Banda Aech and Palau Weh (Sabang)

15 hour bus ride meant I got into Banda Aceh late, around midnight,the bus ride was interesting had the front seat so got to see the crazy driving...joy. Had a big meal with a fellow passenger that could speak English,he paid, I like Muslim hospitality. Raining when we got off the bus so caught a Bechak (motorbike sidecar) into the centre, all the cheap hotels were full so ended up forking out for a smick room, hot water, air con and cable tv. Up early the next day, rice for breakfast. Hunted around and found some sunblock to replace the one Aussie customs took.

Bandar seems to up and running again, busy little city, still alot of debris about and alot blank spots where the wave came through.

Caught a ferry out to Palau Weh, then a labi labi a ride out to Iboih beach, found a nice bungalow for 50,000R ($5US). Ended up staying 8 nights on Sabang, was really nice,pretty chilled. Really good snorkel ling. Saw many reef fish, turtles, sharks, Ells, lion fish, stone fish etc. Did a ride around the island on a hired scooter. Checked outa small semi active volcano, steam coming out and sulfur smell about. The longest snorkeling misson was over 4 hrs in the water. Have my own mask but was hiring fins. Met and hung out with some fellow travellers. Most people that make it to Aceh are well travelled so plenty of good stories and where to go and what to do.

Back to Banda Aceh, did not want to leave the Island but only have 19 days left on my Indo visa so want to check out more of Sumatra. Some serious net time, dunno what im doing might go down to Berastagi via the highlands or via Medan....... See what the bus station has to offer.

Medan

Spent the day wandering about the city, one of those towns where people don't walk about alot, shit footpaths and frequent public transport. Found a bank that changed Aussie dollars into indo Rupiah, took awhile, but worth it as got a good rate. Visited a small military museum and took some photos of the Mesjid Raya (Main Mosque). Did some net time and spent the better part of the Afternoon chatting to Uni students who wanted to practice there English. Booked a bus ticket up to Banda Aceh after doing some random missions on the public transport....Opelets, minivans /trucks with seats in the back. Had a large bintang (indos main beers) in a cafe, not a bad beer. The next day caught my 120,000 R ($12US) bus up to Banda.

Back on the road

Well im back on the road, being home was nice took awhile to get used to the cold and was finally acclimatised when I left, Aussie was warm and now im in Medan, Sumatra, Indonesia and its hot.

Stayed with Lindsay and Kristie in Landsborough which is in the Sunshine coast hinterland North of Brisbane. Spent most of my time loading up my new MP3 player and playing mafia wars an addictive facebook addon. Did a trip down to brissy to do some last minute shopping and got looked after by Lindsay and Kris, cheers guys.

Stopped off at James place in Southport on the gold coast for a night talked travel and drank booze then he dropped me at the airport in Coolangatta, cheers James. Did the usual and mixed up the flight times in my head so arrived and hour and ten mins before my flight left, worked out ok was just clearing customs as they started boarding so no lame waiting in the departure lounge, fucking customs took my sunblock as im all carry on and it was 125ml the liquid limit for carry on is 100ml. Flight was painfull, had no water on me due to the liquid laws and since I was flying airasia they charged for everything, (note to self prebook meals on that flight) they even have an in flight entertainment system that you have to pay for, talk about a cock tease. Least I had my new 32 gig creative zen for company.

The flight arrived in KL 30 mins late and as I only had a 1:50 window thought I was screwed, but cleared customs and passport control quick and made the Medan check in by mins. Sweet. Even managed to protect the few remaining blank passport pages I have left. (Aussie and Malaysia are stamps so can fit on used pages). The the flight was 15 mins late anyways. Was short and painless, Medan airport is tiny brought my $25 US visa on arrival with no drama and the caught a Motorbike sidecar into town. First hotel was full so was wandered to checkout the next when a Roster attacked me got me a good shot on the back of my thigh ripping my pants (again). Was pretty funny and only hurt my pants and pride.

Medan reminds me alot of Indian cities mismatched side walks, beggars, dirt and rubbish then the flash shops and neon lights. 28 degrees at 6pm.... gonna take some getting used to.

Mamallapuram

Caught the train from Allepey over to Chennai then bused down to Mamalla. Caught up with Rob and proceeded to get pissed most days for a week. The cricket was on Aussie vs NZ so caught all the one dayers was good, cheap seafood at Moonrakers. Tried surfing, got towed behind a long tail boat, ate Vegemite on toast, all in all a great time was had in Mamalla. Stayed for a week before catching our flights to Singapore.

Kochi (Cochin), Kerala

Arrived here at 4am in the morning off the train from Gokarna.... Joy. The train station was dirty and busy so headed into town spent a bit of time waiting at the ferry terminal before getting a ferry to Fort Kochi, wandered around there for a while before finding a room, slept for a bit, found some breakfast then watched the first one dayer vs the Aussies and we won... Not alot to do in Cochin so bailed the next day down to the backwaters.

Gokarna, Paradise Beach

Arrived in Gokarna after a 10 hour ride from Hospet had a flat tyre on the way so got stuck in a non tourist town being stared at for an hour, was fun. Was quite late when we arrived so stayed in Gokarna town a night before making our way out to the last beach... Paradise.

Paradise is a pretty relaxed place, had a room for 70 Rups between the 2 of us, basic, mats on the floor with outside bath and no electric. The food in the beach restaurants was cheap and good. Did a lot of swimming and trying to stay out of the midday sun. Frisbee, reading and the odd walk other than that not a lot to do. Met some English lads and had a good night drinking with them. Walked into Gokarna one day and organized our onwards transport, a overnight train to Cochin.

Had a bit of a hiccup getting to the train used the local bus to save money and was dropped about 500m away so had to run the last part to make it in time for the train, which ended up being late anyway.

Hampi

Bus to Hampi was a bit rough, Kanantarka province seems to have a liking for speed bumps and the bus drivers enjoy seeing how fast they can go over them, so when you are asleep you fly off the seats and get wedged in between them.

Stayed on the other side of the river from Hampi Bazaar as it is quieter and more relaxed with less touts and hassle. Did allot of walking and exploring while in Hampi. Lots of temples and ruins to check out. They are left over from the Vijayanagar Kingdom which was one of India's greatest Hindu empires which at its peak controlled most of Southern India. Hampi is set on a river and the whole area is covered in Boulders, which are the main building material for the Temples and ruins.

Had a good day out at a local dam, some nice boulders to jump off. Also spent a day climbing the boulder stacks trying to reach the top of them, great fun as the become giant steps and there are cave like hollows everywhere.

Really enjoyed Hampi and retrospectively I wish I had of stayed a few more days there (spent 5 nights).

Goa, Arambol

One of the Northern most beaches and still relatively undeveloped, mostly beach huts and small hotels. Had a good time here met some cool people, swam, did a couple of beach walks, got drunks a fair bit. Ate good food and was merry. Had a good room, spent a bit more money than usual but Goa is not India and prices tend to higher for everything barring booze, but cheap beer just means you drink more. Stayed about 10 days before spending a day In Panaji, Goas main city, then headed on a overnight public bus with a couple of changes to Hampi.

Transport run through to Mumbai via Arungabad and Caves

Jumped on an overnight sleeper class train to Ahmendabad at which we arrived at 4am, chilled out in the upper class waiting room for a few hours before getting on another train to Jalgaon which arrived there at about 6pm, train was pretty full, had to kick people off our bunks and then defend them. Stayed a night in Jalgaon, I had a bad night a bit of chills/ fever. Headed out early to Ajunta a set of caves on the way. Buddhist caves dating from 200 BC to AD 650, 30 odd caves that have been carved into the hill/ cliff side mostly into Temples and places of worship. Was pretty impressive.
Had left our packs in a cloakroom at the entrance so after the caves picked them up and caught a bus from the roadside onwards to Arungabad. Arrived feeling pretty tired so found some cheap accom at a YHA hostel for around $1 US in a dorm. Was pretty funny though as owner was a stickler for rules. Met a couple of Germans there and chatted with them before crashing out. Headed out to Ellora caves the following day which have 30 odd caves, Buddhist, Jain and Hindu. Spent the whole day exploring, was fun. The following day visited yet another fort at Dalatabad and a smaller Taj Mahal as well as chilling in a park for a while. Then onto a night train to Mumbai.

Udaipur

Nice city on the edge of a lake, pretty popular spot for tourists, Indians, backpackers, flash packers, package tourists and the like. Some nice sights to see, managed to get into the city palace complex for free, who left that gate open? Managed to wander into a few other sites for free inside as well even the armory which was a bonus as the entrance fees were a little steep.

The lake made the town seem nice with its lake palaces and our hotel even had nice view of the lake from its roof. Watched a few nice sunsets and wandered about town for a few days.

Spent New Years in Udaipur, James passed out around 9pm, Rum overdose, I made it well into the night, but cant remember anything after midnight, apparently I danced and shit but who knows? Had a good time but it was a little tame, would much rather have been at a beach party in the Southern Hemisphere.

Chittorgauh

In short a shit town with a big fort. Accommodation choices in the budget range were grim and had to eat local which is not a bad thing. Loads of Indian tourists up at the fort. Spent a good few hours exploring and trying to avoid the hoards. Pretty much in town just to see the fort and break up the trip to Udaipur as well as bring us closer to New Years. the fort is supposedly the biggest in Rajasthan. Had some nice temples, palaces, ruins and a towers to check out. Watched a nice sunset from the walls of the fort and ate some good local food in town. Stayed in my worst hotel room since Iran pretty mank with rock hard beds and a really grotty bathroom.

Bundi

yeah, yeah another 5 hour bus ride, then another walk through the streets into the ghetto/ old town. Always good getting off the bus and brushing past all the touts and heading down the street into town. Helps that we both travel really light and have a good sense of direction. Found a nice room in a family run hotel. Lunch then straight up to the big rambling fort (Star Fort) above the palace which is in turn above town. Great views and fun to explore. Free entrance as well, very overgrown with a lot of Languors and Macaques about. Climbed up as high as we could in many buildings and eventually watched the sun set from one. The next day headed back into the fort for more exploring and to see everything in the morning light. In the arvo I headed up the hill on the other side of the old town for more views and as something to do. The next day we hired push bikes and went for a spin out of town was fun. Went for a look around Bundi palace in the arvo. All in all a nice place to chill for a couple of days, was lacking in a good cheap restaurant though

Pushkar and Ajmer

Yet another 5 hour govt bus ride, why do we keep doing them? Well we turn up at the bus station in the morning and the bus leaves straight away. Plus its pretty cheap and requires no booking or planning. Changed buses in Ajmer and headed out to Pushkar, which is a small (even in NZ terms)town on a large pond that is a pilgrimage site for Hindus. It draws a lot of travelers/ backpackers as well, due to being pretty chilled and quite compared with the rest of Rajasthan. Did not get up to much there, watched a few amazing sunsets, went for a couple of wanders, got drunk in our hotel room on Christmas day (dry town). Headed in to Ajmer for a day trip, brought booze for Christmas and headed to a major Muslim Pilgrimage point, the shrine of a Sufi Saint. Went around it with a young Brit named Zack. Was an experience similar to the ones I had in Iran feeling really out of place, did not stay long though. Stayed in Pushkar until boxing day then bailed out and headed to another little town.

Jodhpur

Yet another 5 hour govt bus ride from Jaisalmer. Pretty painless the conductor skimmed a bit on the price, but that is part of Asian travel. James week to carry the Lonely Planet so hes in charge of the logistics. Walked into the ghetto/ old town area. Found a cheap hotel room 150rs with a cable TV. Lots of cricket on so decided to stay a couple of nights and so watched a bit of TV then went for a wander around the old town. Most of the restaurants are of the rooftop kind, part of the hotels beneath them which is a pain as you go up 5 floors of steps to find no ones there or he menu is to pricey, still we are not to shy to do the bolt and look for somewhere cheaper, ended up having a Thali in some blokes Kitchen, his restaurant was being renovated. Cheap and good (35 rs).

The next day watched SA do the 2nd highest 2nd innings run chase in test history was a good match, good to see the Aussies go down. In the arvo headed up to Meherangarh, the palace/ fort complex that towers over Jodhpur. An audio tour was included in the ticket price and I got student discount...ha James. Was a good tour, pretty informative, even though ive forgotten it all now. Pretty impressive palaces with huge fort walls and a good Armory as well as Cannons on the battlements. After the tour went on an explore made it to a few interesting places before getting kicked out due to being out of bounds. No biggie though we always go places as long as there are no keep out signs, no locks and no guards looking.

Had fun in Jodhpur, the touts and hassles are much less than in Jaipur.

Jaisalmer

Night train from Jaipur. Was only late by 30 mins, not to bad. Had a decent sleep, then an ok day time ride. Walked from the train station and into town, disappointing many touts and rickshaw wallahs in the process. Found a hotel before a late lunch and booking a 4 day 3 night camel Safari. then a beer on the rooftop and an early night.

Up and out of the hotel and onto the Safari which started off with a Jeep ride into the desert to meet up with our camels. On the tour were mostly one day one nighters, and an American couple, Ray and Megan who were on a 3 day 2 night tour.

My camel was massive and James was tiny...haha. No stirrups though so the ride was not that comfortable. Day one was only about 3 hours of riding with a long lunch break in the middle, but still got off sore. Riding side saddle helped protect the family jewels though. Stayed the night at a big set of dunes. Watched an ok sunset, lots of haze blocked most of it though. Did some good dune jumping and ate a lot of food, which was pretty bland and was mostly wheat flour in the form of Chapattis. Still I was full which suits me as I eat to live rather than live to eat.

During the night a big storm front hit, thunder and lightning which I slept through then rain from 4:30am onwards, spent a few hours wrapped in blankets under a leaky tarp with James and the American couple. The rain stopped for long enough to have breakfast and started again when the rest of the group had just left to go and catch their jeep back to Jaisalmer. We stayed under the tarp until the rain stopped then we headed to the closest village where we had lunch and waited out the weather. That night we headed out on the camels to another set of dunes with a couple of camel handlers and a guide. Jumped some more dunes and drunk some whiskey around a camp fire. Slept under the tarp but no rain. So far the desert was a little disappointing, much like Aussie outback, but habituated, scrub and thorns with the odd tree even. But its quite and relaxing away from the hassle and hustle of India.

the Americans left us at lunch so it was just us with Mullah and 3 camels in the arvo, rode at a fast pace to the next set of dunes with were the best ones yet, a lot bigger area and the dunes were higher. Plus seemed more isolated as well. Drunk whiskey and chatted before the rain came, made a tent this time with the tarp, was good. The next day was pretty cruisy headed to met up with the jeep in the afternoon which took us back into town.

Saw quite a bit of wildlife in the desert which was a little unexpected, lots of birds, including Peacocks, Eagles and Vultures. Foxes and deer. Along with all the domestic animals about, camels, goats, sheep and cows.

After the trip stayed a couple nights in the fort in Jaisalmer which is pretty impressive but falling apart. The rain had made a big mess, flushing dirt and shit everywhere, made me wish I had covered shoes. Weather was overcast the whole time which was a little disappointing. Had a good dinner with Ray and Megan though.