolling hills to mountains. Throughout the landscape is the most turquoise, clear blue lakes and rivers we have ever seen! Just amazing!

On our third day in New Zealand, our campervan ended up breaking down at Fox Glacier. The engine light first went off when we were in Franz Joseph then the vehicle completely died when we pulled in the parking lot at Fox Glacier. Of course there is no service there, so Britt and Alex had to hitch a ride into the nearest town (Fox Glacier town). They got dropped off at the one and only mechanic which sent a tow truck for me and the campervan. It turned out we had cracked the radiator. Yes…it was our fault. There was a fairly big rock in front of our camping spot in Franz Joseph and we forgot about it in the morning when we went to drive off. We checked the front, didn’t see any damage so went on our way to Fox Glacier. On the way Alex and I kept complaining it was hot while Britt didn’t seem to feel it. We know now that it was our engine beginning to overheat as the passenger seat sits right on top of the engine! Anyways, luckily we splurged on the insurance so we were fully covered. We got a replacement campervan (*same same but different!) the next day early in the morning at around 7am (the driver drove through the night from Christchurch, leaving at 3am…now that’s service!) and we were on our way!

This trip was a lot more adventurous than our previous lazy, beach trips to Bali, Thailand and Australia. We did lots of hikes throughout the different hiking trails and glacier walks. In Queenstown, the adventure capital of New Zealand, we went white water rafting, Britt did a canyon swing (basically a bungee drop down 100ft then swing – just insane!) and Alex and I went zip lining after our intense hike up the steepest hill where the gondola lift is. Overall, New Zealand was amazing and we really wish we had more time!
And back to Australia!

Melbourne (pronounced Mel-bin)
We arrived late at night on March 13th and stayed with Margaret, Britt’s teaching friend who she met in Melbourne. Our first day, Britt showed us around Melbourne and we did a bit of shopping. We met up with Margaret for supper at a nice café by the Yara River then Britt and I went to the Taylor Swift concert! Britt and I are big fans from back home and when Britt first heard she was coming…I think back in October or November she bought us tickets straight away. I think this was our only actual solid plan before I came to Australia. Today we had to send Britt off back home to Canada and Alex and I went on a Eco tour day trip where we went to a wildlife sanctuary, koala conservation centre, chocolate factory and Phillip island. At the wildlife sanctuary we got to see kangaroos, koalas, wallabies, wombats, and tazmanian devils (all the main aussie animals). At the koala conservation centre we got to see more koalas and at the chocolate factory Alex and I enjoyed a delicious chocolate dipped frozen banana. At Phillip Island (the main attraction) we had dinner and got to see the penguin parade. Phillip Island is well known for the small aka blue aka fairy penguins which are the smallest penguins in the world. At dusk they all waddle out of the ocean in packs and go to their burrows on land where they sleep/hide out for the night. This was really cool to see! They come out of the water a few at a time, then wait at the shoreline for a bigger group to join then they all waddle together to the main land. Once they were on land, scattering to their burrows they made the craziest sounds. It sounded like a mixture between a cat, cricket and a crying baby. And of course they are just so cute!

Tomorrow we head to Sydney where I will show Alex around some of the hotspots, hopefully get a couple beach days in and I will catch up with some old friends from when I used to live there. Then on the 20th, it will be home time! Back to Canada and back to reality. My two month vacation overseas has been a blast but now it is time to settle down and get a job. So I can start planning my next vacation of course!

At this point in our trip we have gotten into a bit of a routine. We get up at about 9am, go for breakfast and then head to the pool or beach. We tan/swim all day, sometimes go shopping, have a late dinner and then either take it easy at the resort or go out for the occasional night on the town. (I know, I know…tough life!)

Phuket (Feb 1 – 3)
In Phuket, we stayed at the Patong Princess Hotel. This was the nicest hotel we have stayed in so far on our trip. It is a newer hotel so the rooms were really nice and we had great service! There was also a rooftop pool, very friendly staff and a great restaurant. It was about a fifteen minute walk to the beach, which we unfortunately only got to go one day since we had such limited time here. While we here, Cait and I went for a traditional Thai massage. We had no idea what to expect going in, but it really was just like the movies. They literally hop right in the bed with you, twist and turn your limbs in ways you don’t think they should be twisted. But instead of being bruised the next day like we thought we would, we felt fantastic! Although, this great feeling was soon ruined by our long trip to Koh Samui.

Koh Samui (Feb 3 – 6)
We are really trying to budget on our trip, so instead of flying to Koh Samui (an island on the opposite side of Thailand where Phuket is), we took a bus and ferry. We got picked up at about 9:30 am from our hotel by a 15 person minivan. There were 13 of us total, with the two open seats being the storage for ALL of our luggage (No there was not a trunk). The a/c barely worked and it was like a roller coaster ride the entire 5 hour drive. Let’s just say we got to know the other travellers pretty well (group of 4 from Israel, 2 from France, 1 from the Caribbean, 3 from Sweden). After the 5 hour drive we had about an hour rest stop where we waited for another bus. The next bus was a lot nicer, more like a Greyhound, and was only an hour drive to the pier. We had about another hour wait at the pier, then a two hour ferry ride to Koh Samui. This ferry was just a bunch of people piled on a boat with the luggage – no seats or anything. Then we had about an hour taxi drive to our resort so we didn’t get in until about 8 pm at night. It was a really long day but it only cost us about $30 CDN so it was worth it!

At Koh Samui, we stayed at the Baan Hin Sai Resort & Spa. This was a really nice resort and well worth the wait! The resort was right on a hill, so all the rooms, restaurants and pools were downhill from the lobby surrounded by the beautiful tropics. There were two main pools, each with 3 levels that overlook the ocean. There was one restaurant in the lobby and then another restaurant further down the resort that looked over the ocean too. Our room was nice at this place as well. It really is going to be hard to go back to the hostel lifestyle in Australia as we’ve been living pretty high class in Bali and Thailand.

Koh Phangan (Feb 6 – 11)
We took a speedboat (with actual seats) from Koh Samui to Koh Phangan, which only took about 30 minutes which was a nice short trip. At Koh Phangan, we stayed in Haad Rin at the SeaBreeze Resort. Rooms were fairly nice, although looked nicer on the website. (Britt and I had to share one tiny blanket which went to about our ankles, the a/c only had one setting so we were constantly turning it off and on in the middle of the night and I’ve never seen so many ants in my life!). But on the bright side, the resort as a whole was really nice and our room had a patio with a hammock that overlooks the ocean. Again, the restaurant has great food (free breakfast!) and the staff is very friendly. I am really getting addicted to the Thai food! Both this hotel and our last one were located on hills so our calves have been getting quite the workout!

The famous Full Moon Party was on February 7th, and of course like many others was our main reason for coming to Koh Phangan. For those of you who don’t know, the Full Moon Party is basically thousands of people partying on the beach until sunrise and everyone gets dressed up in really bright, fluorescent clothes, body paint, glow sticks/hats/ears/everything you can imagine. We first had a big dinner at our resort at the rooftop restaurant which overlooks the ocean, then headed to the party which was only a short walk away. There was all kinds of things going on – different dj’s, dance parties (had stages set up to dance on), lots of good cheap food/drinks for sale. The famous drink is the “bucket” which basically is a sand bucket that comes with a mickey and mix; any alcohol of your choice. There were all sorts of other crazy things happening to. There were people sliding off some building, using it as a legitimate slide. There was a fire jump rope (yes like the one in Mario Kart, but real!). I think all those guys had to have lost some of their leg hair that night.

Our last full day in Koh Phangan we went on a Rainforest Adventure day tour which included a waterfall, Chinese temple, Thai kick boxing, archery, snorkelling, ziplining, elephant trekking and a herbal steam sauna. We started off with the Thai kick boxing, where we thought we would get to see a match but instead we got to hear about how it started, had a little lesson and got to practice kicking some punching bags! I, quite weak, barely moved the bag. But Britt on the other hand showed some talent (I think the power came when the instructor said to think about your ex-boyfriend haha). After the boxing we headed to the Chinese temple where our tour guide told us about the Buddhism culture, which is really interesting and I would love to learn more. We each got to bang the bell and the drum three times for good luck before we headed to the waterfall. At the Phaeng waterfall, we all climbed up the rocks (not as much water at this time of year) so we could get a better picture. After the waterfall, we went snorkelling at Koh Ma where we saw about 5 fish in total but the beach was really nice with really clear water. And then…it was lunchtime! We had an amazing Thai lunch and homemade ice cream. I had banana ice cream, which tasted like a Funky Monkey from Booster Juice…de-lish! After lunch we headed to archery and elephant trekking. Our other group members, six Irish friends, rode the elephants while we had fun with archery. It is definitely not as easy as it is on the wii! But hey, we weren’t THAT BAD. Then our most memorable moment…elephant trekking! Britt and I rode on one, and Cait rode on the other. We went for a walk through the forest, went through a bit of a swamp (elephants were head deep in the water!), then back to the beginning. Cait was in hysterical laughter the entire time, while Britt and I were amused and holding on for dear life. After the elephant trekking we headed to the Canopy Ziplines Park, the most thrilling part of the day! The course included 4 ziplines and 4 “dancing bridges”, as the brochure says. These “dancing bridges” were basically random pieces of wood, held together by rope and cable cords in all different directions. We were dressed in a harness with two safety lines and then a safety line with the pulley for the ziplining. You had to move your two safety lines one at a time while working your way through the course which is in the rainforest about 50 – 80 ft above ground. I went in between Britt and Cait as I was a little freaked out. Can you believe I was more scared doing this then skydiving out of a plane at 14,000 ft?! In the end, it was quite a thrill and I would definitely do it again! After the ziplining, we headed to Wat Pho temple for the herbal steam sauna which we lasted about five minutes – so hot! Overall, it was a fantastic fun-filled day!

Today was a loooooong trip from Koh Phangan to Phuket. We got a little screwed around today as we ended up paying almost twice as much as we did from our trip from Phuket to Koh Samui and lost an entire day – literally (6am – 9pm). One ferry and many busses/taxis later we finally made it to our hotel, Phuket Central Apartments, which is really nice! We have a huge room with 3 twin beds, great restaurant with a live singer/guitar player, friendly staff, real hot showers, properly working a/c. Too bad we are only here for a few hours.

Next on the agenda…Koh Phi Phi. Stay tuned!

So as many of you know I reunited with Brittney in Brisbane on January 22nd. On January 24th, Britt, Cait (Britt's friend from Melbourne - who is from Windsor, Ontario) and I arrived in Bali! At the beginning we were a little hesitant as we arrived at about 3am (due to our flight being delayed in Darwin for about 4 hours due to the rain), got suckered into some Balinese taking our bags then having to tip them, then paid 3x the amount we should have to get a taxi to our hotel. After the 3 of us squished in the backseat of the taxi, scared for our lives, driving down small sketchy alleys, we finally made it to our hotel safe and sound. Everything got better from that point on! (Maybe it was the daylight...)

Bali Hotel - Our hotel, the Bakung Sari Hotel in Kuta, turned out to be really nice considering the amount we paid for it. Rooms are decent - we have 3 twin beds (one in the middle of the floor, bathroom, working A/C (most of the time) and a mini fridge. The restaurant at the hotel has great, cheap food with quite the selection! We get free breakfast daily and have ate at the hotel for pretty much all of our meals and never getting the same thing. Meals cost us about $2-5 each - cheapey cheapey! The staff speak a decent amount of english and are all really friendly. We also have a nice pool which we have spent most of our time lazing around as the beach is quite dirty. The one day we did go to the beach, it was soooo windy. It was like we were in a dirty sand storm! And the vendors on the beach are a lot more aggressive than Mexico. They would all just come and surround you, sitting right next to you on the beach until you bought something. We bought quite a few bracelets that day...ha.

Bali Life - They have lots of little shops set up everywhere, similar to Mexico, and everyone of course has the "best price". We all got lots of great souvenirs and gifts; all for a really good price. We went out a couple of nights to Sky Garden which is an awesome bar with about 4 or 5 floors, each floor with different kinds of music. Sooo much fun! The first night we went out with a couple of Scottish girls we met at our hotel and met a group of firefighters from no other than...Calgary! Another thing about Bali is almost everyone drives motorbikes - soooo many everywhere! No street signs, lanes or anything, except for on the main highways, so everyone pretty much just walks/drives at their own risk. And you can take all kinds of things of motorbikes - baskets, babies, trees, even your whole family, you name it! We've seen it all! For all the McDonald's lovers....Bali has McDelivery! Yes...they deliver McDonald's to you...on their motorbike of course.

Bali Tour - We went on one half day tour where we went to see a temple, monkey forest, some beach/shops and then a restaurant on the beach. We got the tour from a brochure at the airport and took it to the front desk where the lady "booked it" for us. But really her husband took us to all the same places in the brochure and we paid him. Putu, our driver, was really nice and we had our own private tour! The temple was a bit different then we expected. Rather than one big building, it was more like a park, with walkways and a few different temples that you could walk around. The monkey forest was quite interesting. As soon as we got in the parking lot, there was monkeys running around. We got our own guide with a "protection" stick to walk us through the forest. There was literally monkeys everywhere! And they did not look very friendly so we stayed close to our "protector". We paid a little extra so we could feed the monkeys peanuts. We sat on a ledge and held out our hand with the peanuts and they would take them right out of our hands! (The next day we met a Canadian girl who got bit by one of these monkeys at this same forest - lucky it wasn't us! She also fell through a sidewalk in Malyasia...talk about unlucky.) Britt also got a picture holding a fruit bat and fed the bat a drink. Cait fed the bats a drink too but we were both too scared to hold it. Next we went to this beach which is supposed to be great to watch the sunsets, but unfortunately it was very cloudy so we did not stay there long. Then we went to this restaurant where we got to sit and eat right on the beach, while we got to see the beautiful sunset. We had an amaaaazing seafood feast - fish, squid, clam, crab, prawns, along with soup, salad and rice. There was also a little stage set up where we got to see some Balinese dancers. This was the definite highlight of our trip! For this entire day trip including dinner, we paid only about $30!

Today, our last full day in Bali, we hired Putu (driver from our day trip) to take us to see Ketut Liyer! Yes everyone, the famous Ketut from the "Eat, Pray, Love" book/movie. It was really awesome to go meet him and see where he lives - he is such a sweet, old, man. But unfortunately all of our readings were the same. We are all "so pretty, so pretty" and are going to have lots of success, harmony and going to be rich. We are all in good health, will all be married once and have 3 kids (although only 2 for me apparently). Anyways, we were a little disappointed with the reading, but it was still really cool to meet him in person after reading all about him in the book! Now tomorrow, we are off to Phuket, Thailand! Stay tuned!

I have created this blog to keep my friends and family around the world updated on my travels in the next few months. I hope I can update it as often as possible so you can really feel like you are taking part in this new adventure I am about to embark on!

When one door closes, another door opens...

This is very true for the place I am at in my life right now. I have just finished my undergraduate degree in Business Administration with a major in Marketing and am about to embark on a new journey. I have had some amazing experiences throughout university and met some amazing people along the way. I was priviledged enough to end my university with taking 1st place School of the Year at the JDC West competition with my fellow "family" - Team Hill. We worked so hard this year for this title and it couldn't have been a happier ending to this chapter in my life.

Now I am off to reunite with one of my best friends, Brittney Blakely, in Australia. She has been teaching in Australia since July 2011 and now we are going to travel straight for about 3 months. The current plan as of right now is to meet in Australia, travel a week in Bali, 3 weeks in Thailand and then a couple of months travelling the east coast of Australia. These plans may change as they have already so many times. The truth is there really is no set in stone plan, but isn't that the exciting part about this current stage we are at in our lives? The opportunities are endless! And I truly have no idea where I will be...6 months from now, 1 year from now...but what I do know is that I am going to cherish each new experience and seize every opportunity that life hands me! Stay tuned for the exciting adventures of Shandra & Brittney! You know they will be nothing but entertaining!