Our alarm-clock rang at 6.15am. We got our stuff packed and went for breakfast. Here as well a cup of tea and toast which was no toast. Just before 7am we showed up at the dive shop. Locky, our Australian Dive Master, was already there. They put all our equipment on the longtail boat – well, that’s not the speedboat they were talking of yesterday, is it? – and off we were at 7.20am. Locky explained to us that indeed this is the speedboat. Really?! Well, in that case we don’t want to see the normal boats.
It took about an hour to the first dive site. The sea was very calm which was nice. Under water we saw colourful corals but not as big as in Thailand or even in the Philippines. But there were a lot of morays. And lion fishes. Locky showed us lots of tiny little creatures as snails and shrimps which we hadn’t seen at all. Just before getting up to the surface we saw a swimming hawksbill turtle.
We were then taken to Rinca Island. The Komodo dragons also live here but they are not as big as on Komodo. But maybe one here can see a lot of other wild animals as monkeys, horses, wild pigs and water buffalos.
Locky took us to the office where we had to pay an entry fee of Rp 20,000 for the Komodo National Park. This one is valid for three days and we also need it to go diving. Now, we only need a guide who will hopefully lead us to the dragons. Just next/under the café we saw the first seven or eight dragons lying in the shade. They have a big body, four big powerful legs with five big nails on their toes. The long and thick tail serves as rudder or as a potential weapon. The body is covered over and over with sharp spikes. With their powerful legs dragons can sprint short distances. They lift their tale while running.
If the dragons are threatened they refuge in their normal spots: holes, water and trees for the smaller ones. If they are pushed in one corner though they can be really dangerous and even attack bigger opponents. Their best weapons are the sharp teeth and the sharp claws.
Komodo dragons eat wild pigs, deer or even water buffalos which all inhabit the island. Well, the dragons even eat their dead species. They eat similar to snakes and can open their mouth so they can completely swallow a goat.
The dragons do not belong to the group of dinosaurs but to the group of lizards. Today, it is a protected species and one does not know why they only live on and around Komodo.
We had chosen the 5 km trek and in the heat of the sun we walked through the National Park. We saw monkeys, water buffalos but unfortunately only one wild living dragon. But still better than nothing. However, we both were a bit disappointed of the size of the dragons. We had seen pictures … for us this was nothing spectacular, just a huge lizard.
After lunch on the boat we again went diving around Kelor Island. 72 minutes in total and we saw lots of nice and big fishes.
Wednesday, March 31, 2004
Monday, March 29, 2004
Sape
Ramona got up at 6am and went to the ferry harbour. Let’s see whether again one wanted to cheat us … No, this time not. The ferry to Labuanbajo in Flores leaves in fact only tomorrow at 8am. Well, at least we could sleep a bit longer now.
Around 10.45 am we forced ourselves to get up. There is not a lot to do here. Internet? They probably don’t even know what it is? Thus, let’s take our diary and swimming suits, maybe we find a nice place to chill out.
We also called Pat in the travel agency in Thailand in order to postpone our flight from Bali to Adelaide. “Oh, do you like it so much in Bali?”, she laughed. Well, if only she knew …
Sape is about 4 km from the ferry harbour and in the boiling heat we walked there. We wanted to make sure that we don’t miss anything out here. During the whole walk we had a rather sad picture. Children, greeting us with “Hello Mister” only asking for money or pens. The horses in front of their jingling little buggies were skinny, partly lame or blind on one eye. Still, these vehicles seem to be the main transportation in Sape. The street, only a long straight street, was no change either for us.
In Sape we had a cold coke and then walked back the 4 km. We didn’t even think of taking a horse for our way back.
What’s there to do in the hotel? Gee, it is boring. We didn’t even manage to write our diaries. Thus, we watched the kids playing volley- or football and waited till it got dark. There’s no nice restaurant here either so we had another ‘PopMie’ for dinner. Not even alcohol was there to find …
After the ‘shower’ – here we had again a mandi with cold and dirty (!) water which one pours over oneself with a bucket – we laid down more or less comfy on our bed and spent the rest of the evening with reading.
Around 10.45 am we forced ourselves to get up. There is not a lot to do here. Internet? They probably don’t even know what it is? Thus, let’s take our diary and swimming suits, maybe we find a nice place to chill out.
We also called Pat in the travel agency in Thailand in order to postpone our flight from Bali to Adelaide. “Oh, do you like it so much in Bali?”, she laughed. Well, if only she knew …
Sape is about 4 km from the ferry harbour and in the boiling heat we walked there. We wanted to make sure that we don’t miss anything out here. During the whole walk we had a rather sad picture. Children, greeting us with “Hello Mister” only asking for money or pens. The horses in front of their jingling little buggies were skinny, partly lame or blind on one eye. Still, these vehicles seem to be the main transportation in Sape. The street, only a long straight street, was no change either for us.
In Sape we had a cold coke and then walked back the 4 km. We didn’t even think of taking a horse for our way back.
What’s there to do in the hotel? Gee, it is boring. We didn’t even manage to write our diaries. Thus, we watched the kids playing volley- or football and waited till it got dark. There’s no nice restaurant here either so we had another ‘PopMie’ for dinner. Not even alcohol was there to find …
After the ‘shower’ – here we had again a mandi with cold and dirty (!) water which one pours over oneself with a bucket – we laid down more or less comfy on our bed and spent the rest of the evening with reading.
Saturday, March 27, 2004
Bukittinggi – Padangbai / Bali
Already at 8am we had breakfast – fried toast and a cup of tea. Ronnie joined us and we discussed the differences between Indonesia and Germany. We could have talked for hours but our bus picked us up at 8.45am. What? Executive Bus? What did Ronnie book for us? Rp 20,000? Great. Again we didn’t pay attention when he had tried to sell us something. Now we are sat in an aircon-minibus together with three business men and listened to – you won’t believe it – German music! “Du, du, du bist alles, was ich habe auf der Welt.” We just couldn’t believe it – German songs (awful music!) in Indonesia.
The ride to the airport in Padang took about 2 hours. We checked in immediately and still had some time left. The flight to Jakarta is only at 12.20pm. As we had booked with LionAir, a cheap airline, we had another ‘PopMie’ (instant noodle soup) for lunch as we surely won’t get anything on the plane. When it came to boarding we were really clever. We were one of the first to get into the second bus and therefore one of the first to get into the plane. This had been our plan as we can still chose our seats. On the plane though we couldn’t chose. OK, well, where is our seat then? 2 C and 2 F. Wow – we’re flying Business Class. Food and drinks included. We can only recommend this cheap airline.
The time until our flight to Padangbai/Bali at 6.45pm we spent with diary writing. There wasn’t anything else to do on the domestic airport anyway.
About 10pm we arrived in Bali. We immediately asked for information how to get to Flores as soon as possible. We had been told that there’s a ferry … negative. The fastest is a flight. No, we don’t want to fly. OK, in that case, you’ll have to go to Padangbai and take a ferry from there to Lembar on Lombok island. From Lombok you can take a ferry to Flores. That sounds great. When does the ferry in Padangbai leave? It runs 24 hours … Fantastic. We got our bags and took a taxi to Padangbai. 2 hours in a taxi which was not more than Euro 20. Great prices here!
The ride to the airport in Padang took about 2 hours. We checked in immediately and still had some time left. The flight to Jakarta is only at 12.20pm. As we had booked with LionAir, a cheap airline, we had another ‘PopMie’ (instant noodle soup) for lunch as we surely won’t get anything on the plane. When it came to boarding we were really clever. We were one of the first to get into the second bus and therefore one of the first to get into the plane. This had been our plan as we can still chose our seats. On the plane though we couldn’t chose. OK, well, where is our seat then? 2 C and 2 F. Wow – we’re flying Business Class. Food and drinks included. We can only recommend this cheap airline.
The time until our flight to Padangbai/Bali at 6.45pm we spent with diary writing. There wasn’t anything else to do on the domestic airport anyway.
About 10pm we arrived in Bali. We immediately asked for information how to get to Flores as soon as possible. We had been told that there’s a ferry … negative. The fastest is a flight. No, we don’t want to fly. OK, in that case, you’ll have to go to Padangbai and take a ferry from there to Lembar on Lombok island. From Lombok you can take a ferry to Flores. That sounds great. When does the ferry in Padangbai leave? It runs 24 hours … Fantastic. We got our bags and took a taxi to Padangbai. 2 hours in a taxi which was not more than Euro 20. Great prices here!
Thursday, March 25, 2004
Bukittinggi
I (Nicole) had been awake since 8am. Why only? I hardly hadn't slept and the alarm-clock was supposed to ring only at 9am. How will the day pass if the two of us were not well rested?
We packed our things and went to the reception in order to get some information about Bukittinggi and its surroundings. It didn't take long and the English girl appeared who had caught our attention already on the ferry to Belawan as she kept on moaning with her boyfriend. The latter arrived a few minutes later and again the two of them had a big argument. One couldn't overhear it and even the hotel staff couldn't believe it. It's not so bad with Ramona and me - not even if we hadn't slept enough!
As we still liked to sit in a bus we took one to Bonjol. 2 hours. What's there to see? The equator! There are not a lot of places where one can pass the equator overland. We did it today and even stood with one leg on the northern and with the other leg on the southern part of the world.
The bus ride back to Bukittinggi was worse than the 17 hours the night before. I sat squeezed with four Indonesians on a bench where usually four people sit. Not to mention my knees which were pressed in the seat in front of me. I was so lucky when we got to Bukittinggi.
It would be nice to walk now but the bus station was out of town and without a map we would be lost. Thus, again into a bus. At least to the city center so we could walk to the Panorama viewpoint. The view to the 'Canyon' was nice but not as gigantic as we had imagined it.
We also went to the cave which the Japanese had built during WWII. We were joined by an Indonesian although we hadn't asked him. What does he want? It really is difficult here to do something on your own. It surely is because it's not peak season and every guide is waiting for the tourists.
We spent the evening online - much longer than we thought we would.
We packed our things and went to the reception in order to get some information about Bukittinggi and its surroundings. It didn't take long and the English girl appeared who had caught our attention already on the ferry to Belawan as she kept on moaning with her boyfriend. The latter arrived a few minutes later and again the two of them had a big argument. One couldn't overhear it and even the hotel staff couldn't believe it. It's not so bad with Ramona and me - not even if we hadn't slept enough!
As we still liked to sit in a bus we took one to Bonjol. 2 hours. What's there to see? The equator! There are not a lot of places where one can pass the equator overland. We did it today and even stood with one leg on the northern and with the other leg on the southern part of the world.
The bus ride back to Bukittinggi was worse than the 17 hours the night before. I sat squeezed with four Indonesians on a bench where usually four people sit. Not to mention my knees which were pressed in the seat in front of me. I was so lucky when we got to Bukittinggi.
It would be nice to walk now but the bus station was out of town and without a map we would be lost. Thus, again into a bus. At least to the city center so we could walk to the Panorama viewpoint. The view to the 'Canyon' was nice but not as gigantic as we had imagined it.
We also went to the cave which the Japanese had built during WWII. We were joined by an Indonesian although we hadn't asked him. What does he want? It really is difficult here to do something on your own. It surely is because it's not peak season and every guide is waiting for the tourists.
We spent the evening online - much longer than we thought we would.
Tuesday, March 23, 2004
Tuk Tuk
Today we wanted to have a lie-in. But at 9am we got up, it was just too hot. After a nice breakfast we hired a motor-bike to explore the island.
We left Tuk Tuk at 11.30am. We aimed for the Hot Springs - 43 km. Cosily we drove through the green scenery, passed many many churches, batak houses. Again and again Ramona had to heavily use the brakes when kids were playing on the streets, a bull stood on the street, we had to pass wooden bridges in which parts of wood were missing ... it was great fun. We partly drove with 80 km/h. All without helmet or other protection. In Germany unthinkable, here just normal.
When we got to the Hot Springs around 2.30pm we thought that in fact it is too hot to go for a swim. Instead we had some lunch and a cool coke. It's actually not easy to find cool drinks here in Sumatra - shops with fridges are very rare.
If we don't swim in the Hot Springs, we should at least drive to the Viewpoint. We kept on riding for quite a while but we didn't make it to the summit. Over there dark clouds were to see already and we didn't have enough petrol either.
After a hot shower - yes, we again had a hot shower! - we had a nice dinner with the Finnish guy Tommy.
We left Tuk Tuk at 11.30am. We aimed for the Hot Springs - 43 km. Cosily we drove through the green scenery, passed many many churches, batak houses. Again and again Ramona had to heavily use the brakes when kids were playing on the streets, a bull stood on the street, we had to pass wooden bridges in which parts of wood were missing ... it was great fun. We partly drove with 80 km/h. All without helmet or other protection. In Germany unthinkable, here just normal.
When we got to the Hot Springs around 2.30pm we thought that in fact it is too hot to go for a swim. Instead we had some lunch and a cool coke. It's actually not easy to find cool drinks here in Sumatra - shops with fridges are very rare.
If we don't swim in the Hot Springs, we should at least drive to the Viewpoint. We kept on riding for quite a while but we didn't make it to the summit. Over there dark clouds were to see already and we didn't have enough petrol either.
After a hot shower - yes, we again had a hot shower! - we had a nice dinner with the Finnish guy Tommy.
Sunday, March 21, 2004
Bukit Lawang - Brestagi
Again it was so loud because of Karaoke, because of washing up, ... At 6am. We would prefer the insects in the jungle now. About 8am we got up and couldn't believe that we had to leave again. Also the guides and Rosa asked us to stay. But we were tough - unfortunately, we cannot. We don't have the time and there is still so much more to see in Indonesia.
John had already left us in the morning for Medan. We first went with the guides to the local market. Later, back at the Homestay, they wanted to go swimming with us in the river. They tried so hard to convince us to stay. But we were tough.
At 2.30pm we sat in the bus to Medan. Rosa had written down exactly which bus we have to take from where to where. But when we arrived in Medan at 5.20pm we were told that the last bus to Brestagi had left at 5pm. Oh oh, attention, one wants to rip us off again. We got some more information from other people and then decided to drive to another bus station. Fortunately, there had been a girl in the bus who helped us. Get off at the next station and take the bus to another station. Really not easy. But we made it and about 6pm we sat on the roof of the bus to Brestagi. Of course on the roof as one can see much more of the scenery, we are with our backpacks and we don't have to suffer from the loud music in the bus. Of course we didn't expect any rain. Thus, we sat about 15 minutes in the pitch dark - underneath a rain cover which we had put over us and our bags.
About two hours later we arrived in Brestagi at an altitude of 1300m. It was quite cool up here. From Rosa we knew where to stay overnight and we were lucky. We got the last room available. After a nice dinner we had an early night.
John had already left us in the morning for Medan. We first went with the guides to the local market. Later, back at the Homestay, they wanted to go swimming with us in the river. They tried so hard to convince us to stay. But we were tough.
At 2.30pm we sat in the bus to Medan. Rosa had written down exactly which bus we have to take from where to where. But when we arrived in Medan at 5.20pm we were told that the last bus to Brestagi had left at 5pm. Oh oh, attention, one wants to rip us off again. We got some more information from other people and then decided to drive to another bus station. Fortunately, there had been a girl in the bus who helped us. Get off at the next station and take the bus to another station. Really not easy. But we made it and about 6pm we sat on the roof of the bus to Brestagi. Of course on the roof as one can see much more of the scenery, we are with our backpacks and we don't have to suffer from the loud music in the bus. Of course we didn't expect any rain. Thus, we sat about 15 minutes in the pitch dark - underneath a rain cover which we had put over us and our bags.
About two hours later we arrived in Brestagi at an altitude of 1300m. It was quite cool up here. From Rosa we knew where to stay overnight and we were lucky. We got the last room available. After a nice dinner we had an early night.
Friday, March 19, 2004
Bukit Lawang
What's going on down there? Gee, we want to sleep. What's the time? Only 6am? And they have already turned on Karaoke. We couldn't believe it. We turned over and tried to sleep again.
At 9.20am we could start our trek. Ramona, John and I followed our tour guides Eddy and Aligi. First we passed the houses destroyed by the floods. Unbelievable what had happened here in only 20 minutes.
Within a short time we were in the jungle. And we were really in it. This jungle was totally different than the one in Thailand. More dense, more wild. In fact, there was a path which we followed but it was partly again overgrown. Temperature was tropical and we were soaking from sweat pretty quickly.
Aligi and Eddy could tell us a lot about plants and trees in the jungle. No wonder, they had to go to school for two years to become tour guide. The two of them really knew how to imitate the Orang-Utans. We didn't have to wait for long when the first one approached us already. He was curious as well. It was great to watch him, how he got closer to us through the trees. At the beginning it still was a bit scary - it wasn't a small one. But Aligi and Eddy took good care of us. We even did a real photo shooting with the monkey. One after the other was allowed to stand in front of the Orang-Utan. Just be careful!
John, Ramona and I were really happy to have seen an Orang-Utan already after such a short time. Now, our tour guides could relax as we had 'threatened' them in case we didn't see any. The two of them were really relieved. And it didn't take long until we got to see another one. This time a very young one. We were inspired! And lucky. A bit further we saw a third one. Wow! And this in the wild!
We walked about 3 more hours through the jungle, up and down, climbing over many meterlong roots of trees, over rocks and stones, until we arrived in our camp around 2pm. Just next to a river. We have to go for a swim here. A great way to chill out!
A bit later three more guys arrived. They were our cooks. Yammy, this was just so nice! What a wonderful life!
The night in the jungle was great, so loud with all these insects which are night active. It's a shame we couldn't record it.
At 9.20am we could start our trek. Ramona, John and I followed our tour guides Eddy and Aligi. First we passed the houses destroyed by the floods. Unbelievable what had happened here in only 20 minutes.
Within a short time we were in the jungle. And we were really in it. This jungle was totally different than the one in Thailand. More dense, more wild. In fact, there was a path which we followed but it was partly again overgrown. Temperature was tropical and we were soaking from sweat pretty quickly.
Aligi and Eddy could tell us a lot about plants and trees in the jungle. No wonder, they had to go to school for two years to become tour guide. The two of them really knew how to imitate the Orang-Utans. We didn't have to wait for long when the first one approached us already. He was curious as well. It was great to watch him, how he got closer to us through the trees. At the beginning it still was a bit scary - it wasn't a small one. But Aligi and Eddy took good care of us. We even did a real photo shooting with the monkey. One after the other was allowed to stand in front of the Orang-Utan. Just be careful!
John, Ramona and I were really happy to have seen an Orang-Utan already after such a short time. Now, our tour guides could relax as we had 'threatened' them in case we didn't see any. The two of them were really relieved. And it didn't take long until we got to see another one. This time a very young one. We were inspired! And lucky. A bit further we saw a third one. Wow! And this in the wild!
We walked about 3 more hours through the jungle, up and down, climbing over many meterlong roots of trees, over rocks and stones, until we arrived in our camp around 2pm. Just next to a river. We have to go for a swim here. A great way to chill out!
A bit later three more guys arrived. They were our cooks. Yammy, this was just so nice! What a wonderful life!
The night in the jungle was great, so loud with all these insects which are night active. It's a shame we couldn't record it.
Wednesday, March 17, 2004
Bangkok - Penang / Malaysia
We arrived in Bangkok at 9.15am. Let's quickly send our hammocks home then we don't have to carry these anymore. But what's that? Closed? Why? The men were standing behind the desk, laughing. But they didn't want to serve us. Really!
We took a taxi to the touristy street in order to get our flight ticket. Whether now everything is alright or whether we again have problems? Yes, the ticket was issued on our names, the flights were all correct. Perfect. We left our luggage, had something for breakfast and went to the next post office. Here at least they wanted to work.
In the Internet-Cafe we wrote the last reports and uploaded pictures. Quick, quick as our bus leaves at 4pm. Just in time we managed it and relaxed we sat in a taxi to the airport - yes, a taxi not a bus -, together with an Israeli.
Our flight was only at 7.30pm and we had some time. We got to know a German in a restaurant who we could inspire by our journey. Well, time flew and we almost forgot to change our last Baht into Malaysian Ringgit and Indonesian Rupiah. This wasn't easy at all. Just when we got to the exchange counter, the ladies behind only counted money or weren't even there. We had to wait. But we don't have time! Our flight is in 40 minutes and we still have to go through passport control. Not to mention the security check. But they didn't care. OK, patiently we waited and could eventually change our money.
At the passport control we then got caught. "Overstay - come with me." Overstay? What? We were longer in the country than we were allowed to? Oops, we didn't realize. We both had to pay Baht 600. Funny that we both only had Baht 600 left.
Then everything went smoothly - through security and in the last minute in the plane. Off to Malaysia.
10pm - we fly over the longest bridge in South East Aisa. 13.5km long. It connects Malaysia with the Malaysian island Penang. From the plane the bridge didn't look that long though.
10.45pm - we got a Malaysian stamp in our passport. We only stay for one night, but ... :) Luckily we met an English couple with whom we shared a taxi into town. They had already booked their accomodation which was far over our budget. Therefore, we had to look for a room late in the night.
It was midnight when we fell into our beds. Now only this Malaria tablet. Prophylaxis for Flores. Hopefully we won't suffer from it!
We took a taxi to the touristy street in order to get our flight ticket. Whether now everything is alright or whether we again have problems? Yes, the ticket was issued on our names, the flights were all correct. Perfect. We left our luggage, had something for breakfast and went to the next post office. Here at least they wanted to work.
In the Internet-Cafe we wrote the last reports and uploaded pictures. Quick, quick as our bus leaves at 4pm. Just in time we managed it and relaxed we sat in a taxi to the airport - yes, a taxi not a bus -, together with an Israeli.
Our flight was only at 7.30pm and we had some time. We got to know a German in a restaurant who we could inspire by our journey. Well, time flew and we almost forgot to change our last Baht into Malaysian Ringgit and Indonesian Rupiah. This wasn't easy at all. Just when we got to the exchange counter, the ladies behind only counted money or weren't even there. We had to wait. But we don't have time! Our flight is in 40 minutes and we still have to go through passport control. Not to mention the security check. But they didn't care. OK, patiently we waited and could eventually change our money.
At the passport control we then got caught. "Overstay - come with me." Overstay? What? We were longer in the country than we were allowed to? Oops, we didn't realize. We both had to pay Baht 600. Funny that we both only had Baht 600 left.
Then everything went smoothly - through security and in the last minute in the plane. Off to Malaysia.
10pm - we fly over the longest bridge in South East Aisa. 13.5km long. It connects Malaysia with the Malaysian island Penang. From the plane the bridge didn't look that long though.
10.45pm - we got a Malaysian stamp in our passport. We only stay for one night, but ... :) Luckily we met an English couple with whom we shared a taxi into town. They had already booked their accomodation which was far over our budget. Therefore, we had to look for a room late in the night.
It was midnight when we fell into our beds. Now only this Malaria tablet. Prophylaxis for Flores. Hopefully we won't suffer from it!
Tuesday, March 16, 2004
Ao Nang
After last night's party today we didn't even dare to think of getting up early. The alarm-clock rang three times and we just kept on pressing snooze. At 10.30am we managed to get up. But only because it's check-out at 11am.
We left our bags at the reception and went for a walk. We got to the beach and walked to the end. There, we looked for a place in the shade. What was this noise? Up there in the trees? Is there a coconut falling down on our head? But no, just a monkey family who watched us curiously. How cute! They all came quite close probably hoping to get some sweets from us. We were at least as curious and took a lot of pictures. It's always fascinating to see these cute animals in the wild. A nice ending for our time in Krabi.
At 3.15pm the bus to the train station in Surat Thani picked us up at our guest house. We had to change to an aircon bus in Krabi Town. Only three more hours to the station. But already after 2 hours we had to get off and take our luggage. Why is that? We are not yet at the station! Stupid as tourists are we did what we had been told. We didn't even ask for further information. Only when the bus left we realized what was going on. Just like beginners! We then learned that luckily in half an hour another bus will take us to the station. Phew!
At the station we again had to wait. All trains were late for about half an hour. And we were so knackered and looked forward to the sleeper bunks.
We left our bags at the reception and went for a walk. We got to the beach and walked to the end. There, we looked for a place in the shade. What was this noise? Up there in the trees? Is there a coconut falling down on our head? But no, just a monkey family who watched us curiously. How cute! They all came quite close probably hoping to get some sweets from us. We were at least as curious and took a lot of pictures. It's always fascinating to see these cute animals in the wild. A nice ending for our time in Krabi.
At 3.15pm the bus to the train station in Surat Thani picked us up at our guest house. We had to change to an aircon bus in Krabi Town. Only three more hours to the station. But already after 2 hours we had to get off and take our luggage. Why is that? We are not yet at the station! Stupid as tourists are we did what we had been told. We didn't even ask for further information. Only when the bus left we realized what was going on. Just like beginners! We then learned that luckily in half an hour another bus will take us to the station. Phew!
At the station we again had to wait. All trains were late for about half an hour. And we were so knackered and looked forward to the sleeper bunks.
Monday, March 15, 2004
Ao Nang
At 8.00am we arrived at the dive shop. Will we go to Hin Muang and Hin Daeng today? They are supposed to be the best dive sites in Thailand.
One had already put our bags on the speedboat. Well, we seem to be lucky today. The sun was shining, no clouds to see - what more do we want? We were 3 dive masters and 8 other divers on the boat. The ride to the first dive site took about 2 hours. Now, quick into the water as the waves are pretty high. Under water we won't feel these anymore.
We dived with Iris, a Swiss girl, and Yumi, our Japanese dive master. A small group - great. We saw many many colourful and big fishes, but unfortunately no sharks or Mantarays. But maybe during our next dive.
We were all thrilled by the second dive. A fantastic dive site and we saw countless morays in all sizes, huge barracudas, shrimps, lobsters, boxfishes, moorish idols, ... Not to forget the nice colourful corals. Great - the trip down here was worth it!
Having had a shower we went a last time to our favourite restaurant. As today is our second last night in Thailand (we'll spend the last one on the train) we wanted to have a cocktail and go to bed early.
We went to a bar and it didn't take long and the two American guys, who went diving with us today, joined us. When the bar closed at 00.30am we decided to go to another one. One Drink after the other ... we were so happy when we were in our bed at 4.15am.
One had already put our bags on the speedboat. Well, we seem to be lucky today. The sun was shining, no clouds to see - what more do we want? We were 3 dive masters and 8 other divers on the boat. The ride to the first dive site took about 2 hours. Now, quick into the water as the waves are pretty high. Under water we won't feel these anymore.
We dived with Iris, a Swiss girl, and Yumi, our Japanese dive master. A small group - great. We saw many many colourful and big fishes, but unfortunately no sharks or Mantarays. But maybe during our next dive.
We were all thrilled by the second dive. A fantastic dive site and we saw countless morays in all sizes, huge barracudas, shrimps, lobsters, boxfishes, moorish idols, ... Not to forget the nice colourful corals. Great - the trip down here was worth it!
Having had a shower we went a last time to our favourite restaurant. As today is our second last night in Thailand (we'll spend the last one on the train) we wanted to have a cocktail and go to bed early.
We went to a bar and it didn't take long and the two American guys, who went diving with us today, joined us. When the bar closed at 00.30am we decided to go to another one. One Drink after the other ... we were so happy when we were in our bed at 4.15am.
Sunday, March 14, 2004
Ao Nang
Again we had to get up early today. It was our second day of diving and we wanted to go to Hin Daeng and Hin Mouang, apparently the best dive sites in Thailand. At 8am we were at the dive shop. Everybody was surprised to see us. "Why are you here?" What do you mean? Of course, we are here, we have booked for today. "So you didn't get my message?", Andy the boss asked. Which message? Well, they won't go to these dive sites today. Only tomorrow. Great! If only we had known this before! We had already booked the rock climbing course for tomorrow and even paid for it. Where do you dive today? At shark point. How boring! We know that already. Ok, how can we resolve our problem? Telephone! Maybe we can get hold of the climbers and postpone the course to today. But unfortunately, noone picked up the phone. What a shame! As we had decided for the diving in the first place we didn't want to miss this. Thus we wanted to go to the climbing shop and ask them to do the course today. And you, you better go to Hin Daeng tomorrow!
40 minutes later we were on Railay island, in front of the climbing shop. Of course, you can do the course today. No problem. Gee, we were relieved. We got our equipment and off we were with our teacher Jay. First over the whole island, to the beginner walls. In front of us there were walls of 50m and higher. And these are for beginners?? Jay explained the different orders and safety arrangements to us. We first tried them on the ground and then we were shown how to climb the wall. I (Ramona) started. The first meter was ok, but then... Gee, this is so difficult. I didn't see at all where to hold on to. My fingers and especially my forearms hurt so much. I hardly had any energy to pull myself up. And Jay already shouted at me "Don't pull yourself up with your arms, use your feet." Great, but how? There is only 1cm of space. It doesn't matter, it will work, Jay said. I had to have a break two times and sit in the rope so my arms could relax. Then I managed to do it. I was on the top. The view was great and it was really high. But it only looked very high - from down there one can easily spit up here. Only about 15m. But even these need to be done. It's only our first climb and it can only get better. Now it was Nicole's turn. She had learned from my mistakes and didn't have as many problems.
In total we climbed 4 different walls. We got better and better, used our legs more and weren't scared of slipping as we knew that our partner belays us. It was great fun and we couldn't get enough.
Thus, we only had a short lunch break and off we were to the next wall. It was on the other side of the island and we didn't have any problems climbing it.
Next was a cave from which we wanted to abseil. 30m. The cave was pitch dark and we only had a small torch. But no problem at all. We climbed bamboo ladders, 90 degrees uphill, and further on the rock. The cave was huge! We arrived at a cut. Here we want to abseil. Wow, this is pretty high but it was just fantastic.
When we got down it was already quite late. Today, time just flies. Unfortunately, the course was already over. We watched some more climbers and went back to the shop! Again a great experience!
Knackered we arrived in our room. The shower was good but our bones got more and more tired. What about room service? No, unfortunately not. We forced ourselves to walk to a restaurant. But please, let's not walk to far. The Internet Cafe is close as well. Very good.
Tomorrow will probably be a painful day. :-))
40 minutes later we were on Railay island, in front of the climbing shop. Of course, you can do the course today. No problem. Gee, we were relieved. We got our equipment and off we were with our teacher Jay. First over the whole island, to the beginner walls. In front of us there were walls of 50m and higher. And these are for beginners?? Jay explained the different orders and safety arrangements to us. We first tried them on the ground and then we were shown how to climb the wall. I (Ramona) started. The first meter was ok, but then... Gee, this is so difficult. I didn't see at all where to hold on to. My fingers and especially my forearms hurt so much. I hardly had any energy to pull myself up. And Jay already shouted at me "Don't pull yourself up with your arms, use your feet." Great, but how? There is only 1cm of space. It doesn't matter, it will work, Jay said. I had to have a break two times and sit in the rope so my arms could relax. Then I managed to do it. I was on the top. The view was great and it was really high. But it only looked very high - from down there one can easily spit up here. Only about 15m. But even these need to be done. It's only our first climb and it can only get better. Now it was Nicole's turn. She had learned from my mistakes and didn't have as many problems.
In total we climbed 4 different walls. We got better and better, used our legs more and weren't scared of slipping as we knew that our partner belays us. It was great fun and we couldn't get enough.
Thus, we only had a short lunch break and off we were to the next wall. It was on the other side of the island and we didn't have any problems climbing it.
Next was a cave from which we wanted to abseil. 30m. The cave was pitch dark and we only had a small torch. But no problem at all. We climbed bamboo ladders, 90 degrees uphill, and further on the rock. The cave was huge! We arrived at a cut. Here we want to abseil. Wow, this is pretty high but it was just fantastic.
When we got down it was already quite late. Today, time just flies. Unfortunately, the course was already over. We watched some more climbers and went back to the shop! Again a great experience!
Knackered we arrived in our room. The shower was good but our bones got more and more tired. What about room service? No, unfortunately not. We forced ourselves to walk to a restaurant. But please, let's not walk to far. The Internet Cafe is close as well. Very good.
Tomorrow will probably be a painful day. :-))
Saturday, March 13, 2004
Ao Nang
The first time for weeks we had a lie-in today. It was 10.15am when we got up and slowly prepared for the beach. Today we have relaxing on our program.
We booked a train ticket back to Bangkok for 16 March, had a sandwich for lunch and went to the longtail boats which should take us to Railay Beach. The ride took only 10 minutes. Hmm, where should we lay down? There's enough place at this nice beach. But look over there, what's that? Wow, there are people rock climbing. That looks fascinating. We watched them for a while and then decided to do a course. We got all the necessary information and booked a full day course for Monday.
OK, now let's go to the beach. But look at the sky. Over there it's already pretty dark. It doesn't matter, if it starts raining we'll have the beach just for us.
On the way to the other side we passed a junction to the viewpoint. Hmmm, now that we are here we should go there. On the sign it said: "Don't climb without climbing experience and security rope." Well, in fact, we will only do the rock climbing course on Monday, we don't have a rope but aren't we mountaineers?! Mt. Fuji, Mt. Sokcho, Mt. Everest - who is as experienced as we are? :)
We started - it was quite sandy and sometimes really steep. But one could easily hold on the many rocks. It was great and lots of fun. We first went to the viewpoint and it was worth it! A fantastic view over two beaches with palm trees, unfortunately though it was a bit cloudy.
We then went further to the lagoon. And now it got really exciting. We finally had to use all our experience and thus used our seat of trousers and all our flexibility. Rain had started which made the 'path' even slippier. But we made it and rewarded ourselves with a nice cooling down in the lagoon.
Thus, one can't say this day was relaxing. But it was great!
For dinner we had great food: Phad Kapau and Kananaman Hoi - the dishes we learned to cook in Lampang and now got them served in a restaurant. A nice way to end the day!
We booked a train ticket back to Bangkok for 16 March, had a sandwich for lunch and went to the longtail boats which should take us to Railay Beach. The ride took only 10 minutes. Hmm, where should we lay down? There's enough place at this nice beach. But look over there, what's that? Wow, there are people rock climbing. That looks fascinating. We watched them for a while and then decided to do a course. We got all the necessary information and booked a full day course for Monday.
OK, now let's go to the beach. But look at the sky. Over there it's already pretty dark. It doesn't matter, if it starts raining we'll have the beach just for us.
On the way to the other side we passed a junction to the viewpoint. Hmmm, now that we are here we should go there. On the sign it said: "Don't climb without climbing experience and security rope." Well, in fact, we will only do the rock climbing course on Monday, we don't have a rope but aren't we mountaineers?! Mt. Fuji, Mt. Sokcho, Mt. Everest - who is as experienced as we are? :)
We started - it was quite sandy and sometimes really steep. But one could easily hold on the many rocks. It was great and lots of fun. We first went to the viewpoint and it was worth it! A fantastic view over two beaches with palm trees, unfortunately though it was a bit cloudy.
We then went further to the lagoon. And now it got really exciting. We finally had to use all our experience and thus used our seat of trousers and all our flexibility. Rain had started which made the 'path' even slippier. But we made it and rewarded ourselves with a nice cooling down in the lagoon.
Thus, one can't say this day was relaxing. But it was great!
For dinner we had great food: Phad Kapau and Kananaman Hoi - the dishes we learned to cook in Lampang and now got them served in a restaurant. A nice way to end the day!
Friday, March 12, 2004
Krabi
We had to get up early today as we had to show up at 8am at the dive shop in Ao Nang. Around 7am we were already corssing the street in order to get a minibus. What a timing! The bus was arriving just in the minute when we got on the street. Perfect. About 7.40am we arrived at the dive shop. Our bags were already packed as we had tried our equipment yesterday. Wow, what a service. At 8am we were off, with a longtail boat to the big boat. Direction Kho Phi Phi Leh. The ride took about 2 hours and it was just like on a *****-boat. All drinks for free, we got breakfast and fruits. The briefings of the dive master was just as it had to be. Everything was perfectly organised. The dives themselves were really good as well. Lots of fishes to see, even a huge moray, an angry looking barracuda, a scorpion fish, puffer fish, lobster, etc. It was not only nice though but also quite exhausting. Originally, we wanted to look at these many rock islands on our ride back but we fell asleep. In the burning sun! You probably can imagine how we looked like, especially Nicole. Red as a lobster. :-)) Luckily, the sun protection was in our bag!
After diving we moved in our new room. In the evening we had a nice dinner and went for a walk. It still is pretty hot and it would be nice to have a shower again.
After diving we moved in our new room. In the evening we had a nice dinner and went for a walk. It still is pretty hot and it would be nice to have a shower again.
Thursday, March 11, 2004
Krabi
We arrived in Surit Thanan at 6.00am and had to change to a bus. Gee, was it cold in here. The air condition was well working. And here we will have to sit for a few hours? Well, that won't be funny!
We were lucky though - after about 30 minutes we were dropped off and had to wait for the next bus. Again they were so good to us that we could take a minibus which only took half the time than the bus we booked - 1.5 hours in the end.
At 9am we arrived in Krabi and immediately looked for accomodation. Stupidly not close to the beach so we had to drive to the dive shops in Ao Nang Beach which was about 15 km from Krabi. There we booked two days of diving with Andy, a German guy, and looked for another place to stay from tomorrow onwards.
The rest of the day we spent on the beach. It was not really nice as the loud longtail boats can be really annoying. There must be nicer/quieter beaches than this one ... but as we will stay some more days here we can explore.
We were lucky though - after about 30 minutes we were dropped off and had to wait for the next bus. Again they were so good to us that we could take a minibus which only took half the time than the bus we booked - 1.5 hours in the end.
At 9am we arrived in Krabi and immediately looked for accomodation. Stupidly not close to the beach so we had to drive to the dive shops in Ao Nang Beach which was about 15 km from Krabi. There we booked two days of diving with Andy, a German guy, and looked for another place to stay from tomorrow onwards.
The rest of the day we spent on the beach. It was not really nice as the loud longtail boats can be really annoying. There must be nicer/quieter beaches than this one ... but as we will stay some more days here we can explore.
Wednesday, March 10, 2004
Bangkok
Today we want to send home all our collected stuff and thus we went to the post office. Each of us had a full backpack to send home. Hopefully they'll have such big parcels. But this wasn't a problem. 20 kg it was in total! Again we only have handbags to carry. :-)) If only ...
We then went further to the Internet Cafe and to the travel agency. The poor lady was already waiting for us. We again tried a few options and eventually decided for one. It's a bit more expensive but at least we will get to the places we want to.
Now it was time for the train station. We still had some time for a snack and off we were in the train. In time, as always. We were both looking forward to the beds as here in Thailand are really comfy.
We then went further to the Internet Cafe and to the travel agency. The poor lady was already waiting for us. We again tried a few options and eventually decided for one. It's a bit more expensive but at least we will get to the places we want to.
Now it was time for the train station. We still had some time for a snack and off we were in the train. In time, as always. We were both looking forward to the beds as here in Thailand are really comfy.
Tuesday, March 09, 2004
Bangkok
As Al has left us today to head for Papua New Guinea we are on our own again. Tomorrow we want to go to Krabi Province to go diving. Let's see whether we can again find some cheap flights on the net. Unfortunately, there weren't any so we went back to our travel agency. We booked a night train ticket and thus have another day in Bangkok tomorrow. We can pick up the ticket later.
Then we went to do some more shopping and wanted to have a nice relaxing evening. But it all went differently. When we picked up our train ticket, we were told that there is a problem with our flight tickets and we cannot fly like this. We will either have to pay more - no not more!! - or we have to change our destinations. This cannot be true. Why did we spend 4 hours here yesterday to book everything? We just couldn't believe it. One could see that the travel agent didn't feel good either as it was her fault. She already had a headache as she was trying to find the best option for us for the whole afternoon. Together we then tried to go through all possibilities but it didn't make any difference. It got later and later and we eventually decided to come back tomorrow morning in order to fix everything then.
Thus, we still had a few hours to check online whether there are any other flights for us. When the place closed at midnight, we still didn't know what to do. Let's go to sleep - maybe we'll find our solution over night!
Then we went to do some more shopping and wanted to have a nice relaxing evening. But it all went differently. When we picked up our train ticket, we were told that there is a problem with our flight tickets and we cannot fly like this. We will either have to pay more - no not more!! - or we have to change our destinations. This cannot be true. Why did we spend 4 hours here yesterday to book everything? We just couldn't believe it. One could see that the travel agent didn't feel good either as it was her fault. She already had a headache as she was trying to find the best option for us for the whole afternoon. Together we then tried to go through all possibilities but it didn't make any difference. It got later and later and we eventually decided to come back tomorrow morning in order to fix everything then.
Thus, we still had a few hours to check online whether there are any other flights for us. When the place closed at midnight, we still didn't know what to do. Let's go to sleep - maybe we'll find our solution over night!
Sunday, March 07, 2004
Bangkok
Here we are again - after 20 days without Internet access (a new record) we at last had it again today. Typing these reports (all 20), emails and emails to answer... how we have missed this:)
Saturday, March 06, 2004
Bangkok
We met at 9.30am and Al gave us some tips about Indonesia. Then we wanted to get started on our day as we had lots to do, when Al mentioned that Nicole NL was in Bangkok and we might meet her...possibly. We quickly looked to see whether she had written an email... Yes, she had. Meeting at 11.30am in the Chai restaurant, her bus to the airport goes at 2.00pm, so we had to rush as it was already 11.20am. It took quite a while to get to the restaurant and we hoped she would still be there. Nicole NL was still there and we had a lot of news to exchange. It was great to see her again. She will fly back to Amsterdam on the 1st April and the next weeks she will be in Myanmar. Thus it was probably the last time on this trip that we will see her. What a shame!
Once Nicole NL was in the bus to the airport, Ramona and I started shopping for our air tickets to Indonesia and to buy a few things. The tickets took a long time and some travel agencies could not directly help.So we have to do it again on Monday!
At 6.30pm we met again with Al, in order to see 'Runaway jury ' in the cinema. How nice to have Popcorn again. Mmmh, how delicious!
Once Nicole NL was in the bus to the airport, Ramona and I started shopping for our air tickets to Indonesia and to buy a few things. The tickets took a long time and some travel agencies could not directly help.So we have to do it again on Monday!
At 6.30pm we met again with Al, in order to see 'Runaway jury ' in the cinema. How nice to have Popcorn again. Mmmh, how delicious!
Friday, March 05, 2004
Elephant Conservation Center - Bangkok
6.45am the alarm bell rings. A last time getting into the Mahout clothes, a last meeting with Jan, Lai and Deng and off into the jungle, in order to fetch the elephants. With sugar cane in hand we set off.
Ramona and I were already somewhat excited, today we had to do everything correctly;today was exam day and when bathing we were not allowed to fall in or get wet if we wanted to pass.
All went very well. I put on the chain without problems, Wandee listened to me, came to me and Jan, so I could clean her, mounting was no problem and we went to Ramona and Lai, who were waiting for us. Together we went to start the bathing. I was getting more nervous, today Jan would not say anything it was all up to me. Will she listen to me? But bathing today was no problem at all. No problems for Ramona either. Great - we had thus passed the first part of our examination without problems. If only now 'Tak long' (mounting over the head) goes OK, the rest should be easy!
After breakfast Deng prepared the navigation course on the exercise area. Ramona and I waited for the tests to start. The Head of Mahout (HoM) had to finally remove the examination from us. And it took time. The elephants became already completely jerky and we wanted to also finally loose-put.
Then finally - Ramona was allowed to start. The ascending and descending, no problem. Then she had to do the navigation course with Pang Khod. But Khod was reluctant to start at first (a naughty elephant),and Lai had to help. When she started however, she ran perfectly and without hesitation. Only at the end with walking backwards were there a few difficulties, but Ramona mastered these. She had to attach the chair to the elephants back and now I started the navigation course.
Oh no, my first mount over the head did not go well and I had to do it a second time. What a beginning, but Wandee was well behaved today. She listened to each word, and each kick, I only rarely had to use the hook. She did not walk backwards for me though. But she never did this for me :) Now also I must attach the chair to her back... the HoM reviewed it, and I had to pull it to make sure it was on tightly. The second inspection was OK.
We were proud as if we had won an OSCAR - we had passed and got a certificate presented. Now we may work anywhere with elephants :)
After showering doing the last of the packing, we had a last lunch and the parting moved closer. In the 20 days we had very grown fond of not only the elephants but also the Mahouts and Deng. We will miss them very much and this time for us will remain unforgettable.
We took a kind of Jeepney to the airport in Chiang May and at 17.20 flew to Bangkok - for whole 20 euros. How is that for a good deal? :)
In Bangkok we met again with Al, who is on his way to Papua New Guinea. Ramona and I have had enough rice for now and needed a Pizza. It tasted so good!
Ramona and I were already somewhat excited, today we had to do everything correctly;today was exam day and when bathing we were not allowed to fall in or get wet if we wanted to pass.
All went very well. I put on the chain without problems, Wandee listened to me, came to me and Jan, so I could clean her, mounting was no problem and we went to Ramona and Lai, who were waiting for us. Together we went to start the bathing. I was getting more nervous, today Jan would not say anything it was all up to me. Will she listen to me? But bathing today was no problem at all. No problems for Ramona either. Great - we had thus passed the first part of our examination without problems. If only now 'Tak long' (mounting over the head) goes OK, the rest should be easy!
After breakfast Deng prepared the navigation course on the exercise area. Ramona and I waited for the tests to start. The Head of Mahout (HoM) had to finally remove the examination from us. And it took time. The elephants became already completely jerky and we wanted to also finally loose-put.
Then finally - Ramona was allowed to start. The ascending and descending, no problem. Then she had to do the navigation course with Pang Khod. But Khod was reluctant to start at first (a naughty elephant),and Lai had to help. When she started however, she ran perfectly and without hesitation. Only at the end with walking backwards were there a few difficulties, but Ramona mastered these. She had to attach the chair to the elephants back and now I started the navigation course.
Oh no, my first mount over the head did not go well and I had to do it a second time. What a beginning, but Wandee was well behaved today. She listened to each word, and each kick, I only rarely had to use the hook. She did not walk backwards for me though. But she never did this for me :) Now also I must attach the chair to her back... the HoM reviewed it, and I had to pull it to make sure it was on tightly. The second inspection was OK.
We were proud as if we had won an OSCAR - we had passed and got a certificate presented. Now we may work anywhere with elephants :)
After showering doing the last of the packing, we had a last lunch and the parting moved closer. In the 20 days we had very grown fond of not only the elephants but also the Mahouts and Deng. We will miss them very much and this time for us will remain unforgettable.
We took a kind of Jeepney to the airport in Chiang May and at 17.20 flew to Bangkok - for whole 20 euros. How is that for a good deal? :)
In Bangkok we met again with Al, who is on his way to Papua New Guinea. Ramona and I have had enough rice for now and needed a Pizza. It tasted so good!
Wednesday, March 03, 2004
Elephant Conservation Center
The others were already up at 6am and made quite a bit of noise but Ramona and I did not rise until 7am. Breakfast was nearly ready. How comfortable it can be in the jungle, one can even sit here at a prepared breakfast table. :)
I (Nicole) went fetching Wandee with Jan. Gee, was it steep here. And sandy. How is Wandee going to manage to get down here? And/or how do I get up there? In my sandals, which I cannot wear properly because of my blisters anyway, I did not get a hold. But luckily I had Jan. We fetched thus Wandee and went back the same way again. How will Wandee manage it? Wow - an ingenious picture which was offered to me there: Wandee stood on its foreleggs and knees on the hind legs and slipped more or less the last piece slope down. We brought Wandee to another place and fetched the others.
We went searching for food and Won, Jan, Deng and Lai guided us appr. 5 km through the jungle. Back and forth, up and down, through bushes and sometimes we stopped at a little smelly pond. In this badly stinking water the guys were looking for frogs - and found quite a lot. We had the task to fill the partial still living or twitching frogs into a plastic bottle.
Also very disgusting were the places where thousands of spiders (small body, long legs) were creeping on rocks. We always passed them very quickly. It took quite some effort, but we are two tough girls!
When we had collected enough frogs, we went back to the Camp. We had some lunch and then lay down to relax. We put our bamboo mattresses into the shade and tried to sleep. But that was impossible. Instead we had to fight with thousands of ants. Just as good that they didn't bite. They were already annoying enough just walking on us.
Apart from this nothing much happened in the afternoon. I made another mattress out of bamboo and then it was already time for the whiskey. Again it was Jan who opened the bottle and hurried the people to drink. It just couldn't go fast enough for him. As appetizer we had frogs. The whole thing, with bones and everything. Not only the legs like at home. Of course we had to try that as well. They were really delicious. Then we had to prepare the curry. Main ingredience: red ants (the ones which bite) and anteggs. They were mixed with some herbs and spices and then eaten with rice. Although it looked not very inviting, we wanted to try it as well. We were ever so surprised! It tasted really good! When one bites on the ants a spicy liquid comes out. Very tasty. Or maybe it was because of the whiskey?
We all had a lot of fun this evening, we even painted our faces black with grime. It was soooo funny! In the end we were black all over and as we did not have a lot of light, we went to bed as black as we were.
I (Nicole) went fetching Wandee with Jan. Gee, was it steep here. And sandy. How is Wandee going to manage to get down here? And/or how do I get up there? In my sandals, which I cannot wear properly because of my blisters anyway, I did not get a hold. But luckily I had Jan. We fetched thus Wandee and went back the same way again. How will Wandee manage it? Wow - an ingenious picture which was offered to me there: Wandee stood on its foreleggs and knees on the hind legs and slipped more or less the last piece slope down. We brought Wandee to another place and fetched the others.
We went searching for food and Won, Jan, Deng and Lai guided us appr. 5 km through the jungle. Back and forth, up and down, through bushes and sometimes we stopped at a little smelly pond. In this badly stinking water the guys were looking for frogs - and found quite a lot. We had the task to fill the partial still living or twitching frogs into a plastic bottle.
Also very disgusting were the places where thousands of spiders (small body, long legs) were creeping on rocks. We always passed them very quickly. It took quite some effort, but we are two tough girls!
When we had collected enough frogs, we went back to the Camp. We had some lunch and then lay down to relax. We put our bamboo mattresses into the shade and tried to sleep. But that was impossible. Instead we had to fight with thousands of ants. Just as good that they didn't bite. They were already annoying enough just walking on us.
Apart from this nothing much happened in the afternoon. I made another mattress out of bamboo and then it was already time for the whiskey. Again it was Jan who opened the bottle and hurried the people to drink. It just couldn't go fast enough for him. As appetizer we had frogs. The whole thing, with bones and everything. Not only the legs like at home. Of course we had to try that as well. They were really delicious. Then we had to prepare the curry. Main ingredience: red ants (the ones which bite) and anteggs. They were mixed with some herbs and spices and then eaten with rice. Although it looked not very inviting, we wanted to try it as well. We were ever so surprised! It tasted really good! When one bites on the ants a spicy liquid comes out. Very tasty. Or maybe it was because of the whiskey?
We all had a lot of fun this evening, we even painted our faces black with grime. It was soooo funny! In the end we were black all over and as we did not have a lot of light, we went to bed as black as we were.
Tuesday, March 02, 2004
Elephant Conservation Center
At 7am we went to fetch our darlings from the jungle. The three British girls joined us. They will be impressed to see what we can do already. We went to the swimming pool to bathe the elephants. Today, I (Ramona) tried it barefeet as with sandals it is quite slippery. A motor-bike arrived and the guy stopped to watch me bathing Pang Khod. Everything went fine, I went into the pool with Khod, she sat down but just in the moment when I wanted to stand up this stupid twat on the motor-bike shouted "dum long, dum long" and Khod went down. I of course was soaking wet again. And really angry! I would have loved to hit this a..... with my hook. And of course everybody else is laughing again which made me even angrier. One tries one's best and one twat comes and spoils everything.
Today, we want to go in the jungle for three days. Khod and Wandee got their backpacks on. Khod carried all our food and water and Wandee had to carry our tents and bags. Let's have a quick breakfast and off we were. The cook and her husband joined us for the tour as well as Won from the Rescue Team. After about 1.5 hours we arrived at the first camp. Here were lots of bamboo huts, a real kitchen and a bathroom. It goes without saying that we didn't want to stay here. Thus we kept on riding. From now on we went cross-country, steeply uphill. We got caught everywhere with the elephant's backpacks and we had to be careful not to be thrown from our elephants. Very stressful in that heat. After another 30 minutes we got to a dry riverbed. Here we wanted to stay. Won started to dig a hole, a water hole. As we were in the riverbed he didn't have to dig deep. Then it was time for lunch.
After a little break we set up the rest of our camp. We had to chop bamboo in order to carve pots, plates and cutlery. In addition to that a table and seating matresses. This was very hard work. Our hands hurt a lot from the work with our big knives.
Jan, Nicole and I went for a little walk afterwards. We came to a pool and Jan immediately jumped in the mud to look for frogs. Yak, that smell! There already came the first frog. Get it quickly, this will be our dinner. In the camp they had already steamed the sticky rice. Of course, in a bamboo tube. It's amazing to see what one can do out of bamboo!
We still had some time until dinner. So what is there to do? What a question! Already the first bottle of whiskey was on the table. 'Gin lao!' - Whiskey trinken. How could we only have thought that there is no whiskey in the jungle? After the first bottle we had dinner and then the second bottle. It was a very funny evening. Maybe we should have set up our tents before drinking whiskey. That wasn't easy anymore for us. :-)
Today, we want to go in the jungle for three days. Khod and Wandee got their backpacks on. Khod carried all our food and water and Wandee had to carry our tents and bags. Let's have a quick breakfast and off we were. The cook and her husband joined us for the tour as well as Won from the Rescue Team. After about 1.5 hours we arrived at the first camp. Here were lots of bamboo huts, a real kitchen and a bathroom. It goes without saying that we didn't want to stay here. Thus we kept on riding. From now on we went cross-country, steeply uphill. We got caught everywhere with the elephant's backpacks and we had to be careful not to be thrown from our elephants. Very stressful in that heat. After another 30 minutes we got to a dry riverbed. Here we wanted to stay. Won started to dig a hole, a water hole. As we were in the riverbed he didn't have to dig deep. Then it was time for lunch.
After a little break we set up the rest of our camp. We had to chop bamboo in order to carve pots, plates and cutlery. In addition to that a table and seating matresses. This was very hard work. Our hands hurt a lot from the work with our big knives.
Jan, Nicole and I went for a little walk afterwards. We came to a pool and Jan immediately jumped in the mud to look for frogs. Yak, that smell! There already came the first frog. Get it quickly, this will be our dinner. In the camp they had already steamed the sticky rice. Of course, in a bamboo tube. It's amazing to see what one can do out of bamboo!
We still had some time until dinner. So what is there to do? What a question! Already the first bottle of whiskey was on the table. 'Gin lao!' - Whiskey trinken. How could we only have thought that there is no whiskey in the jungle? After the first bottle we had dinner and then the second bottle. It was a very funny evening. Maybe we should have set up our tents before drinking whiskey. That wasn't easy anymore for us. :-)
Monday, March 01, 2004
Elephant Conservation Center
I (Nicole) was in a very good mood when I went with Jan to fetch Wandee. As the elephants were taken to different spots yesterday, we had to go separately today. Jan wanted to be faster than Lai and thus I sometimes had to jog in order to be able to follow him.
On our way to the swimming pool a few cars and trucks passed by which made Wandee very nervous again. One twat in a truck even pressed the gas a few times on purpose so that Wandee was even more frightened. Such an idiot, really! We went further to the swimming pool and it was Ramona's go first. Her bathing with Pang Khod was really good. I, however, waited with Wandee at the shore so she could drink which will hopefully calm her down a bit. But when we then went into the water, she didn't really want which already was quite uncommon. She didn't listen at all. It didn't matter to her that I hit her with my hook ever so often. She just wasn't interested and did what she wanted - and I in the end was wet all over. It goes without saying that the others were just making fun of me but I didn't like it at all today. No-one had told me what to do differently. I didn't have any breakfast and instead watched the baby elephant who got trained. Amazing, how much the little one has already learned within its first seven days here.
We then went to the forest to collect some herbs as we wanted to brew some medicine for the elephants. Just with herbs one can find in the forest. Jan and Lai knew almost everything about it and it didn't take them long to collect everything we needed. We cooked it together with water, salt and garlic in a big pot on a fire. For us this meant a break as we had to wait until the medicine was ready. Thus we relaxed a bit and all of a sudden Deng jumped. Over there, look over there. Do you see it? Wow, this is great. A bit further we saw two elephants mating - naturally. Fantastic - what so far we only knew from TV we could now see live. A shame though that we couldn't get any closer as this is really dangerous. One shouldn't be near a mating elephant.
We then hit the medicine with a medicine soaked trousers on the wounds of the baby elephant. All the ropes had abraded its skin quite a lot, the wounds wanted to be taken care of.
After lunch we did again some exercises. But after today's bathing show I preferred training this again. Thus we rode to the swimming pool. Wandee was in a much better mood now and my bathing was ok. This time it was Ramona, who had bad luck. Somehow she slipped and ended in the water. Damn! To get on the elephant again was very difficult.
Having a shower was an adventure itself this evening. There was hardly any water and we had to wash our feet with curd soap as we couldn't clean them otherwise. We spent at least half an hour under the shower.
At dinner we got to know three British girls who will be working in the Center as volunteers. After a Thai lesson we went to bed.
On our way to the swimming pool a few cars and trucks passed by which made Wandee very nervous again. One twat in a truck even pressed the gas a few times on purpose so that Wandee was even more frightened. Such an idiot, really! We went further to the swimming pool and it was Ramona's go first. Her bathing with Pang Khod was really good. I, however, waited with Wandee at the shore so she could drink which will hopefully calm her down a bit. But when we then went into the water, she didn't really want which already was quite uncommon. She didn't listen at all. It didn't matter to her that I hit her with my hook ever so often. She just wasn't interested and did what she wanted - and I in the end was wet all over. It goes without saying that the others were just making fun of me but I didn't like it at all today. No-one had told me what to do differently. I didn't have any breakfast and instead watched the baby elephant who got trained. Amazing, how much the little one has already learned within its first seven days here.
We then went to the forest to collect some herbs as we wanted to brew some medicine for the elephants. Just with herbs one can find in the forest. Jan and Lai knew almost everything about it and it didn't take them long to collect everything we needed. We cooked it together with water, salt and garlic in a big pot on a fire. For us this meant a break as we had to wait until the medicine was ready. Thus we relaxed a bit and all of a sudden Deng jumped. Over there, look over there. Do you see it? Wow, this is great. A bit further we saw two elephants mating - naturally. Fantastic - what so far we only knew from TV we could now see live. A shame though that we couldn't get any closer as this is really dangerous. One shouldn't be near a mating elephant.
We then hit the medicine with a medicine soaked trousers on the wounds of the baby elephant. All the ropes had abraded its skin quite a lot, the wounds wanted to be taken care of.
After lunch we did again some exercises. But after today's bathing show I preferred training this again. Thus we rode to the swimming pool. Wandee was in a much better mood now and my bathing was ok. This time it was Ramona, who had bad luck. Somehow she slipped and ended in the water. Damn! To get on the elephant again was very difficult.
Having a shower was an adventure itself this evening. There was hardly any water and we had to wash our feet with curd soap as we couldn't clean them otherwise. We spent at least half an hour under the shower.
At dinner we got to know three British girls who will be working in the Center as volunteers. After a Thai lesson we went to bed.
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