Category: South East Asia

The Sands of Time in Mongolia

Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.

Day 80: Even though typhoon Nida kept us grounded in Hong Kong for a couple extra days, we are now ready and incredibly excited to be on our way to Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia. The extremely early but direct flight takes about 5 hours and touches down while it is still morning (and with the same timezone). The airport here is quite small and we are outside the airport building in no time. We jump on a crowded bus towards downtown. Guess all the passengers of our flight are on our bus as well… 45 minutes later we are dropped in the heart of Ulaanbaatar. From there it is a 10-minute walk to our hub hostel for our Mongolian adventure, Modern Mongol Hostel.

Upon check-in, we ask the lady at the front desk for some suggestions. She recommends joining one of the sightseeing tours with a local tour partner. The good news is, the tour to the Gobi Desert is leaving tomorrow and the lady had two other guests from France interested in the tour so we could split the travel costs for the driver guide, cook, transportation accommodation and three meals per day for about 60 USD per day (7 days). The bad news is; I was planning my visit to the Chinese embassy the next day because I still need to arrange my Chinese visa. I look at the clock and realise the embassy is still open for another hour today. I decide to go for it and jump in a taxi to the embassy which is a 10-minute drive away. My heart is racing as this embassy is my last hope to go on the Trans Siberian Express from Mongolia to China, one of my top picks for this trip. Continue reading The Sands of Time in Mongolia

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Cambodian Daydreams and Night Terrors

There are no wrong turning. Only paths we had not known we were meant to walk. 

Day 52: After a quick layover in Bangkok where Luke kissed his Mary goodbye, we set foot on already the sixth country of our whirlwind trip through Southeast Asia, Cambodia. Our stay in Phnom Penh is short-lived as we decide to hop on the night bus with direction to Siem Reap, which entails a 6-hour ride up north.

Day 54: Another brutal early morning but we have a great reason for this. Today we have one of the World Wonders on our travel menu. My alarm wakes me at 4 am. I try to be as quiet as possible in our 30-bed dorm and notice other shadows moving around in the room who are getting ready for the same adventure, visiting the Angkor Archaeological Park. The best time to visit is very early in the morning for several reasons. It is less crowded, it is less hot and you can see the sunrise over Angkor Wat. Continue reading Cambodian Daydreams and Night Terrors

Southern Comfort Blackout

Day 29: On our way from Georgetown to Hat Yai, we are due for another passport stamp. The fourth one on our adventure in Southeast Asia already. Collecting these stamps has been one of my favorite things on this trip as we are always curious about how the stamps will look like. We have been on a whirlwind trip so far but our journey suddenly comes to an unexpected halt at the border between Malaysia and Thailand. Sebastian encounters visa problems and is not allowed into Thailand. Although I pass without any problems with my European passport, he needs to provide certain sufficient funds (the equivalent of 10,000 baht) in order to be able to pass with his passport from Chile. But with little cash in both our pockets, they are being stubborn and do not let him pass. Sebastian has to return to Malaysia and get to the nearest ATM to get some cash. He asks one of the locals if he can hop on his motorbike to be dropped at the first ATM. The local guy nods and Sebastian jumps on. In the meantime, I have to convince the driver and the passengers to wait for us (and our luggage) until things get sorted. Every minute waiting next to the van feels like an hour and the looks of the other passengers become more and more sourly but luckily Sebastian finally shows up with the necessary cash and not much later we can continue our drive to Hat Yai. Continue reading Southern Comfort Blackout

Flow, Crash, Fly

May 18, 2016

Early morning. I wake up with the airconditioning blasting in my face and think about today’s adventures.  Outside I hear a bunch of sounds I haven’t heard before. The birds sing a different song, the busy traffic noise is now filled with honking motorcycles. I am slowly adapting from one culture to another and I believe Bali is a perfect transition hub for this. I must admit, arriving in Bali wearing jeans was a bold move. 

It is day 3 in Ungasan, a little village in the south of Bali. Sebastian and I have found ourselves a nice guesthouse (Orchid Paradise Bukit Villa) for the kick-off of our trip through Asia. Together with our German friend, Julian, we are spending the first couple of days at the guest house. This guest house rents out motorbikes which allows us to discover the island at its best, especially the touristy Bukit area. Bukit means ‘hill’ and you soon realize why. The area is blessed with a great selection of beautiful beaches (Balangan Beach, Bingin Beach, Padang Padang,…) and every night there is a different party going on somewhere in the area. Continue reading Flow, Crash, Fly