St Stephen's Day - the alternative way

Swim, sun bathe, driving range for golf, chocolate and more coconut, football watching, 10 pin bowling, a little bit of scooting, night time swim. Hmmmmm. Nice. And not a turkey curry in sight.

Photo: a Christmas dinner in front of me...

As it is a special day, we decided to go around the island in the opposite direction today and boy am I glad we did. Our little change in routine made the sun come out. We met a family of coconut pickers who we asked for a coconut, they discussed this and eventually pulled 3 off a tree to give to us, hacked a big hole in one and we drank it on the scooter as we went. It was a bit messy but how fresh is that?! Monty broke the shell so we could eat the flesh - it was all very surreal. Then we saw a snake dying in the middle of the road but mouth to mouth was clearly out of the question. We are staying at the Admiral Nelson English pub at Cheweng Beach and it looks as though the Christmas dinner will be pretty much like home as they run a carvery every day (except of course Mom is much better 'cooker' hehe). I will almost certainly be asleep by the time you all sit down to your family dinners but I will be thinking of you as I tuck into my prawn cocktail. I am going to have a look around the beach and maybe have a massage before then.

Koh Samui for Christmas

Monty and I pinned the tail on the donkey (so to speak) and chose Koh Samui for Christmas. It has taken a couple of days to find our feet but we are getting used to the place now. At first some blustery, overcast weather combined with a lack of accessible beach didn’t bode very well. The island is jaded and over developed and many of the businesses seem to be built well onto the beach, sometimes creating the illusion that the land they are on is reclaimed. We decided to entertain ourselves with the myriad of ‘adventure pastimes’ available to the Koh Samui tourist. Yesterday we went to see a disappointingly poorly inhabited and over priced butterfly garden (go to the Butterfly tree on Garnish Island in West Cork for much, much better) and I went to the fortune teller at the Big Budda beach and he told me some stuff about what colours to wear and avoid and he made me promise not to discuss some really interesting stuff so all that will be in the next posting LOL. We went around the island a couple of times on the geared scooter that Monty has rented and on which I had my first lesson today. Then we went go-carting and to the snake farm/show where I fell in love with an 8 foot length of muscle called Sammy (the snake) who gave me the best hug ever. The list of things to do also includes kayaking, fishing, croc farming, dirt track biking, quad biking, waterfall trekking, elephant trekking, bungi-jumping, abseiling over the jungle and kite flying - the list is endless and I am guessing that you will be able to imagine the ones I wont be engaging in. Tara for now.

All Budda’d Out in Bangkok

I had a great last day in Bangkok doing the tourist trail. I went up to Wat Pho Temple on the river boat and met up with a street seller who was keen to learn English. He sorted me out with a government tuk-tuk which took me to the Golden Budda, the Golden Mount and export shop and back to Wat Pho to see the vast number of Buddas there, including the reclining 97 meter fellow. I had a great time, even getting a chance to drive the tuk-tuk and it only cost me 40 baht (about 55p). It was getting a bit late in the afternoon as I took a walk to the nearby Grand Palace where I was intercepted by a well dressed gentleman who veered me away from the Palace as ‘it was about to close’ and I ‘was wearing shorts anyway…’and he steered me into another tuk-tuk with yet another itinerary. I will never know if I was being scammed or not but it was all very pleasant and I was only parted with 30 Baht for what ended up being a long and interesting shopping trip. Tam, my new driver, explained to me that for every shop he took me to, he would be given a gasoline voucher so we went to 6 or seven shops but they were all beautiful and some were more like museums. I saw some very lovely jewellery, jewel encrusted tapestries and carvings. Tam did take me to several Buddas, including the huge standing Budda. I went for a little walk in Kho San Road then to try and trade my novel and then met up with Monty to go for cocktails and jazz at the Shangri-La Hotel which was close to where we were staying and which gave me a chance to dress up in my Christmas smart duds. It was all very civilised and great fun. Edit 5/1/6 - I was scammed but it was very sweet

Cat's Lists - 3 monthly review (old habits...)

I haven't made a list for ages and it occurred to me that now would be a good time - it might help me to reflect a little as the first half of my time away draws to a close. I have four lists in mind (1) special moments - Monty's success in his exams/ Monty wearing sandals (hehe - thanks for the reminder Cathy)/ The fish dropping out of the sky at Monty's feet near the churches of Old Goa (from a birds beak but we didn't realise that straight away)/ Eating the insects with Monty and Poldi in Ao Nang/ Holding the hand of the local lady who helped me to cross the road on the way back from the Russian Market in Phnom Penh (experiencing traffic that drives 'the buddhist way' is quite a thrill)/ Asking John to speak with me for a half an hour when he walked into the Bondii Tree guest house (and then ending up on the bus with him the following morning to Siem Riep)/ My five hour conversation on that bus with the carpenter who didn't speak any English/ The glee on (14 year old street child entrepreneur in Siem Riep) Anna's face when Christian 'guessed' her name even though he hadn't yet met her/ 'Gambling' with the 2 young monks and Peter at the Banteay Srey Temple/ The Cambodian coconuts (flesh and all)/ Bayon (2) Things I would like to go back to see - Roulos Group of Temples/ Floating Village/ Battenambang/ Bamboo Train/ Sihanoukville/ Koh Lipe/ Koh Jum/ Rai Ley Beach/ More sunsets at Bayon. (3) Things to remember - Don't rush the sunrise; if you give it any time - give it extra an hour after you think its over/ Turn the sounds off on the camera. (4) Sad moments - Toul Sleng Genoside Museum Phnom Penh (photos of the victims) and Forensic Medicine Museum Bangkok (mummified convicted rapists on display)/ Bayon.

Planning for Christmas and the New Year

Happy Christmas everyone!!!! I have to keep this brief - I'm spending far too much time either on internet or playing with photos on the computer (this sort of technology wasn't around when you oldies went travelling and it's a right old distraction LOL). Hopefully we will go to Koh Chang for the time that we have left together and then I have no idea where I will head on to. I'm having a nosey around Banglamphu as I write this - there seems to be a party of some sort going on. Apart from the fact that I found the MBK shopping centre yesterday and met a really friendly lady from Singapore just now, all is calm, all is bright.

Back In Bangkok

Yesterday I made my first border crossing from Siem Riep over the Cambodia-Thai boarder to meet Monty for Christmas and New Year. Two of us had taken a taxi to the boarder and then a bus from there for the princely sum of about $20 each. We were on the road from 7.30am until about 8 in the evening but it was a good day. I have already made very provisional plans to meet someone in Laos in January so it should be easier for me to kick myself off then. Planning to set out around the sights tomorrow while Monty studies. X

Bayon Temple - sunsets and sunrises

I saw daybreak this morning again just after 5 at Bayon and went back to the smallest but most intricate temple that I have seen. We finished up this morning with a short tuk-tuk trip to the landmine museum. Now I am on a break and have just had a massage from a blind girl and a wander through the market. (see below: the Bayon 'nose to nose' pose) We will go back for sun set at the Bayon temple. The plan is to meet at 7pm tonight, our usual meeting place (hark at me) - the Temple Bar (Gedit???). X

Taking my breath away and then giving it back - The temples and the trees

I am having the most wonderful time in Siem Riep - completely unexpectedly - I thought if you saw one temple, you've seen 'em all (I know I'm a philistine). How wrong I was. I have met several lovely people and we meet every evening for a little while to discuss the events of the day so I am rediscovering my old people skills. I have had yet another lovely German travelling companion for today and it is a lot more fun than being on my own. The Temples are breath taking and so incredibly uplifting. I am up at 5am for sunrise at Bayon temple again tomorrow, then go to Bantaey Srei and then will pick a place to see a glorious sunset. Life is pretty good, X

Siem Riep

At the last minute, I took the 730am $4.50 bus to Siem Riep with John, from Canada who I met at the Bondii Tree guest house last night, and independant young lady traveller from Israel - Lital and got here about 2pm. Spent the whole journey having an extraordinary conversation with a Cambodian man who didn't speak a word of English. Booked into the Royal Guesthouse for $12 a night with all the mod cons. Feel very very tired but will go freshen up and then meet up with my new friends in an hour or 2. I have booked a tuk-tuk to take me to the temples tomorrow, starting at 5am to catch the sunrise and finishing at 6pm. There seems to be plenty to see and do here but there are more back packers than locals and the efforts of the locals, to get promises of business off new arrivals at the bus station, have to be seen to be believed. Fortunately, my young companions seem to have an idea about how things work so I am not being left to flounder in the chaos. X

Cambodia - getting comfy

Dear all, it sounds from your stories that I picked a good year to skip winter. Firstly A HUGE HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BEAUTIFUL MOM. So to my update; I am getting used to Phnom Penh, as is evidenced by the fact that having thought I would only last a few hours here, I am still here after 4 nights. The little fella I met, NAk, was a darling - absolute delight - although I was surprised that his little motor bike (moto) carried the 2 of us and my rucksack. He took me to the Killing Fields, the 'shooting range' and the Toul Sleung Genocide Museum. Shooting the Charlies Angels style colt45 was a bit of a disappointment and will go on the same list as eating the insect - box ticked, hopefully never to be repeated. NAk is gone to the countryside to be with his wife for a few days as their little girl has a fever. I may have paid him a little over the odds as well but whats a few dollars here and there. I couldn't find words to describe Phnom Penh when I first got here but I am sure that they have good times ahead as, despite all the killing and poverty, they are still so cheery and the weather is fantastic. 20,000 bodies were found in the mass graves, the city was emptied and many of the atrocities were carried out by children. Most of this happened in the 70's but the so called revolutionaries were never brought to justice and many of them died over the last few years or are still alive. Many of the more junior murderers were killed by their replacements and many of them just went back to their day jobs after the Vietnamese came and liberated the place - I feel even sorrier for the killers when I looked around the museums. Apparently, Pol Pot and the other leaders of the Kymer Rouge wanted to create a communist state faster than anywhere else and they did anything necessary to achieve this. People were really killed for showing affection to each other so whole families were wiped out - they even had special child sized shackles (but I didn't search these out although they were available to be seen). All that contrasts so sharply with the National Museum and the Royal Palace which survived and are splendid so photos will follow at another time. The thing that is most upsetting to me is that we are hearing about genocide in Darfur right now like its something that should be tolerated or managed carefully or something... my heart pounds with the hopelessness of it. The place I am staying in now - The $10 Bondii Tree Guesthouse is lovely - simple but with a good bed and mozi net and lovely restaurant. There is a shared bathroom which seems a bit strange and most of the people there seem to be journalists or workers of some sort. It is directly opposite from the Genocide Museum so lots of people come there in a sort of daze, for a breather, after looking around the gruesome stuff across the road. Tomorrow I will probably head on to Siem Riep depending on the return of my laundry. I need to work out whether to go by bus or boat - choices choices... I am heading to the Russian Market now, making the most of my compass and map. I hear all the bargains are there but I have little room in the rucksack so I wont be buying much.

Still alive

I had a great albeit very moving morning and will post more details later. I didn't want mom and dad worrying... X PS This is the target I used - notice the lack of holes.

AK47s

The new plan includes AK47s - I told ye someone should have come with me. I promise I will be careful. I'm more inclined towards a Charlies Angels's style weapon myself. XXX

Cat in Cambodia - Phnom Penh

I spent one night in the rather overpriced Renakse Hotel and another in Rory's Irish bar & guest house which are both right next to the Royal Palace and the Museum, which I went to see this morning. I walked a great deal over the past 2 days and had a few shocks, especially after the wonderful food in Bangkok, when I saw the flies all over the food and in the bags of sauce. I'm not licking my lips with my characteristic enthusiasm anymore but I'm sure my Slimming World leader will be delighted. I'm drinking lots of water and sugary drinks so I am sure I will survive. I went to Lazy Fish guest house last night (recommended in Guardian recently) and met a local rice and herb farmer/taxi-driver who may get me a local sim card so perhaps I will have more joy contacting people then. People are friendly but there is more pushing for business (esp of the transport variety) than there was in India. My new friend NAk came to pick me up on his little motor bike and he is supposed to be taking me to the Killing Fields, the Russian Market and the Toul Sleung Museum tomorrow. I think I will get a ferry up to Siem Riep, maybe try to get to Battenambang, and then blow this place (I had initially thought a month in each country would be good). That might change if my prayers are answered and a version of Thecla or one of my 'homeys' walks into my life and I can start calming down. I have walked shed loads since arriving as it is the only way I feel safe from the insects and the taxi touts - stand still without a mozi net and you're a goner - LOL. The smile is frozen on my face and I would quite happily carry a sign or a forehead tattoo saying ' no thank you', although everyone is very smiley even when I decline their service, something I didn't always feel in India. The poverty is amazing and there are lots of people with limbs missing and bandages still on. I hadn't thought about how recently this place started getting back to normal after the war and of course there are still lots of mines around. I went to the Central Market yesterday and walked for about three hours trying to find the Lazy Fish guesthouse (to give myself a purpose), eventually (rather proudly) resorting to my Paddy diving navigation skills and getting my compass out! The Boeung Kak lake is great and the cheap backpacker guesthouses completely obscure the view until you sit in one of their porches. The Lazy Fish has a little rowing boat which I have been promised a go on this afternoon, the place has a reputation for having a great view of bats feeding on the lake at dusk and the rooms costs $4 - there are 2 currencies here but almost everything can be paid for in Dollars. An Irish couple (on honeymoon) sat next to me for a while last night and we swapped a few stories. They are having a great time generally but they had a really bad time on the transport - the scams are becoming something of a regularity, with bus drivers 'selling' their coach loads to guesthouses when they arrive at the wrong destinations too late for the unsuspecting tourists to do anything. And the roads were awful too - Me thinks I am too long in ze tooth for all that real backpacker crack. I saw the expression somewhere that I find more to my taste - I am planning to be a 'flash packer'; both in terms of spending a tiny bit more and having civilised transport wherever I can smell a rat (even in the distance) and the time I spend places - in and out quick as a flash. I feel the need to point out that this mood is a big improvement on yesterday, when I was sorely tempted to call this a visa run and head back to Thailand for the King's birthday. I still might... Still Smiling Cat XXX

Hot Springs and Crystal Pools

We went to paddle in the 42 degree Hot Stream and swim in the natural Crystal pool Monty is off in an hour to Delhi and I leave early in the morning for Phnom Penh.

Insects, Crocs and Cat fish

Here follow the photos of me before and after eating a grass hopper which took a great deal of encouragement and is unlikely to be repeated - just tasted like a prawn shell is all. and feeding crocodiles and really attractive giant cat fish x

Long Tailed Boat to Chicken Island & Ko Poda

During our lovely time in Ao Nang, we stayed mainly in a place called PK Mansion, close to J Mansion which is in all the guidebooks. It had all the necessary comforts for 900Baht a night and they couldn't do enough to help people - whether it was posting cards or booking transport. We borrowed a cool box and hired a long tailed boat out to Chicken and Poda Islands off Ao Nang where we did some snorkling and saw some lovely fish, but just what is he steering the boat with, I ask you?!! In line with Maritime fishing advice Monty fed these rare fishies some double salted chilli cashew nuts to buy their affection... It was quite a day.

Lifes a beach

On this occasion I will let the photos do the talking as it is so amazing here I am at a loss for words. I finally stayed in a beach hut...

Happy Thanksgiving

especially to Niamh, Ciara, Finbarr and Deirdre!!!

My first proper beach hut in Ko Lanta

As per the plan, I took off on my own to Ko Lanta by ferry on Wednesday afternoon after waiting to get the laundry back. I was picked up from O Tooles in a minivan and the journey took about 4 hours so I arrived not long before sunset with no place to stay - IMPORTANT LESSON NO 1 - if you are going to arrive late make sure you know where you are going lest you have to sleep on the beach (as quite a few people are having to do in Phi Phi these days). I headed for The Sanctuary (much recommended) but alas they had no room so, on the advice of a German girl called Judith, off I struck accross the beach and over the rocks to the next beach until I found a place. I had broken a flip flop and it was more expensive than I hoped so I was missing home a bit that first night - having aircon in the room did help though. The following morning, I woke up in a very different mood and I could see what all the fuss was about. I will post some photos when I get a chance but the connection here is a bit slow and frankly I have better things to be doing than sitting in the internet cafe - hehehehehehe. I came back to The Sanctuary and I guess my enthusiasm to stay there melted them and they found me a room and guess who my next door neighbours are...Judith and her mate Nina. They are from Bavaria so we have spent many hours now discussing how Bavaria compares with Ireland and of course how fab the Germans were at hosting the World Cup which I attended way back when... I met another couple of English girls who have been to India with an Intrepid tour and they loved it so I might look into that although it is a bit over the budget. I wrote lots of post cards yesterday to mark my first night in a proper hut as I was a little concerned that I would be eaten. It was the best sleep I have had for ages and I tucked the mozi net in with maximum appreciation - now I feel I am doing the travelling thing. The next step is to make moves towards Railay beach further into Krabi district where I will be meeting Monty for his last week of freedom before he gets back to his studies in Delhi in December.

PHUKET

is great... On the 13th November we arrived at Patong Beach, a very, very developed tourist part of Phuket Province, so we moved to a beach next door the following day once Monty and Steve had had a look round on their scooters. The scenery is generally fantastic but I didn’t expect the hills to be so enormous and I sometimes have to close my eyes when the scooter takes the downward slope of a hill and a corner at the same time. We are in helmet wearing territory now and the ‘tourist’ police here enforce it strictly. We stayed in Kata Beach for a few days during which I did my Padi open water diving course – it was no joke I can tell you (especially to do it in 3 days) but I am sooooo happy that I did it and am looking forward to doing more underwater observation. It wasn’t hard at all once I got a bit used to it but I did have a few problems with ‘mask clearing’ and I have ongoing problems equalising the pressure on my bloomin’ ears so I wont be going very deep. I was really pleased to get to 12 meters. Monty and Steve did a deep wreck dive as part of their advanced course and they went down to30 meters where they saw a ‘man eating’ leopard shark and some big squid. My 4 dives were pretty tame by comparison but I did see a trigger fish which can get a bit mean when protecting its eggs. My instructor was a lovely and very professional and patient lady from Sweden who reminded me of Judy, Tracy, Anne Tully, Kirsi and my cousin Mary Clare at times so I felt very safe as she literally hauled me through the skills that I had to succeed in before she could say I was OK to pass - those of you at home in Adrigole will know I am not a natural water babe. Yesterday we moved to the Cork Room at the O Tooles ‘Irish’ guest house at Karon Beach (800Baht/night so about £12 between the 2 of us with air-con and telly and fridge and shower) and tomorrow I will strike off on my own for a few days to see Ko Lanta, Ko Jum and Ao Nang/Raleigh beach in the Krabi Province which has been recommended to me by Aidan. I leave Phuket by ferry tomorrow for the 3 hour first leg of the journey and then meet back up with Mont at Ko Samui sometime at the weekend. It is very hot over here, and I think the whole place can’t help but be a bit commercialised but I love it. I managed to do laundry today, get to the bank, exchange a book, book the ferry trip – tonight we are going to see the new James Bond film at the local flix; its all busy and I am having difficulty finding time to get to the beach so I better sign off and make tracks as the cooler evening temperature sets in. There is so much to Thailand and the visa I have is only for a month so I am thinking now that I will go to Cambodia etc at the start of December and come back to Thailand for a few weeks before my flight home to see the North of the country. x