Archive for November, 2002
I’m here!! Made it to New Zealand FINALLY after 4 plane rides from Bangkok – first to Jakarta, then Bali, then last minute to Melbourne after deciding that I didn’t want to spend the night in Bali and possibly be stuck there for a few days waiting for a flight (3 others did the same). It was an overnight flight to Melbourne arriving at 7am the next morning. From there we got lucky and were put on a Qantas flight direct to Auckland, The 4 of us were thrilled, and miraculously the luggage made it the whole way too.
I arrived in Auckland yesterday with my bicycle and massive duffel bag and after a thorough search from customs over my tent and bicycle tires (looking for dirt or foreign insects), I was released into the airport. And it was so great to be greeted by someone for a change! My friend Rebecca who I met last year in Thailand was there to pick me up. I was so happy! It was really good to see her again. We got all my stuff into her car and she took me to her flat in Auckland and it was so nice to be in a house and not a guesthouse, hostel, or bungalow! I can’t explain how happy I was to sit on a couch in a living room with a beer and have a chat with Rebecca. We spent the afternoon doing just that, and then ventured out for the only destination I had in mind – the supermarket.
But first we stopped by one of the hostels in town looking for my friend James from the UK who I first met in Ko Lipe, Thailand and then met up again in Byron Bay a few months ago and he’s now here in New Zealand traveling around as well. He knew I was arriving in Auckland but didn’t know I was coming by so it was a surprise. I think he was more than happy to have 2 girls stop by his hostel with a car offering to take him away for a few hours!
The 3 of us went to the supermarket together and then went back to Beck’s place to make dinner. Rebecca made us a local NZ cuisine, called Kumara, which are sweet potatoes cut thick and baked and eaten with sour cream. We chowed on chips, cheese, olives, and bread and I was in heaven! A good evening with great people was the perfect way to spend my first night in New Zealand.
Today is Thanksgiving and my turkey dinner was actually pasta with bruschetta and wine which we made at the house with Becks and her friend Ro. I was more than happy with that meal! I’ll call home tomorrow to say hello to the family; since we’re 19 hours ahead here it’s still the day before Thanksgiving at home!
November 28th, 2002
Well, Jakarta wasn’t exactly at the top of the list for the world tour, but here I am. Actually I’m on a plane OUT of Jakarta very soon. See, I was scheduled to fly from Bangkok to Auckland today with a stop in Bali, but I’m flying on Garuda Indonesia Airlines, and as you can imagine, there are not exactly lines of people heading to Bali or anywhere in Indonesia at the moment. So they’re been forced to cancel a lot of their flights. In Bangkok there was a swarm of confusion at the check-in line while the airline employees kept going into their little huddles and meetings until finally after one hour of everyone standing in line doing nothing, they cancelled the flight to Bali and put us all on a flight to Jakarta. Well ok, at least it’s in the right direction (towards Auckland), but I knew better than to ask for any further information because they were all clueless anyway and stressed out about having to deal with irate passengers. Worked out good for me though because I was able to sneak my bicycle AND my monster duffel filled to the GILLS (with a backpack, tent, 2 sleeping bags, stove, pots, rear panniers, handlebar bag, water bottles, sneakers, and clothes inside just to name a few of the items) on the check-in scale without so much as a second glance. And when I got on the plane I understood. It was a massive 747 and with less than 50 passengers, we all could have sat in first and business class and still had seats in between us. In fact the extra kilograms in my bag probably helped to stabilize the take-off and landing.
Anyway it was a very rushed goodbye to Thailand and the Land of Smiles after the hold-ups in the check-in line and I barely had time to get through customs and change money before the flight was boarding. Luckily though I had time to buy a mini-bottle of wine since I knew there would be no alcohol service on a Muslim airline.
Finally left Bangkok on the 3-hour flight to Jakarta. In Bangkok they told us we’d get a flight to Bali from Jakarta and I was hopeful but sceptical. Well, we got here and the airport was DESERTED. I can tell you first hand that there are no tourists in Jakarta, Indonesia. Reminded me of when I left JFK last October – just plain deserted. So the scheduled boarding on our flight to Bali was 5:20pm. Well 5:20 came and went and 5:50 (departure time) came and went and nothing happened. Finally at 6pm the airline announced that the plane would leave at 7pm and we were all offered a free transit dinner at the sky lounge restaurant. That was pretty cool.
Everyone (the whole 40 people) went from the gate to the restaurant with our little transit passes to get some grub. As for me, I wasn’t really hungry and the food was rather unappealing, and I kept thinking that I really just fancied a beer anyway. So that’s what I did – I used my dinner coupon on beer at the bar. I got one for free and paid for another, but I thought it was well worth the money. There is not a better stress-reliever for the weary traveller in the world. And I had to laugh over the luxury of it all, thinking back to Lao when waiting 3, 4, or 5 hours for a pick-up to fill with passengers was absolutely normal. I don’t think they would understand the concept of complimentary transit meals in Lao. Mind you it would only cost about 15 cents to buy your own meal anyway and the food would actually be good.
Two Bintang drafts later and I was suddenly feeling much better about the flight/ no flight situation. I mean who really cares anyway; it’s not like I don’t have time, and I got to see an amazing sunset from the airport terminal in Jakarta, so life is good.
So I am now actually getting ready to take off on the 1.5-hour flight from Jakarta to Bali, but the word on the street is that the Bali to Auckland flight has indeed been cancelled, so it looks like I’ll have to spend a night in Bali and hope that they run the flight tomorrow. I did say I was up for some adventure again and it seems as if it’s panning out already.
Bali should be interesting.
Sunset in Jakarta
…waiting for the next flight
November 26th, 2002
The last 10 days in Ko Lanta have flown by. It feels like only yesterday I was on the night train to Trang and now here I am heading back to Bangkok. A full dose of sun, sand, and sea was exactly what I needed to bring me out of my travel’funk’. I feel recharged, excited to be travelling again, and excited for the next destination, New Zealand.
I should be in Bangkok tomorrow morning after a 14-hour train ride, and then I’ll spend the next 3 days getting my last massages and pedicures, eating my last curries and green papaya salads, buying my last Buddhas and fisherman pants, and packing my bags. Actually I shouldn’t say my’last’ anything because I’m sure to be back in Asia again, but probably not for 13 months the next time. I’m feeling equally sad about leaving the things about Asia I love and excited to get to the mountains, adventure, and western culture of New Zealand. I’ve got a lot of last minute running around to do but hopefully I’ll have time to catch a movie at the Gold Class theatre (complete with reclining seats and full bar) and enjoy the sights of Bangkok a bit.
So, watch out Kiwis, I’m heading your way!
Celebrating Loi Krathong with friends from the Sanctuary
November 22nd, 2002
How quickly I’ve gotten myself back into Beach Bum mode here on Ko Lanta. The days have flown by once again and I’m filled with long walks and great sunsets and surrounded by nice people once again. I love this place! I’m staying at a different place this time, but still on the same beach and in the same vicinity as my old bungalow. This time I’m staying in a thatch bungalow with a porch (a must for the hammock) and a view of the sea all for $4/night.
I’ve seen a lot of ‘regulars’ show up again, lots of the same folks I met last year, and it’s been so much fun catching up with folks and finding out where they’ve been since I’ve seen them last. Renata from Switzerland has been to Malaysia and China and is resting up here before heading to Sri Lanka. Alaiy from England has been working in the outback of Australia. Dominique from England has been hanging out on the beaches of Thailand (still!). Laura from Scotland has been in Australia, and there are others who are expected to show up soon. And my Thai friends, people I met at the Sanctuary and a few other places last year – it was great to be welcomed back with big hugs and smiles and ‘good to see you’s. I made the right decision to come back here for my last few days in Asia. Feels good to be in a great place. Only a few more days left to enjoy this and then I’ll be heading (reluctantly) back to Bangkok to catch my flight to Auckland, New Zealand on the 26th November.
The view from my hammock!
My home away from home
The deserted beaches of Ko Lanta
November 18th, 2002
Previous Posts