Kimonos in Kyoto: National Day 2018

My hostel in Kyoto was right next to the train station on the 10th floor so I had a nice view of the city. I had found an article about weird and wonderful hostels around the world and this one was one of the ones featured in it. Book and Bed hostel was exactly how i imagined sleeping in a library

would be. It's a small place with only about 20 beds to get into which you have to climb through a hole in a bookcase. It was so chilled out and quiet that it was a nice change from the busy chaos of Osaka.

I was both lucky and unlucky in Kyoto as the weather wasn't great. On the one hand, it kept most of the people off the streets so i could walk in an undisturbed peace. However this meant that all of the restaurants and covered areas were crammed with people.

Kyoto is a very picturesque place with whole areas of 'traditional Japanese culture' which looked pretty even if they're not authentic but instead manufactured. I haven't been able to find out which is the case, but it doesn't really matter. The annoying thing was the Kimono wearing tourists who were trying to get the perfect Japanese picture. I have no problem with people wanting to take nice pictures, I know i do the same, it was just the sheer quantity of them. Hundreds of people would swarm the streets in the breaks in the weather and, as they were on a time limit until the next shower, would get angry and sometime rude or aggressive if you happened to wander into their shot. I tried to stay out of as many as I could but it really was impossible and I had to just accept getting nasty looks as I walked past people.

Kyoto and Osaka are about as different as two places can be, which is impressive as they are only an


hour apart. Osaka is the busy shopping center of flashing lights and chaos whereas Kyoto is a chilled out temple filled traditional cobbled street labyrinth.

I changed my plans to have two nights instead of one in Kyoto. Many of the attractions of Osaka were closed after the typhoon so it made very little difference to my overall trip. It actually worked out well as I was able to get to the two most beautiful places very early in the morning before all the crowds and get to see it in all its glory.

My first early morning adventure was to the Fushimi Inari Shrine which is only a little way out of town. Google maps is a wonderful thing that I appreciate every time I leave China, I say this as it saved me from getting lost on the side of the mountain many times. The shrine consists of 10,000 red gates spread over trails all over the side of a mountain. From what I could gather, all of the trails looked the same but were different length and lead to a different road for the exit. I was advised to get there early enough to avoid the tour groups so I got up at yuck o'clock and got lost on the train system for about half an hour before stumbling across a lost couple who were also heading to the shrine. I followed them and luckily it all worked out fine.

After walking for miles around the shrine I headed back to Kyoto for a quick nap before going in search of temples. As it happened, I failed to find temples but instead just picked a direction and walked.  Kyoto is smaller than Osaka but somehow still has a bunch of different districts, old, new, shopping, food and parks.

The next morning I went in search of the famous bamboo forest. I had seen pictures of the forest when it was busy and knew that I did not want to see that, so I went early in the morning and had the place between me and only a few others. A very good decision!

After my trip in a trip to Kyoto, I went back to Osaka for a further day and a bit of shopping and sushi before heading back to Kunming and a mass of classes.

October in Osaka: National Day 2018

National Day rolled round again and as I take pretty much every opportunity to get out of kunming that comes my way nowadays, I booked a trip. My original plan was Sri Lanka but the airlines

messed than one up but gave me a pretty nice compensation
discount code thing. As a result my flights to Japan were stupidly cheap. Already a good trip in my book. I booked 6 days in Osaka with a few days in Kyoto in the middle.

I arrived in the early afternoon on the Monday, spent a little time in the airport trying (and failing) to get my head around the ATM's and the trains into the city before actually going in search of one. My internet research had left me more than a little confused about the train system, a feeling that didn't lessen in my week in the city. Osaka and the surrounding area has a few different rail systems, networks, companies and all have very long names which are impossible to remember. I gave up most times and asked the people wandering about with clipboards.

The first thing I did was head straight both tourist information center and ask someone who knows what they are talking about. The woman was fantastic and loaded me up with maps, train tourist travel cards, discount code and coupons. It turned out that there had been a pretty hefty typhoon the day before i arrived that had damaged, and closed for repair, some of the places I wanted to visit. It wasn't a huge blow but made for a change of plans.

If i have the time, I always try to spend my first day in a new place just wandering about and taking in the general feel and pace of the city. With 6 days I had plenty of time, so I picked a place on the map and just walking in its general direction. Subways are great for getting to different places easily but I think you miss so much of the city, true some the lines were above ground but most weren't. As it turns out, I was staying very close to the "world famous" shopping area of Dotonbori. During the day, this area was fairly laid back and not too busy, at night however was a different beast. It seems that the lights and general excitement of
the whole area make this a very popular tourist spot, something I was not prepared for. Regardless of the crowds, which only seemed to gather at the central crossroads, it soon became my favourite place to people watch. Osaka is famed for its shopping above everything else and its easy to see why. nearly every station was attached to some form of shopping center. Many were linked by long underground shopping streets, it is almost possible to cross the whole city without going above ground (which is the case in TaiPei). Excellent people watching places all of them!

When I wasn't watching the crowds swarm past, I checked out the local attractions. Top of my list was the aquarium which is rated as one of the best in the world. I love aquariums! If i'm in a city that has one, I guarantee I'll go. Osaka overtook ShangHai as my favourite and is the current top runner. Whoever designed the place deserves a medal. It's a huge three floor space with one massive central tank that the rest of the building circles. So for the vast majority of your time in the aquarium, you will always have the same tank on your right. Opposite are dozens of smaller tanks filled with all sorts of aquatic wonders. I saw
dolphins, rays, Japanese Giant Spider crabs, jellyfish and loads more.

The central tank was the highlight for me, WHALE SHARKS! I have long been fascinated by these humongous creatures and I have always wanted to see one. Yes, I am aware in captivity is not the same but its something! I spent several hours here in the early morning quiet and had a great time.

As I was leaving, I got a message from a friend (who had seen  message I posted about the aquarium) from Kunming who was coincidentally in Osaka for the week and was only a subway stop away. We arranged to meet and then spent the afternoon together.

I had planned on going to Kyoto that afternoon but as it was less than an hour on the train away, I

rearranged and we went to Osaka Castle together. The castle was a busy but pleasant place in the middle of a nice big park so we could wander without there being too many people. We spent a few hours in the park before I darted back to the hostel to grab some stuff and get to Kyoto.

Returning to the homeland: Summer 2018

This one is basically just pictures as I have many and too much to say. So I won't.
In my ten days in England I managed to:

1. See Ali in London and visit the science museum




2. See Karen (and family) in Bristol after an afternoon in the Aquarium and a fair few drinks.

3. See the new Mary Rose museum and walk about the dockyard

and plenty more. 

Boiling in Bangkok: Summer 2018

After a string of plans changing on me, I found myself with a three day weekend WITHOUT CLASSES, a discount code for international flights and nothing booked.

The only place with flights from Kunming that worked with the weekend plans was Bangkok. As I hadn't been there yet it seems like a good idea and I booked it.

Now, I realise this trip was a while ago now but things got away from me a bit and I'm behind. My apologies.

Back to the point. Bangkok!

I have been to Thailand before but to a different city so I had a vague idea of what to expect. I was wrong. Bangkok is a huge sprawling city with both modern and traditional mixing everywhere I looked. It also has some of the best food I have ever eaten!

I had a late flight, (arriving after 2am), with immigration and customs taking ages. I had told the hostel in advance and they picked me up from the airport. I arrived at my hostel to find the security guard asleep in a chair at the front door waiting for me.

I booked into a small but well rated place in ChinaTown, yes I know I was after a break from China but China Town in other countries is something very different. Actually, I think this one is my favourite. Right outside my hostel was a seafood street which was sleepy hollow in the day but as soon as the sun went down it exploded into activity and chaos.

I only had three days in Bangkok so I made the most of the opportunities I had. Nearly all of my time was spent in a market of shopping center somewhere. I wandered and nibbled constantly. One day my phone said I had walked 35,000 steps in one market!

It was pretty hot and humid during the day, so I copied the locals and sat in the subway stations to cool off. It turned out to be a great place for people watching and sitting with something to eat or drink between heading out into the heat and sun again.

One of the places I most enjoyed was the weekend market. From where i was staying it was a short 15 minutes on a subway which was mostly empty and easy to navigate. The market itself was mostly indoors so I was out of the direct sun, but it was so big and maze like that I was always wandering and never saw the same shop twice. Apparently this place feels everything from furniture to pets to clothes to musical instruments. Its vast!

I looked on the map after going on the first day, 4 hours walking covered less than a quarter of the place. It was another fantastic place for people watching as tour groups would get dropped off but locals would do their weekly fruit and veg shop. It was all going on and very chaotic but loads of fun.

Bangkok has quickly risen in my list of places I want to go back to, and as its so cheap and easy to get to I think I can safely guarantee a return journey and soon. I barely saw any of the city and would very much like to.

Barmy BaMei: May 2018

The entrance to the village with boat for scale.

A long weekend rolled round so Lora, Audrey and I decided to visit the relatively unknown village of BaMei. 

BaMei has claimed to be the inspiration for a  fable written by poet Tao Qian in AD 421, in which he described an idyllic hamlet isolated from the rest of the world, where man and nature lived in harmony.  No-one knows for certain if this is indeed true but after visiting I would say it is. 

BaMei is about 30Km from GuangNan which conveniently has a stop on the newly constructed high speed railway line from Kunming to Guilin. The train station is miles out of  town, over an hour on the subway from my house, but the journey is under two hours, so it is still faster than getting the bus. 

One of the "window" in the cave. 

The original plan was to spend the night in GuangNan and then get the bus to the village the next morning. However, as with all plans, I messed up and we had to rebook Audrey's train ticket of the following morning. Lora and I stayed in a hotel in the center of town and we grabbed a taxi from the station the next morning. 

The village square. 

Once you arrive at the entrance to the village and buy tickets, its a lengthy process to get in. 

First you walk down a small dirt road to a bunch of horses and grumpy drivers.
Then you bounce down a road to the river. Once at the river (after posing for pictures) you clamber into small rickety boats and head off on the river into the cave. We were in the boat for about 20 minutes, 3km, through a huge cave. At points it was lit by "windows" in the cave roof, and at other times it was pitch black. Lora chose this time to tell us of the horror movie filmed in the cave and how no-one survived the monster living in the water under us. 


Our boat driver had a sister who owned a guest house in the village, so she met us and took us to her place. It was basic but clean, cheap and reasonable comfortable. 

From the top of one of the restaurants. Pretty much the whole valley. 

The village is surrounded by peaks on all sides, so it is quiet and (except the river) cut off from the rest of the world. I had been told it was largely undeveloped and still had its connections to traditional China. I was misinformed! It's still nice and quiet but the entire village is guesthouses and restaurants. There is nowhere to go and nothing to do other than sit and take in the green of the surroundings. we found beer and a quiet place and chilled for the afternoon. 

As our train was early afternoon the following day, there was no need to get up early. We ordered our chicken for lunch then pretty much carried on from where we left off the day before. The village is spaced out along a small track about a mile long. It's basically a one way system, horse and boat in, walk that way to get out. We wandered along the road and found the next boat, chilled for a little bit through another cave and thought that was it. We were then faced with another horse, slightly confused we got in and carried on, only to find another boat with ore caves. All in all the village trip involved three boats, 2 horses, 2 taxis, 2 trains and 2 hours on the subway. 



There is nothing to do there in terms of activities or entertainment but for me, sitting in the green countryside was plenty good enough. A very fast trip but completely worth it.  

Phu Quoc: Spring Festival 2018

I got bored waiting for Lora and Dave, (see below)

Picture time (see above)

From Cambodia I flew to Ho Chi Minh for a few days. HCM is fast become a home away from home (away from home) as I know the city pretty well.

I stayed in the same area as when I was there with Mam and Dad so everything was very easy. The hotel I go to is in a little alley off the main bar street so convenient but quiet.

Whilst in HCM I had very little that needed doing except chilling out and buying Tom some more shirts. Shirts bought, I chilled by or in the pool and ate in the food market. Bliss!

I was in HCM for 4 days before heading off to Phu Quoc island for the last leg of my trip. The original plan had been me and Lora meeting on the island, but then Dvid said he was coming too, then Jacki said she was coming swell and our band of two doubled. I booked us two rooms in a hostel near the beach with a swimming pool, what else do you need?

We had four days of beaches and seafood. All the seafood! Nothing but seafood! SO much seafood! It was great!

There isn't masses to do on the island except sit, eat, drink, chill and watch the sunsets. We did a lot of all of these!

Me and Jacki fighting

Cambodia 4. Siem Reap and Angkor Wat: Spring Festival 2018

Siem Reap and its nearby Angkor Wat is obviously the main attraction in Cambodia and is the countries 'must see' place.














I got the impression that a lot of people, when visiting Cambodia, will only visit Siem Reap as part of a stop over to another place. The city does well out of the tourists and as a result it is more together and organised. Public transport exists, traffic lights and rules the road are followed, pavements are for people and not just for tuktuks to blast down avoiding the traffic, ATM's are easier to find and accept international cards, hostels are everywhere and the city as a whole is cleaner.

My hostel was more of a hotel with a hostel bar and swimming pool area. After the quiet of Kampot and Kep, I was ready to talk to some new people. I had my own room but the bar was great and always full of people.

I needed up getting tips from loads of people about the temple complex, to the point I started to dread going. As can be the case, the 'must see' day trips and really not all that enjoyable. I felt the same way about the Great Wall and the Forbidden City. Its a long day with lots of traveling, hot as hell and usually crowded, but you 'must see' it.

I ended up booking a tuktuk and driver through the hostel who took me on a  highlights only tour. My driver was nice enough but was obviously bored with the temples and drove like a mad man between the spots. This actually worked in my favor as I am sure he shaved half an hour off my day, plus the breeze in the back of the cab was well needed.

We left at 9, bought tickets, and arrived to the complex for about 10. At this point in the day it wasn't too hot (30 degrees, after 2 weeks I was getting used to the heat) and so I could walk around fairly comfortably. By the end of the day, this changed and the burning hot sun with no shade was absolutely killer.

The complex is huge, reports vary depending on where lines are drawn but 16 square kilometers seems to be the average size. Inside the complex is a vast network of roads and shortcuts, My driver seemed to know where he was going but I couldn't even keep up on the map. We visited 6 areas in 4 hours which brought me to the very brink of madness. Temples all look the same after the third and my driver was having none of the 'I just want to go home' argument I put forward.

The biggest temple is the Angkor Wat temple, it turns out each one has a different name and Angkor Wat is a temple not, as i thought, the name of the complex. This was my last stop so I was not really in a position to completely appreciate it.

If I had time and was so inclined I would have bought the three day ticket and biked around instead of hiring the driver, but I didn't know about this and didn't really have time. If a return opportunity presents itself I'll think about it, otherwise I consider the Cambodia box ticked.



Siem Reap itself is a small city with a backpacker/tourist area in the middle. It has a huge night market, complete with food, and the bar street. The whole area is crammed with people and fairly chaotic but fun to walk around. My hostel was only a 15 minute walk from here so I could go for food, back to hostel for a swim and then back in the evening for more people watching.

Shopping wise Cambodia had nothing new to offer, I saw all the same stuff as I have seen in Vietnam and Thailand but it was fun looking anyway.

Cambodia 3. Kep: Spring Festival 2018

Kep from Kampot is only about a 20 minute tuktuk ride away, so not a difficult travel day.

I had booked into a small bungalow, which turned out to be more of a hobbit house. It was a small, round stone thatched hut surrounded by trees. Quiet would be an understatement!

Kep claims to be home to an internationally award winning beach, a rival to Thailand or Vietnam. They are guilty of false advertising. Yes, there is a beach but that is about as close as it gets. It's a stretch of about 100 meters of orange sand, rocks and lots of rubbish. There is absolutely potential for this beach, it just needs a fair amount of TLC.

All of Cambodia is the same, everywhere you look is piles of rubbish and plastic. China has battled most of this by implementing the recycling for cash scheme, I think this would work here too. Like I said, the beach could be nice if it was cleaned up a little bit. It could be ever better if the monkeys could be controlled too. They wandered about the beach stealing everything that they could find and run away with. I watched them for ages from a beach side snack place. Although I am sure they were irritating for the people on the beach, they were highly entertaining for me to watch.


 One favourite sight was one morning getting up and heading to breakfast, walking in on the owner and his wife trying to talk a monkey into cooperation. The monkey was on the pool table in the middle of stealing the cue ball. Apparently this was the second time this had happened. Breakfast and a show!


With the beach being a bit of a bust, I went to investigate the crab market. Kep is famous for its crabs, which explains the giant space invasion statue, and nearly all (90%) of Cambodia's seafood goes thought the market here. It was right on the water so boats would just turn up and sell from the side. I love seafood and spent ages wandering about and taking in the sights and smells (not all good smells though.)

Running along the waters edge from the market in the direction of the beach, was dozens of little restaurants and bars. All had tables on the water and all served mountains of seafood. From the tables I could watch the trading and arguing in the market without having to be in the middle of the chaos. Things could get a little heated when prices were being negotiated .

Kep is a really small place that is trying to cash in on the beach nearest to Phnom Penh tourist money. Its not there yet but there are signs of rapid growth. All along the water from the market round to the next small town, about 3 miles, are huge luxury looking hotels being built. Some are nearly finished and others are still holes in the ground, but after chatting to the owner of the bungalows, things get built quickly. I can't imagine it will be long before Kep works its way up the 'top things to see in Cambodia' list.

 I walked around the coast to the next village/town following the coast walkway as far as I could. At times it disappeared and I had to climb over fences to find my way around. At other times it just stops and retracing steps was necessary. It wasn't the most picturesque walkway but it did. The next town was even smaller than Kep and despite being so close, is completely ignored by the tourists down the road. I found a nice little bar on the beach and settled in with my boom for a few hours before walking back around the coast.


 All in all Kep was a disappointment for the beach but it more than made up for it with the seafood and the market.

Next it was back to Phnom Penh for a night before flying to Siem Reap. I have heard the buses are getting better but I was on a time limit and found amazingly cheap flights. A 40 minute $30 flight when compared to a ten hour $12 bus journey seems like a pretty good deal to me.

The journey back to Phnom Penh was as uncomfortable as on the way down but its still only 4 hours, I managed.