So we arrived at Dunedin at 1pm and took a drive up the peninsula to try and find penguins and sea lions. We drove for around an hour up to the top and were then told you cant see any unless you go on a tour to private bays. So we got out and took some photos then drove back to the centre. We had a walk up to the centre where we found a restaurant called ratbags so just had to go. Its a student area and because it was a Monday it was half price at the restaurant for 1/2 metre pizzas , these were really yummy and great value. The guy who served us was lovely and took photos for our postale and brough us some tap water in a jug as he could probably tell we were on a budget !!
We got to sit outside and it was a beautiful day so it was warm enough to sit there and we sat there until 5pm. Everything was then closed so we walked around and saw the sights inc Cadbury world which was closed but took photos.
We then did a food shop for the campervan in countdown (NZ woolworths) then we tried to find a campsite and when we eventually did , it was expensive. So we drove to Milton through the night and found a lovely campsite in the town. $12 pp and it had all services inc a kitchen. The caretaker was lovely too. From Milton , the next day, we drove all day to Lake Panguria to a site at $6 a night and it had toilets but a lovely view this morning !! The clouds hug the mountain early morning and slowly loosen its grab as the hours tick by. Gorgeous !!
We then set off at 9am this morning to Fox Glacier. We were running on empty and the last petrol station was 120km from Fox but our cards wouldnt work there either. So we had 1/4 tank to get us 120km. We did it and are now full and sat at the wild life centre for kiwis at Franz Josef and are going to see the glaciet after our chicken and cranberry panini. Yummy !! This with a large drink was $12
We had stopped at Fox to take photos and met some people from Leeds, this world is getting smaller in many ways !!
xx
Tuesday, 30 September 2014
Lake Tekapo...
What a wonderful place !! The view was beautiful, we drove along the 8 highway and had spectacular views from aroubd 40km away. It liyerally took our breat away when we came over the mountains and saw the snowy mountains.
When we got there it was around 4pm , we went to the observatoru but it said it closed at 5pm so we went to the church and took photos, went to the lookout and took loads of photos there. Then we wanted to wait till sunset so we could try to see the milky way but as the clocks had gone forward we had a few hours to wait. We had already had a subway so we were ok for food, we found a restaurant on the front that had gorgeous views and free wifi after we bought two drinks at $9 !! Anyway i had time to send my postales and update the blog. We then watched the sunset then drove back to the lookout to see all the stars, we couldnt find the milky way but the stars were amazing !!! There were sooo many and so bright, it was beautiful. Unfortunatley they wouldnt come out on the camera so you'll just have to believe me !
We then drove through the night to a campsite in Herbert, it was a lovely setting but quite offroad, we got there around 11pm and there was only one other car. It had toilets and picnic areas. We awoke to some Nz's having a picnic and when we spoke to them , the woman had come from Hartlepool originally !! Small world. We then made our way to Dunedin.
When we got there it was around 4pm , we went to the observatoru but it said it closed at 5pm so we went to the church and took photos, went to the lookout and took loads of photos there. Then we wanted to wait till sunset so we could try to see the milky way but as the clocks had gone forward we had a few hours to wait. We had already had a subway so we were ok for food, we found a restaurant on the front that had gorgeous views and free wifi after we bought two drinks at $9 !! Anyway i had time to send my postales and update the blog. We then watched the sunset then drove back to the lookout to see all the stars, we couldnt find the milky way but the stars were amazing !!! There were sooo many and so bright, it was beautiful. Unfortunatley they wouldnt come out on the camera so you'll just have to believe me !
We then drove through the night to a campsite in Herbert, it was a lovely setting but quite offroad, we got there around 11pm and there was only one other car. It had toilets and picnic areas. We awoke to some Nz's having a picnic and when we spoke to them , the woman had come from Hartlepool originally !! Small world. We then made our way to Dunedin.
Saturday, 27 September 2014
NZ Christchurch day 2
Morning all ,
Just a quick hello. Weather is a bit better today as the sun has reared it's head. Planning to make our way to Lake Tekapo later , going to see the Milky way this eve.
Hope everyone at home is ok, will write again next time we have wifi, only have 4 mins left on the jail comp. Will go take some pics now.
Missing everyone but having an amazing time, already fallen for NZ
Love S&L xxx
Just a quick hello. Weather is a bit better today as the sun has reared it's head. Planning to make our way to Lake Tekapo later , going to see the Milky way this eve.
Hope everyone at home is ok, will write again next time we have wifi, only have 4 mins left on the jail comp. Will go take some pics now.
Missing everyone but having an amazing time, already fallen for NZ
Love S&L xxx
New Zealand - Christchurch
So we got through customs no probs, there was a dog sniffing everyone and managed to find someone with a doughnut that they wernt allowed!!
Then we got the shuttle to our spaceship which only ended up costing us $15 for both of us , which was great as we had been told it would be $26. The depot for our spaceship was only 10 mins away and soon after we arrived, another couple turned up for theirs so we felt safe to stay the night at the depot. We got to bed around 3am and then i reawoke at 6.30am desperate for the loo, so we found a Mcdonalds and managed to wash and get breakfast here, Luke ha another instant win for a breakfast wrap , so he had that for free.
After our breakfast, we made our way to the jailhouse accom in CHC which wasn't very far away. I'm still getting used to the automatic campervan , but it's a laugh!!
The jailhouse accom is great and such fun. It's run like a hostel and is noisy at night as everything echoes in the corridor. I think this is purposely designed to get to the inmates when it was a prison. The cells are set up just as it was and everything has a prison reference. The staff are called wardens and theres loads of great pic oppurtunities !! After checking in, we were still very tired so decided to have a nap that lasted 5 hours !! Once we woke up , we decided to take a drive out to the Botantical gardens and had a short walk around as we had put our washing in at the jail. I wanted to be back for it finishing in the dryer before anyone else got to it.
The gardens were lovely , such beautiful colours and lots of people walking with dogs. We met a great guy with his dog , who told us the weather would get better. It was soo cold for us and very cloudly. Just like England !! After the washing, we took the camper out to the town to go see the Cathedral and oversized armchairs !!
When we got there, we couldn't believe how quiet everywhere was. We had been diverted soo many times and realised it was because they are still restoring everywhere since the earthquake. When we got to the Cathedral , we were so upset to see that this too had been a victim if the earthquake and half of it had been reduced to rubble and the other half was being supported by steel beams!!
We found a small mall that was completley abandoned and had ruin from the earthquake. everything inside was left just as it was and looked as if people had just run out when the earthquake hit. A guy was outside who had worked there as the caretaker and was too happy to tell us what had happened. The mall was locked up but we found a way inside. It was amazing but very sad at the same time.
We took a walk around the square and read all the info on how the earthquake has devastated and how they plan to rebuild the city, even though 4 years later and all they can do is to try support the buildings.
After a very interesting walk, we were soo cold and had found a nandos which we were soo excited about so had to eat here. It was better than at home, everyhting had more sauce and the corn on the cob even came in sauce !! It was slightly more expensive but no refillable drink, but had spent nothing as yet so we treated ourselves.
We then returned to jail ready for a great nights sleep , i read the book on the jail before falling asleep.
What a great day- again !!
Love S&L xxxx
Then we got the shuttle to our spaceship which only ended up costing us $15 for both of us , which was great as we had been told it would be $26. The depot for our spaceship was only 10 mins away and soon after we arrived, another couple turned up for theirs so we felt safe to stay the night at the depot. We got to bed around 3am and then i reawoke at 6.30am desperate for the loo, so we found a Mcdonalds and managed to wash and get breakfast here, Luke ha another instant win for a breakfast wrap , so he had that for free.
After our breakfast, we made our way to the jailhouse accom in CHC which wasn't very far away. I'm still getting used to the automatic campervan , but it's a laugh!!
The jailhouse accom is great and such fun. It's run like a hostel and is noisy at night as everything echoes in the corridor. I think this is purposely designed to get to the inmates when it was a prison. The cells are set up just as it was and everything has a prison reference. The staff are called wardens and theres loads of great pic oppurtunities !! After checking in, we were still very tired so decided to have a nap that lasted 5 hours !! Once we woke up , we decided to take a drive out to the Botantical gardens and had a short walk around as we had put our washing in at the jail. I wanted to be back for it finishing in the dryer before anyone else got to it.
The gardens were lovely , such beautiful colours and lots of people walking with dogs. We met a great guy with his dog , who told us the weather would get better. It was soo cold for us and very cloudly. Just like England !! After the washing, we took the camper out to the town to go see the Cathedral and oversized armchairs !!
When we got there, we couldn't believe how quiet everywhere was. We had been diverted soo many times and realised it was because they are still restoring everywhere since the earthquake. When we got to the Cathedral , we were so upset to see that this too had been a victim if the earthquake and half of it had been reduced to rubble and the other half was being supported by steel beams!!
We found a small mall that was completley abandoned and had ruin from the earthquake. everything inside was left just as it was and looked as if people had just run out when the earthquake hit. A guy was outside who had worked there as the caretaker and was too happy to tell us what had happened. The mall was locked up but we found a way inside. It was amazing but very sad at the same time.
We took a walk around the square and read all the info on how the earthquake has devastated and how they plan to rebuild the city, even though 4 years later and all they can do is to try support the buildings.
After a very interesting walk, we were soo cold and had found a nandos which we were soo excited about so had to eat here. It was better than at home, everyhting had more sauce and the corn on the cob even came in sauce !! It was slightly more expensive but no refillable drink, but had spent nothing as yet so we treated ourselves.
We then returned to jail ready for a great nights sleep , i read the book on the jail before falling asleep.
What a great day- again !!
Love S&L xxxx
Sydney day 2 ...
So we had a great nights sleep at Macleay lodge and awoke at 9am.
There was a free tour that we wanted to do at 10.30am but we still needed to go to an internet cafe to print our free ticket to the zoo. We asked reception how much it would be for aticket to the zoo and she said $36 , i had looked online and it had only been $28 so we decided we would buy at an internet cafe. There are loads of internet cafes in Sydney and we found one for a good price, $0.50 for 10 mins or $1.50 10- 30 mins . We printed our stuff out then decided to walk into town.
We were told to walk up road until we see a huge coca cola sign and turn right and carry on walking. It took around 20 mins and was an interesting walk. We stopped at a pub along the way for a drink, the woman said the orange juice had run out and didnt make a full glass so we could have it for free, bonus!!
We then walked straight up to Darling harbour , where Sydney zoo is, it started to rain so we ran into the zoo and joined the que for 10 minutes. The rain got really bad and it was thunder and lightening, which was cool to watch from indoors. However the wind blew the free ticket out of Luke's hand and into the Koala enclosure in the foyer!! So we had to wait for a keeper to rescue it so we were allowed in!!
Anyway once in, everything was undercover with only the minimal amount of rain coming through. There was a load to see , when reaching the cafe , you can buy a photo pack with the koala for 2 people its $25, you get two main photos , two certificates and 6 small photos. It's a great deal, you can't hold the koala but you're pretty close.
We saw the huge croc, Rex along with Kangaroos, wallabies etc. We had a great time and spent around 2 hours in here, there was a great gift shop at the end where there were t shirts on sale , so we got two :)
After this , we were really hungry and tried to find a Mcdonalds, we ended up walking the seafront up to Circular Quay , right up through the rocks - which were lovely but soo quiet - i guess because of the time of year.
After our Mcdonalds at Circular Quay, we got the free bus - the 555 up to the Westfield centre , where the skytower is. Once your up the lift, it has a lovely foyer with plenty of shops. The experience includes information on the tower and other high towers around the world, then you are taken into a cinema room to see a 4D film of sydney. This was actually filmed by people from the UK and was really interesting, you get splattered with water with the water scenes and wind blows your hair.
We went up the tower from around 5pm and waited until the sun set like we did at the Burj, so we saw Sydney in the day and night. There was a cafe and gift shop and plenty of telescopes with great info to keep us amused.
After the skytower, we did a bit of souvenir shopping in their shop downstairs and had to buy a teddy !! Then we looked at a few shops before walking back to the hotel to sort bags out ready for check out in the morning.
We were very fortunate and had a woolworths next door to us so we got pumpkin soup and bread to have as dinner when we got in as we had a microwave.
The next morning, we went out to get Luke's hair cut and i used some free wifi at a travel agency to update our blog and add the photos. We were there a few hours as Luke was checking the football news whilst i was hurridly typing away. WE only had until 1.45pm so we quickly went to cafe to get hot dog and chips to use up the rest of our dollars and then was picked up by the shuttle to go the airport. The airport was easy with Air New Zealands self check in. We could check in as soon as we got there even though we were 3.5hours early.
When we got through , there was plenty of shops and i went straight in pandora and Luke bought me a Sydney opera house charm as my birthday present. (He still owed me one)
Our flight to NZ was great , food and drink orders from your tv !! The food was good too, there wasn't that many good films in our opinion but we found some - i watched Mrs Browns boys - which i don't recommend but i had to watch it all.
We arrived in NZ at 12am , as our flight was slightly delayed.
Having THEE best time - loving every second !!!
Sophie & Luke
xxx
There was a free tour that we wanted to do at 10.30am but we still needed to go to an internet cafe to print our free ticket to the zoo. We asked reception how much it would be for aticket to the zoo and she said $36 , i had looked online and it had only been $28 so we decided we would buy at an internet cafe. There are loads of internet cafes in Sydney and we found one for a good price, $0.50 for 10 mins or $1.50 10- 30 mins . We printed our stuff out then decided to walk into town.
We were told to walk up road until we see a huge coca cola sign and turn right and carry on walking. It took around 20 mins and was an interesting walk. We stopped at a pub along the way for a drink, the woman said the orange juice had run out and didnt make a full glass so we could have it for free, bonus!!
We then walked straight up to Darling harbour , where Sydney zoo is, it started to rain so we ran into the zoo and joined the que for 10 minutes. The rain got really bad and it was thunder and lightening, which was cool to watch from indoors. However the wind blew the free ticket out of Luke's hand and into the Koala enclosure in the foyer!! So we had to wait for a keeper to rescue it so we were allowed in!!
Anyway once in, everything was undercover with only the minimal amount of rain coming through. There was a load to see , when reaching the cafe , you can buy a photo pack with the koala for 2 people its $25, you get two main photos , two certificates and 6 small photos. It's a great deal, you can't hold the koala but you're pretty close.
We saw the huge croc, Rex along with Kangaroos, wallabies etc. We had a great time and spent around 2 hours in here, there was a great gift shop at the end where there were t shirts on sale , so we got two :)
After this , we were really hungry and tried to find a Mcdonalds, we ended up walking the seafront up to Circular Quay , right up through the rocks - which were lovely but soo quiet - i guess because of the time of year.
After our Mcdonalds at Circular Quay, we got the free bus - the 555 up to the Westfield centre , where the skytower is. Once your up the lift, it has a lovely foyer with plenty of shops. The experience includes information on the tower and other high towers around the world, then you are taken into a cinema room to see a 4D film of sydney. This was actually filmed by people from the UK and was really interesting, you get splattered with water with the water scenes and wind blows your hair.
We went up the tower from around 5pm and waited until the sun set like we did at the Burj, so we saw Sydney in the day and night. There was a cafe and gift shop and plenty of telescopes with great info to keep us amused.
After the skytower, we did a bit of souvenir shopping in their shop downstairs and had to buy a teddy !! Then we looked at a few shops before walking back to the hotel to sort bags out ready for check out in the morning.
We were very fortunate and had a woolworths next door to us so we got pumpkin soup and bread to have as dinner when we got in as we had a microwave.
The next morning, we went out to get Luke's hair cut and i used some free wifi at a travel agency to update our blog and add the photos. We were there a few hours as Luke was checking the football news whilst i was hurridly typing away. WE only had until 1.45pm so we quickly went to cafe to get hot dog and chips to use up the rest of our dollars and then was picked up by the shuttle to go the airport. The airport was easy with Air New Zealands self check in. We could check in as soon as we got there even though we were 3.5hours early.
When we got through , there was plenty of shops and i went straight in pandora and Luke bought me a Sydney opera house charm as my birthday present. (He still owed me one)
Our flight to NZ was great , food and drink orders from your tv !! The food was good too, there wasn't that many good films in our opinion but we found some - i watched Mrs Browns boys - which i don't recommend but i had to watch it all.
We arrived in NZ at 12am , as our flight was slightly delayed.
Having THEE best time - loving every second !!!
Sophie & Luke
xxx
Friday, 26 September 2014
Sydney...
So ou plane landed in Sydney at 10am and we were all ready to go through immigration when they told us that whoever had done our aus visas hadnt put our middle names and thats why we couldnt get through the express lane. So another thing i must make STA aware of....
Anyway, once bagagge was collected we went to declare our stuff nnd queued around twenty minutes and they werent even interested, they told us to go straight through.
We went to book our return hotel shuttle once we were through and the cashcard wouldnt work so Luke had to pull the money out at the ATM which made us latw to miss the first bus. By the time we got sorted at the hotel and ready to explore it was 2pm.
The hotel was already paid for and the shuttle bus was $32 pp return and we never found anything cheaper. We stayed at the Macleay lodge and again , nothing like the pictures on the internet !! It was cramped and very dusty !! There was builders doing work next door 9am - 3pm which didnt really effect us but was annoying when we arrived.
We knew we wanted to do a zoo and the sydney sky tower and reception had an offer of a 10% discount so we bought them there. They are valid for 30 days too. It was $60 extra to do the skywalk so we didntbother with that. We later found out at Manly tourist office that youcan get on the day tickets very cheap there.
We went straight out to get the 311 bus outside woolworths to Circular Quay it was $2.30 pp and took around 15-20 mins. At circular Quay there are many piers to get the boats. We bought our ticket to Manly at pier 5 and boarded at pier 3 , well tried to, we had a ticket for any ither boat but Manly so he lets us through anyway but our ticket hadnt been swiped.
The boat was meant to be $7 pp return to Manly and takes 20-30 mins , it has charging devices and free wifi , there is a cafe on board too. We sat at the front outside and got great views but it was very windy and cold for us coming from Thailand. I was wearing a dress and it was difficult to hold in the wind so we had to go inside after a while. It is spring in Sydney so it is 18-21 degrees so we were very cold. We got to Manly ok and only had to walk accross the beach to get to the Sanctuary , they even had a nandos here but it did different but better stuff than the UK. We paid $24.50 for the sanctuary but didnt mind as the animals have been saved to live there. They even had a wing gor sick animals they are currently looking after. It was great to see all the animals but especially the Sea turtles as a lot of them were the same as we had seen in Dubai.
We had gotten to the sanctuary at four as we had just missed the 3pm boat , they close 5 mins before so bear that in mind!!! Becausr we had gotten there late, we only had an hour to do the sanctuary, which was plenty of time but we may have done the shark scuba diving if we had more time.
Obce we had finished at the sanctuary , we got the 5.25pm boat bacj to Sydney which meant that we got great pictures of the sunset at the harbour. Try to get to the boat early as the outdoor fills up fast fir the sunset pics, yoy can sit inside on the window seat as the windows open for viewing but the aus seem to like to sit here and not look out of the window once !!
Once we got off the boat , we took a walk to the Sydney opera house and took a few photos and walked right up to it so we could touch it !!
It was great and very pish inside, you could see through the glass areas. You can then walk underground through the parade of shops and the bar and restaurant of sydney harbour which actually isnt too badly priced. We looked at the ugg shops and then returned to Mcdonalds as we had earlier in the day as its the only place affordable , even the 7-11 works out the same price. We got some sundaes and returned home.
Earlier at Mcdonalds, we had won an attraction pass on their monopoly instant win cards. So we decided to use it for the Sydney wildlife zoo. So basically it was buy one get one free !! So we had tomorrows plans sorted along with the sky tower !!!
Anyway, once bagagge was collected we went to declare our stuff nnd queued around twenty minutes and they werent even interested, they told us to go straight through.
We went to book our return hotel shuttle once we were through and the cashcard wouldnt work so Luke had to pull the money out at the ATM which made us latw to miss the first bus. By the time we got sorted at the hotel and ready to explore it was 2pm.
The hotel was already paid for and the shuttle bus was $32 pp return and we never found anything cheaper. We stayed at the Macleay lodge and again , nothing like the pictures on the internet !! It was cramped and very dusty !! There was builders doing work next door 9am - 3pm which didnt really effect us but was annoying when we arrived.
We knew we wanted to do a zoo and the sydney sky tower and reception had an offer of a 10% discount so we bought them there. They are valid for 30 days too. It was $60 extra to do the skywalk so we didntbother with that. We later found out at Manly tourist office that youcan get on the day tickets very cheap there.
We went straight out to get the 311 bus outside woolworths to Circular Quay it was $2.30 pp and took around 15-20 mins. At circular Quay there are many piers to get the boats. We bought our ticket to Manly at pier 5 and boarded at pier 3 , well tried to, we had a ticket for any ither boat but Manly so he lets us through anyway but our ticket hadnt been swiped.
The boat was meant to be $7 pp return to Manly and takes 20-30 mins , it has charging devices and free wifi , there is a cafe on board too. We sat at the front outside and got great views but it was very windy and cold for us coming from Thailand. I was wearing a dress and it was difficult to hold in the wind so we had to go inside after a while. It is spring in Sydney so it is 18-21 degrees so we were very cold. We got to Manly ok and only had to walk accross the beach to get to the Sanctuary , they even had a nandos here but it did different but better stuff than the UK. We paid $24.50 for the sanctuary but didnt mind as the animals have been saved to live there. They even had a wing gor sick animals they are currently looking after. It was great to see all the animals but especially the Sea turtles as a lot of them were the same as we had seen in Dubai.
We had gotten to the sanctuary at four as we had just missed the 3pm boat , they close 5 mins before so bear that in mind!!! Becausr we had gotten there late, we only had an hour to do the sanctuary, which was plenty of time but we may have done the shark scuba diving if we had more time.
Obce we had finished at the sanctuary , we got the 5.25pm boat bacj to Sydney which meant that we got great pictures of the sunset at the harbour. Try to get to the boat early as the outdoor fills up fast fir the sunset pics, yoy can sit inside on the window seat as the windows open for viewing but the aus seem to like to sit here and not look out of the window once !!
Once we got off the boat , we took a walk to the Sydney opera house and took a few photos and walked right up to it so we could touch it !!
It was great and very pish inside, you could see through the glass areas. You can then walk underground through the parade of shops and the bar and restaurant of sydney harbour which actually isnt too badly priced. We looked at the ugg shops and then returned to Mcdonalds as we had earlier in the day as its the only place affordable , even the 7-11 works out the same price. We got some sundaes and returned home.
Earlier at Mcdonalds, we had won an attraction pass on their monopoly instant win cards. So we decided to use it for the Sydney wildlife zoo. So basically it was buy one get one free !! So we had tomorrows plans sorted along with the sky tower !!!
Bangkok
So we had flown back into Bangkok Don Mueng and got a taxi back to Khao san road as we already had a hotel booked called the swasadee banglumpoo inn which happened to be next door to the hotel i stayed at last year with Thaintro.
The hotel was 665 baht which inc buffet breakfast. Please do not book into this hotel !!!!!!! We asked if Leigh could join us in our room and reception said she could for 200 bht but she would have to share our double bed with usor sleep on the floor, which thete was no room anyway. The rooms were tiny !!
They also wanted 500 bht deposit for the room but Leigh sugeseted giving our passports which they were happy with too as it meant we werent going to be left with 500 bht in the morning that we didnt need.
The room was not what was shown on the internet at all , it was tiny , the bed was suited so one had to climb over the other to get out and our cashcards didnt work , surprise surprise !! Nowhere but ATMs seem to accept the cards !! Occasionally we get somewhere where it works but its embarassing when it doesnt, when your trying 5 different cards !!
Anyway the bathroom door opened onto the toilet, the breakfast had flies crawling all over it and the coffee needing refilling twice and they were so slow about doing it !!
Anyway, we decided to go to the Indian restaurant again as we loved it so much last time, then we went shopping on Khao San and found a great ice cream parlour wherevi had peanut butter and chocolate with choc fudge sauce and nuts and cream for 85bht !! After a few hours and some beats speakers later, we went back to our hotel to repack our bags for sydney. Making sure we put all our declaration items in our hand luggage.
In the morning we tried to fill up best we could on breakfast - thank goodness my auntie had packed me some marmite !! So will filled ip on toast and chicken sausage !! We had another morninf of trapesing around the stalls as lukes flip flops had given in and then we all found amini bus to take us to the airport for 100 baht each. The taxis were charging well over 400 !!
We got to the airport early with Leigh who was staying the night there as her flight was the next day. We all grabbed a burger king and i had their special of mushroom and cheese yummy. Then it was time for us to board and walked the very long way to our gate.
We had a great flight but would not recommend malaysian airlines to fly again, most their films are asian and muslim prayers are read out and music is played on the flight so couldnt sleep !! We got to Sydney fine after connecting at KL which was a great airport but no wifi really but a good Mcdonalds and easy to change your money to their currency ringit. Plus our cards worked at McD so i could get a hersheys cake and it was gorgeous !!
Stay tuned for Sydney ,
S&L xxx
The hotel was 665 baht which inc buffet breakfast. Please do not book into this hotel !!!!!!! We asked if Leigh could join us in our room and reception said she could for 200 bht but she would have to share our double bed with usor sleep on the floor, which thete was no room anyway. The rooms were tiny !!
They also wanted 500 bht deposit for the room but Leigh sugeseted giving our passports which they were happy with too as it meant we werent going to be left with 500 bht in the morning that we didnt need.
The room was not what was shown on the internet at all , it was tiny , the bed was suited so one had to climb over the other to get out and our cashcards didnt work , surprise surprise !! Nowhere but ATMs seem to accept the cards !! Occasionally we get somewhere where it works but its embarassing when it doesnt, when your trying 5 different cards !!
Anyway the bathroom door opened onto the toilet, the breakfast had flies crawling all over it and the coffee needing refilling twice and they were so slow about doing it !!
Anyway, we decided to go to the Indian restaurant again as we loved it so much last time, then we went shopping on Khao San and found a great ice cream parlour wherevi had peanut butter and chocolate with choc fudge sauce and nuts and cream for 85bht !! After a few hours and some beats speakers later, we went back to our hotel to repack our bags for sydney. Making sure we put all our declaration items in our hand luggage.
In the morning we tried to fill up best we could on breakfast - thank goodness my auntie had packed me some marmite !! So will filled ip on toast and chicken sausage !! We had another morninf of trapesing around the stalls as lukes flip flops had given in and then we all found amini bus to take us to the airport for 100 baht each. The taxis were charging well over 400 !!
We got to the airport early with Leigh who was staying the night there as her flight was the next day. We all grabbed a burger king and i had their special of mushroom and cheese yummy. Then it was time for us to board and walked the very long way to our gate.
We had a great flight but would not recommend malaysian airlines to fly again, most their films are asian and muslim prayers are read out and music is played on the flight so couldnt sleep !! We got to Sydney fine after connecting at KL which was a great airport but no wifi really but a good Mcdonalds and easy to change your money to their currency ringit. Plus our cards worked at McD so i could get a hersheys cake and it was gorgeous !!
Stay tuned for Sydney ,
S&L xxx
Thursday, 25 September 2014
Koh Tao 2 ...
....snorkelling . The staff were really great as Luke can't float they gave him two lifejackets to wear, but he was still unsure about going in the water but had seen Leigh and I having such a great time , he wanted to join. So the staff went out with him with a life ring to hold onto so he could view the fish.
Anyway he got super confident with their help and started to really enjoy it , so much so , that he came out with Leigh and I , really far out to view all the brighter fish who were hiding in the coral. Once we had done all the snorkelling, we were dropped off at Nang Yuang island for two hours where we eventually managed to climb upto the top to see the stunning view. Leigh and I really struggled and couldnt wait to get down and get a drink. We all went to the little bar on the other island where we got THEE best chocolate milshake ever !!
We then all returned back to our hotel and got ready to have an evening at the mini golf and leisure centre down theroad from us.We had seen it whilst walking the previous night , Luke wanted to watch the footy and Leigh and I wanted to play mini golf. We had the best time. Golf was 180 baht pp but yoy could play as many times as you liked but it look Leigh and I hours to get around onceand both our scores were pretty bad.
They did food too so we all had garlic breads and pizzas and sweet potato chips and two drinks each plus a cheesecake and brownie, 785 baht for Luke and I and it was really scrummy.
The next morning we went and got our ferry tickets from a shop on the front for 600 baht as the pier wanted 900. The boat didnt leave until 3 and took 1.50 mins so we got our picnic from 7-11 again even though the Koh tao one was more expensive than the Koh Samui or Bangkok. We just sat on the beach playing monopoly on the ipad until the boat arrived to take us to Koh Samui.
We arrived at Seatran pier which is between Big bhudda and Nathon , it's half way accross the island. So the van back to Nathon was only 50 bht each and we stayed at the old ladies again and as soon as we waljed in , the receptionist recognised us and gave us our same room at the same rate.
When it was time for dinner we went to the restaurant on the corner called the view. It was here that we tried shark , it tasted just like cod. We had pumpkin soup and penang curry. We then got a magnum from 7-11 and went to bed as we had to get the ferry at 8am to get back to Surat Thani.
We got our tickets from the pier next to Nathon , there are plenty of ticket touts waiting and all at 400 baht for the ferry and bus.
We had a great journey and recieved watwr and cookies on the plane again.
S&L xx
Anyway he got super confident with their help and started to really enjoy it , so much so , that he came out with Leigh and I , really far out to view all the brighter fish who were hiding in the coral. Once we had done all the snorkelling, we were dropped off at Nang Yuang island for two hours where we eventually managed to climb upto the top to see the stunning view. Leigh and I really struggled and couldnt wait to get down and get a drink. We all went to the little bar on the other island where we got THEE best chocolate milshake ever !!
We then all returned back to our hotel and got ready to have an evening at the mini golf and leisure centre down theroad from us.We had seen it whilst walking the previous night , Luke wanted to watch the footy and Leigh and I wanted to play mini golf. We had the best time. Golf was 180 baht pp but yoy could play as many times as you liked but it look Leigh and I hours to get around onceand both our scores were pretty bad.
They did food too so we all had garlic breads and pizzas and sweet potato chips and two drinks each plus a cheesecake and brownie, 785 baht for Luke and I and it was really scrummy.
The next morning we went and got our ferry tickets from a shop on the front for 600 baht as the pier wanted 900. The boat didnt leave until 3 and took 1.50 mins so we got our picnic from 7-11 again even though the Koh tao one was more expensive than the Koh Samui or Bangkok. We just sat on the beach playing monopoly on the ipad until the boat arrived to take us to Koh Samui.
We arrived at Seatran pier which is between Big bhudda and Nathon , it's half way accross the island. So the van back to Nathon was only 50 bht each and we stayed at the old ladies again and as soon as we waljed in , the receptionist recognised us and gave us our same room at the same rate.
When it was time for dinner we went to the restaurant on the corner called the view. It was here that we tried shark , it tasted just like cod. We had pumpkin soup and penang curry. We then got a magnum from 7-11 and went to bed as we had to get the ferry at 8am to get back to Surat Thani.
We got our tickets from the pier next to Nathon , there are plenty of ticket touts waiting and all at 400 baht for the ferry and bus.
We had a great journey and recieved watwr and cookies on the plane again.
S&L xx
Koh Tao
We walked for half an hour up the main road , past the mini roundabout and right, upto a place called Yuang Thai food. It was only 600 bht for all three of us , a night but only fan as aircon, we thought this would be ok , but boy were we wrong !! It was sooo stuffy all the time and so difficult to sleep !!
After we booked in and got sorted, we made our way to the beach but first walked past a pancake seller, who could put just about anything on your pancake. I had coconut, chocolate and peanut butter - YUMMMMM
We laid by the sea all day , well Leigh and I went in the sea which had bvghcgreally warm and then cold patches but we saw a variety of fish including tiny weeny small ones. At around 4pm we went back to our hotel for a shower ready for dinner but we had to wait for the sun to set as we were sooo hot , we just kept needing to have showrrs because of how much we were sweating !!
We used this time to wash our clothes and hang them out to dry on the balcony with a washing lines and pegs we bought from poundland back snorkellibg. in the Uk.
Once washed and dressed, we went out for a wander and walked up and arouns the back of the hotel , we soon reached the road behind the beachfront and found a lovely place called Dive point , it was right on the seafront so we got to watch the sunset. We had garlic baguettes and burger and spagetti bolognaise then i had a chilli choc fondue with fruit and luke and leigh had brownies. It came to 960 bht for Luke and I but worth it!!
We then went to bed as we had booked a snorkelling trip earlier in the day from a shop on the main road. They are all the same price with different companies but we went with Songthong tours and they were excellent. We all met at a restaurant on the main road and boarded our boat. Bearing in mind you have to climb onto 5 other boats first to get to yours. You get free coffe , tea , water and biscuits whilst on the boat too. Lunch was a chicken curry with fried egg and fruit galore all day. We did 5 different snorkelling points all around the island and then had 2 hours exploration time on Nang yuang island. All this for only 800 bht each!!
The snorkelling was fab , i saw some great fish , multi coloured , blue , striped, small , big, yellow , slugs etc I would really recommend. The company gives you the snorkel and mask and i would recommend wearing a t shirt in the water as your back is constantly out whilst
Bangkok -> Surat Thani -> Koh Samui
So we arrived back in Bangkok and got dropped off at Khao san road to get a hotel for the night before we had to be at Don Mueng airport the next morning, our flight was at 6.10am !!
We found a nice little hotel on the street before Koh San that worked out at 250 bht each, it was grubby but ok for a few hours sleep !!
That night we went for a walk down Koh San and to a lane around the back of the temple, where i had gone last year for an amazing curry. This Indian was no longer here so we found another right on the corner of this 'alleyway' , keep walking straight up and you'll see it. It's upstairs on a balcony. The food was great. We had three Chicken Massala Curries with rice and 2 garlic naans - massive !! Two drinks each and it totalled 810 bht for all three of us. It was great food and great value for money, couldn't eat anything afterwards !!
We then made our way to a bar on Khao San road that plays live music , i also went here last year and really enjoyed the singing and great views of Khao San !! The drinks are a little more than you would normally pay but deffo worth it for one.
After this we went back to our hotel to get some sleep.
We reawoke at 4am and got a taxi to the airport for 150 baht. Our flight was good and we got free water and a brioche bun. Once we arrived at Surat Thani , it was 7.15am, the airport has many leaflets on thinsg to see and do. It also had many kiosks and one will provide you with bus and ferry tickets to get you to Koh samui. We paid 400 bht each which included the bus - 1.5 hrs and then the ferry 1.5hrs. We got to Koh Samui around 12.30am and the bus had left the airport at 8am, so great value for money.
We loved Koh Samui as soon as we arrived, there were a lot of taxi touts all wanting to take you somewhere, but these are expensive!! So we decided to walk and find a hotel , well we must have walked for around 1 hour in the hot sun !! Luke had a snake walk right infront of him , practically over his feet, scary stuff. Koh samui seemed a lot more expensive than Bangkok. We eventually found a hotel we were happy with (financially too) It was 250 bht each for the three of us and was owned by a lovely old lady. It turned out it was right where we started which is just by Nathon Pier , turn right up the coast and its up a driveway, look for it's sign. (Yuan buan )
It was a minute walk from the seafront and came with aircon , water, wifi and coffee!!! It was a five minute walk from the piers. After getting showers and sorting our stuff out, we took a walk along the beach and sunbathed on some lounge chairs infront of someones hotel. No one came out and we could get on their wifi !! The weather wasn't too great so we just slept until we got hungry and got a picnic from 7-11, consisting of a toastie, burger , crisps and 2 litre fanta each. It came to 142 bht !!!
We then went back to the hotel to shower etc again. Then we went out for dinner to a place along the front which was the last one before you cross the road - turn left out of the driveway and keep walking on this side of the road until you reach this restaurant. DONT GO IN. The service was rubbish , the cocktails were horrible and the food midly better.
We went back to the hotel a few hours later and had an early night ready to all get our different ferries back.
Leigh and I woke up early and had coffee in the lounge. Leigh asked if she could come with us to Koh Tao instead of travelling to Phuket like she originally intended. Ofcourse we said yes and we all went to 7-11 before getting a van to Big Bhudda pier - where the ferries depart for Koh Tao and Koh Samui.
The open top vans can fit 8 people in and it was only 50 bht each to get to the other side of the island which took around 40 mins. Here we walked again looking for accom for ages, we eventually settled on a three bed for 800 bht owned by a friendly Belgian called the Friendly hotel. He managed to sort out our tickets to Koh Tao at 600 bht each. We spent the day on the beach here which was a lovely day , so we got in the sea too. It was a five minute walk from the hotel.
We found a great little English place for dinner where we got sausage and mash, pie and casserole. It was soo yummy and cheap and the guy who owned it was lovely. It was on the same street as the hotel and easy to find with its very large Fish n Chip banner hanging from its ceiling!!
We were up early to be at the Seatran pier for 8am , it was a 20 min walk from our hotel and was on the same road. The boat was smart and we got a pot noodle on the boat- thai equivalent for 20 baht and it was sooo yummy. It took 1.5hrs to Koh tao and stops at Koh Samui first. The journey was good and we were all sooo excited.
Love S and L xx
We found a nice little hotel on the street before Koh San that worked out at 250 bht each, it was grubby but ok for a few hours sleep !!
That night we went for a walk down Koh San and to a lane around the back of the temple, where i had gone last year for an amazing curry. This Indian was no longer here so we found another right on the corner of this 'alleyway' , keep walking straight up and you'll see it. It's upstairs on a balcony. The food was great. We had three Chicken Massala Curries with rice and 2 garlic naans - massive !! Two drinks each and it totalled 810 bht for all three of us. It was great food and great value for money, couldn't eat anything afterwards !!
We then made our way to a bar on Khao San road that plays live music , i also went here last year and really enjoyed the singing and great views of Khao San !! The drinks are a little more than you would normally pay but deffo worth it for one.
After this we went back to our hotel to get some sleep.
We reawoke at 4am and got a taxi to the airport for 150 baht. Our flight was good and we got free water and a brioche bun. Once we arrived at Surat Thani , it was 7.15am, the airport has many leaflets on thinsg to see and do. It also had many kiosks and one will provide you with bus and ferry tickets to get you to Koh samui. We paid 400 bht each which included the bus - 1.5 hrs and then the ferry 1.5hrs. We got to Koh Samui around 12.30am and the bus had left the airport at 8am, so great value for money.
We loved Koh Samui as soon as we arrived, there were a lot of taxi touts all wanting to take you somewhere, but these are expensive!! So we decided to walk and find a hotel , well we must have walked for around 1 hour in the hot sun !! Luke had a snake walk right infront of him , practically over his feet, scary stuff. Koh samui seemed a lot more expensive than Bangkok. We eventually found a hotel we were happy with (financially too) It was 250 bht each for the three of us and was owned by a lovely old lady. It turned out it was right where we started which is just by Nathon Pier , turn right up the coast and its up a driveway, look for it's sign. (Yuan buan )
It was a minute walk from the seafront and came with aircon , water, wifi and coffee!!! It was a five minute walk from the piers. After getting showers and sorting our stuff out, we took a walk along the beach and sunbathed on some lounge chairs infront of someones hotel. No one came out and we could get on their wifi !! The weather wasn't too great so we just slept until we got hungry and got a picnic from 7-11, consisting of a toastie, burger , crisps and 2 litre fanta each. It came to 142 bht !!!
We went back to the hotel a few hours later and had an early night ready to all get our different ferries back.
Leigh and I woke up early and had coffee in the lounge. Leigh asked if she could come with us to Koh Tao instead of travelling to Phuket like she originally intended. Ofcourse we said yes and we all went to 7-11 before getting a van to Big Bhudda pier - where the ferries depart for Koh Tao and Koh Samui.
The open top vans can fit 8 people in and it was only 50 bht each to get to the other side of the island which took around 40 mins. Here we walked again looking for accom for ages, we eventually settled on a three bed for 800 bht owned by a friendly Belgian called the Friendly hotel. He managed to sort out our tickets to Koh Tao at 600 bht each. We spent the day on the beach here which was a lovely day , so we got in the sea too. It was a five minute walk from the hotel.
We were up early to be at the Seatran pier for 8am , it was a 20 min walk from our hotel and was on the same road. The boat was smart and we got a pot noodle on the boat- thai equivalent for 20 baht and it was sooo yummy. It took 1.5hrs to Koh tao and stops at Koh Samui first. The journey was good and we were all sooo excited.
Love S and L xx
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