G'Day Everyone!!!

Sue: I have arrived now in the Gold Coast, Brisbane and staying with my mum & dad in their luxurious holiday apartment! It feels like heaven after backpacking for the last 4 months!
There are some many facilities that I have missed such as:
A bath!!!! Not seen one of them, just a shower or a bucket of water in some places!
Washing machine & dryer......have had to pay for a laundry service so far, so taking full advantage of this!
Fully fitted kitchen, so able to have good old fashioned english food which I have missed!
and lots more! of course apart from all that its great to see ma & pa too!!!

We have visited a town called Tweed Heads, they have 2 time zones across the street from one another, as its on the border of Queensland & NSW so we caught the bus there which took about 30 mins to get there, but when we arrived we had to change our clocks to an hour later! Bet when people are late for work they have used that excuse before!
We also visited Point Danger where Captain Cook's memorial is based and it tells you the story of how he made his discoveries!

Yesterday we visited a wildlife sanctuary! It was such a good fun day out!
There were lots of the typical aussie animals that you might expect such as
kangaroos, koalas, possums, wombats, crocodiles, dingoes, snakes etc.......photos to follow!
Interesting fact....did you know that a Koalas typical day is up to 80% sleeping, 20% eating and 1% moving around!! Now thats what I call "THE LIFE", how nice would that be?!
They are so cute and cuddly and we had our photo with George the Koala who weighed 8kg!

Kangaroos who are female have a harder time, as from the age of 2 they tend to have 3 babies to look after at one time. They produce 2 sets of milk, so 1 for the pinky in the pouch, 1 for the young joey who is on foot but still needs milk from his mother and then the 3rd baby who is an embryo ready when there is room in the pouch!

I had a close encounter with a two headed lizard too, it looks like it has 2 heads, but one is its bum, the idea being if a predator attacks it, thinking its the head when actually its the bum, the lizard can whiz around and surprise them with its real mouth!!! Cool.......................mum called it a Push me Pull me!

Today we have had a relaxing day, the weather so far has been hot hot hot!!! We have been to Surfers Paradise Beach, although not many surfers for some reason!!

Gav is now in China with Don so hoping to hear some stories from him soon! No doubt the whiskey has been out with you two!! Say hello to Jennifer from me, sorry we didnt get to meet.

So come on Munners, what have you been up to?!

Our Plans

Sue: Hello everyone!!
So we are finally leaving Thailand after having 3 fantastic months here!
I cant believe where the time has gone, we have stayed much longer than planned but that is what its all about, moving away from schedules as you never stick to them!

I fly out to Brisbane, Australia tomorrow where I will meet up with Mum & Dad for a couple of weeks and Gav will fly to China to stay with his brother, Don.

The plans have had to change a little bit due to timings, so Gav will stay in China working to earn some pennies for the next leg of the trip and I will stay with Tracey & Steve in Auckland, New Zealand until we can meet up again on the east coast of Oz to continue this adventure!

Good news for you avid readers, is there will be double the stories from us both!!

Some Photos

Gav:Hey folks. Just a few piccies from our crappy disposable camera! From the top left:
We went to the Correction Museum last week. The prison was knocked down a few years ago to make way for a funky little park but many of the buildings are still there. This was a pretty hard core prison in Bangkok and we saw all the methods of torture that the Thais used to use against their prisoners.(link to virtual tour http://www.corkscrew-balloon.com/misc/prison/1a.html)

The dark pictures are in the forensic museum at the hospital here.It was weird! Cases full of skulls of people who'd been shot, different body parts in formaldahide.I doubt that we could get away with it in England, but it's a bit like the top floor of Madam Tuasauds in Blackpool....but for real.Sue's stood next to Thailands most notorious serial killer (don't worry he's pickled). Siu Yup he was called.Apparantly he used to eat people. We were speaking to our Thai mate here who told us when he was a kid his mother used to joke that if he stayed out too late he would be eaten alive by Siu Yup! What a great sense of humour??!!! He is still being counselled.
I'm stood next to the largest testicles in the world, which was whipped of this guy after he died. It could of been the worlds biggest T-bag for all we knew.The jungle villages over here are open to all kinds of disease and this was Elephantitis. (link- http://www.bangkok-photos.com/frameme.php?page=bangkok-museums.htm )
The middle two are on the site of the correction museum. It's really strange because you've got this serene little park in the middle of quite a poor area of Bangkok and the when the Thai authorities knocked down the old prison they left the look-outs up, just to remind the people I think.

The bottom one is the only picture I got at the refugee camp and thats Henry, a yankie guy, getting in the way!Top time there, we met some great people. Heres a youtube link to a similar camp not far from this one-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrZ7E-ts7eU. I'll post more soon just going out for something to eat (not that you're really interested in that)

Jammin at Wendys

A few piccies from before we went to the Burmese border with some mates of ours jammin a few tooons outside our hostel.......until4 in the morning. Jeremy was from South Africa and had some tremendous stories .....he had a top job over ther and just decided one day that he wanted to pack it all in and travel, he's been all over the place and we put the 'world to rights' on many a night. Tjerk was a top man, the only person I ever met who gets shinier as he gets more drunk-good guy. We met him here a few weeks ago and luckily enough we've all come back to Bangkok at the same time. Our guesthouse is in the backpacking area of Siam Square, but it's really expensive to go out here so you just get some cheap beer from the fridge in reception and away you go. Have the Craic!

Shiny Samuri Swords!

Just to follow on from Gav's last entry about the scary men out at night with the samuri swords in Maesot......well the next night we went out again, we had asked everyone we spoke to that day, who the men were and were they protecting us?? etc

Everyone we asked including the hostel owner didnt have a clue what we were talking about.......so we ventured out again sober this time and you are not gonna believe this...................but we realised this time they were not scary swords BUT........... LONG WALKIE TALKIE ANTENNAS!!!!!!!!!!

We had a good laugh about it as did the rest of the crowd when we told them what it was!! So thats all folks!!

Visit to Burmese Refugee Camp

Gav: Ok so last ime I blogged I said that we were going to try and get to a nusery or orphanage. Well when we left here last night and got back to the hostel the one of the guys there said that they were a few short for a run to the refugee camp here. The thing is, this place is kept under wraps by the Thai gov and it's not a place that tourists know about never mind get int-only UN aid workers and alike.
So we obviously accepted and had a beer with the guy at the guest house to make sure it was safe. Afetr an hour or so we deided to get some supplies from the local store and strolled out of the hostel. As we were walking Sue turned to me and said 'You know what, i feel so much safer here than I did at the Siam Hotel' (the hotel on the next street that we had stayed the previous night). Just as she said that, aguy walked past in a bomber jacket and black pants carrying a shiny samuri sword. On every junction to the store (about 500m away there was a guard with a sword! So we s$aT ourselves and laughed our way back to the hostel to get ready for the next days trip!We have since found that this is local security. I said to Sue last night as we were walking along 'Yeah it's pretty scary but I think that there on our side!' .Well it seems that they are. There's lots of secrets that this town keeps and like our landlord at the moment says 'You would need a lomg time here to understand the area...and even then you wouln't fully understand!
So be prepeared, pretend you're back in school and I'll give you a brief history lesson.........
Burma (or Myanmar whatever you wanna call it) is a military dictatorship which in this scenario means that they basically want everyone to follow their rules (like em or not) If you don't then it means that you'll probably be tortured or worse. So the border town where we are in Thailand is just next to the Burmese area of Karen. Now, the Karens are split up into two groups (are you taking all this in at the back Hewitt?) The Buddhist Karens and the Christian Karens. In order to keep their land the Buddhist Karens have signed a peace treaty with the dictatorship. The Christian Karens haven't and because of which have had their life made hell (Bromley and Rymes-stop giggling, if the joke is so funny why don't you come out to the front of the class and tell everyone?). Their land has been taken and many people have been slautered in the process (basically you get a warning and if you don't leave your home you get horrendous things happen). So Burmese government keep taking more and more land off them and persecuting the Karens. So the Karen rebels (keep awake Statham)live in the jungle areas and are an army in themselves. But the other people of this aea who want a nice peaceful life cannot, cos they are scared to death by the situation so they come into Thailand, over a river and claim asylum or become refugees. They have nothing. So the place we went to today was a refugee camp for displaced Karens (of all ethnic backgrounds)who just want to live in peace and raise their families. It was a real eye opener. There was a Thai armoured vehicle paroling as we approached the entrance.It was a real eye opener.(Keep up Sutton)
Walking around the camp of around 50-60,000 people. It was like a city built into the surrounding mountains and valleys. We went to the hospital which was like a military field hospital, with lots of poor souls in there, We saw a woman really porrly and very underweight who looked like she was dying. We saw an HIV hospital being built, and went around a church school where we had a chat with a burmese teacher who told us some of the hardships that his fellow countrymen were facing. Then we were invited to get something to eat at a music fair where the music students were performing. OK they didn't do any of The Beatles songs but I let them off with that! We had a bite to eat then it was time to go. It was a great experience and although the camp was incredibly basic they had electricity and street pumps with clean water running and there did seem to be a true sense of community between the people. They did not openly show there suffering and were smiley and pleasant. I was worried that we would arrive and be met with a real desperate sight of suffering and so, but looking at these people I just thought that they had no idea of their future, their security and had no sense of their own identity. Thailand hasn't signed up to some imigration traet and therefore can kick their arses out at any time. Our guide told us that ultimately they didn't want to be exiled or moved to another country because that would dilute their collective identity.
Antway it was an interesting day and it was a pretty unforgettable one as well. So we all came back with our guide and have spent the last few hours having a great old time with a few couple of guys from Canada, a guy from New Orleans and a guy from Texas (who claims to have invented the squeegee!!!!). Having a strange but great time here and we are popping out for a beer tonight before heading back to Bangkok tomorrow. This is a starnge but fascinating place!"

you tube movie from someone else is here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nB3ILrsT9Pw&mode=related&search=
as soon as we get a new camera we're gonna start posting stuff onto you tube.

Map thus far......

Gav: Hey there folks, just thought I'd drop you a line to show you where we are and where we've been. We're currently in a little town in Thailand called Mae Sot, which is about 400km north of Bangkok. We're here to renew the visas as they are running out. You can renew the visas over here by popping to a border, crossing it then returning in to Thailand.
So this place is near the Burmese border, which is really intereting cos they're a dictatorship and this town has refugee camps in it for the Burmese people who are to scared or too skint to get back. It's great at the border cos there is a really long 'Friendship Bridge' that spans the river between the two countries. We have seen all sorts of stuff being passed across the border today, but more of that later. This town has Muslims, Christians, Buddhists and Karens (an area of Burma where the border is and the refugee people)and there doesn't appear to be any tension here.....It's quite a poor place but people as always are all smiling and laughy (is that a word?) Even though they occasionally get mortar attacked from the burmese side. There are guerilla rebel training camps across the water from us and we've met someone today who was offering to take us there....it was a case of.....mmm....maybe next time mate.......now off you pop! No it's great to see all the stuff you hear about on TV. He was showing us pictures of him with the rebels and there was a kid of about 15 with a Kalashnikov!!!! Can you imagine that. Now I was a real little brat when I was 15 so that would've come in handy at school, where I could have finished Mr Donahoe off.......erm sorry was getting carried away!The map above is our route so far the crosses are where we've stayed. The guy who runs our guest house is a legend. He's from Singapore and supports all the local poor buying them supplies etc.
Anyway he's going to try and organise it that we go to an orphanage or a nursery tomorrow so that will be interesting, if it happens!
Signing off now, have a good weekend you guys-
GET POSTING SLACKERS.
Lots LOVE Gavlin

Parkinson Interview with the Intrepid Explorers!

Parkinson Interview with the Intrepid Explorers!

What are your highlights of the trip so far?


Gav:All sorts mmm……Scuba diving, biking around the islands, people we’ve met…….just general stuff.

Sue: This really is the trip of a lifetime! There are so many highlights, but to name a few would be meeting up with friends in Ko Tao & Koh Samui, Swimming with Dolphins, Elephant Trekking, Snorkelling in Phi Phi and the Bangkok Coup and becoming famous in the local papers at home!
Also more recently, Koh Chang as it was such a relaxing place and I got my Moped Wings

Describe your best day and night out

Gav:Day out: Kanchanaburi was great, 5 tier waterfalls, River Kwai Railway, Elephant trekking, river rafting, staying with wacky a plastered landlady and a great mix of backpackers was a great few days, it’s hard to remember all the days cos everything is flying past at the moment!
Night out: Lots of good nights, we’re trying to discipline ourselves to going out once a week (on the pop) but we’ve had many a great night out with fellow travellers from everywhere around the world. A lot of the best bands in Thailand come over from the Philipines and they’re really the real deal when it comes to bands. Koh Sahn Road, Chewang in Koh Samui, Koh Tao….loads of great nights out.

Sue: Kanchanburi was my best day, where we slept in a tin cabin on the River Kwai, very basic but such good fun! We spent the day Elephant Trekking, feeding them, watching them perform tricks......it was fantastic!
So many good nights out, as you can imagine with us two! One night that stands out was in Koh Samui, when Don & Alex came over to meet us, we watched a band from the Phillipines who were amazing performers. They even balanced full bottles of vodka on top of their head whilst playing guitar & singing!!!

What new skills have you learnt

Gav:As above I suppose with people skills. The exciting thing about traveling is looking at the way other people act in their countries, their behaviours and all that, which is pretty fascinating. In Thailand theres a great custom of not getting mad with anyone, they call it “Keeping Face’ we probably say ‘Staying cool’. So the Thais laugh and smile through disputes or simply work it out without resorting to name calling or raising their voice so I think I’ve learnt a bit about how to resolve things without ‘losing face’! Being a foreigner in this country, you are perceived as a very rich person (how wrong can appearances be!) so people want to try and sell you things……….all sorts of things. You kind of learn to say no politlely and after a while you learn to laugh with them when they realize that you’ve sussed them out !

Sue: Biking (on a Moped!), Snorkelling, Bartering and learning to walk with a Turtle like shell on my back!


Any regrets?

Gav:No regrets, just more ideas of what to do next time! Cos it’s really cheap to do stuff in Thailand it’s a good idea to get ‘your wings’ at things over here. Like wind surfing, diving, snorkeling, drinking…all persuits that take it out of your budget, so we’ve tried to do as much as we can

Sue: None at all, only wish I had done this trip earlier!

If you could bring 3 things from home now, what would they be?

Gav: Friends, family and …………………mmmm……a endlessly refilling travelsized pint of John Smiths.

Sue: Friends and Family (well some of you anyway!),my comfy bed and my Hairdresser!

Name the most essential travel item?

Gav:Guitar! Sounds a bit cheesy but it breaks the ice, I’m not walking round like David Brent saying ‘Go and get the guitar…’ but it’s been great, cos when the locals see it they all shout ‘Geedaaaaarrr’ and then huddle round you to see what it is- I tell em it’s a really cheap crappy one. But loads of Thais play the guitar and it’s always good to whip it out and give it a strum and pass it round on the beach. Plus it don’t cost anything and it keeps me sane, writing and playing away!!!!!!

Sue: My Round the World Ticket, otherwise I couldnt continue the trip!
Also the camera, for the memories and for the blog for all of you to see!


What have been the funniest moment of the trip?

Gav: Sue being serenaded by a guy in Samui, he started singing ‘Stuck on You’ by Lionel Richie and really turned on the cheese as he sang and smiled away at 3x2! She was really embarresed, so he carried on doing it. Also the Dutch people we’ve met have me in stitches, their sense of humour is well funny, not sure whether they intend to or not but it tickles me, I think the Dutch accent is the funniest thing ever ‘It’s sowww crayzheee!!!’(even funny than monkeys in suits!!!!.......mmmmm Dutch speaking monkeys in suits???? That could be good) . German Alex also had me in stitches cos we hireda car and he had a big motorbike and we were mooching around Koh Samui one day and he flew past and shouted ‘Keep up Kojak!!!!’ Don’t ask me why that tickled me but it was just surprising to hear a German making a joke I think!!!!


Sue: Watched a ladyboy show and afterwards one of them called Yoko came and sat with us. Gavs face was a real picture, he was quite scared and not sure what to do at first. After a few more drinks Yoko was pulling down her top and we were asking her about her operation costs etc!!

What has been your worst embarrassing moment?

Gav:The C.I. Nuff said.

Sue: I have two!! As you all know I am a little accident prone!

My first one is when we went on a 2 day trip to Kanchanaburi, we were sat with our group for lunch, not knowing anyone at this point, when I fell off my chair into the guy next to me!! he then helped me up from the floor when I knocked over my bottle of water over everyone! By then I kinda knew everyone in our group! What an icebreaker!
The next embarressing moment was when I had food poisoning and was sick in the restaurant all over their cushions and floor etc in front of people having their dinner! Poor Gav then had to clean it all up for me! Thanks Munners!

What has been your most adrenalin fueled experience so far?

Gav: Going under a coral arch 30 foot in the sea on the last day of diving to get our licence. The arch was four foot at its highest part and was pretty dark and you had to remember all the things you’d learnt about keeping yourself from rising or falling as you passed through it. There were fish swimming through it besides you, was really good.travelling on any kind of transport is also good for the nerves…….I’ve hung off the back off pick-ups, been on a scooter with a woman and child…..actually yesterday our impatient arse of a Tuk Tuk driver got reversed into by a taxi-car! Also we had a bump with another boat as we we’re docking in Phi Phi-that’s where we learnt why you shouldn’t hang your feet over the sides when docking! The whole coup thing was pretty nervy as well, cos we’d been told to stay in the hotel by the bbc etc, but it was pretty obvious that it was all pretty calm so when we got to the military headquarters the next day it was all buzzing with tanks and armed soldiers, that was good

Sue: Learning to Scuba Dive

What was your scariest moment?

Gav:Probably getting my air tank caught in an anchor line when we were diving, but the instructor taught us how to deal with that before, but it was pretty hairy…..the situation not the anchor line. When you’re underwater if anything goes wrong your head and body want to get to the surface asap, but you can’t because of decompression and busting your lungs and all that so you have to deal with it and move on! And hiking a lift with a presumed pair of phycho

Sue: Biking (alright it was a Moped!)
Having Gav as my instructor is scary enough, when all his advice was take it "Nice & Easy"!
I was learning and a bit unsteady at times, but when we had to navigate chicanes that were really steep and you have big 4x4 jeeps trying to get past you, I was not happy!This was my white knuckle ride!!

What is your current catchphrase?

Gav: Apparantly “Nice and Easy’ and Always good’ in a smarmy American accent when anyone asks “are you good? Sue: I didnt think I had one, but apparently eveything is either Nice or Weird!

Do you feel you have changed, if so how?

Gav:Don’t know, maybe for other people to say. It’s only been three months but I feel a bit more streetwise about stuff. Feel a bit humbled by other peoples lives and stuff, but I don’t know! You learn pretty quickly when you’re traveling to adapt, it’s not that hard and really worth the little effort, you change your ideas about a lot of things and your opinions are constantly changing so I think I’ve become more open minded to stuff.

Sue: I have become more practical (I know i can hear you laughing reading this!)
I am also more independant (Gav has not carried my bag once!)
Also learnt not to worry about things, what will be....will be!
Gran you once told me that too!
Lastly I am not scared to try something new, I am doing things that I couldnt do at home, so yeah I guess I am changing!!

What are you most proud of accomplishing on this trip?

Gav: “The fingerpicking to Mother Natures Son by The Beatles! I don’t know about accomplishing anything but before we came over we said we were going to do stuff we wouldn’t or couldn’t try in England and I suppose we’ve done that, but a bit too early for accomplishment stories yet!Sue: Going out of my comfort zone on a regular basis and coping!

What are you looking forward to?

Gav: Tomorrow! Seeing ‘Our Kid’ in China cos I know am looking forward to the endless games of chess and debates on the socio-economic effect of goat herding in western……..I mean just catching up…it’s been waaaaay tooo long!!!!! Everything really, every day theres usually stuff to plan, but long term…….Oz will be great to see my mad family and friends over there, they’ll be bee-keeping and coral diving to do…..and one of the ideas at the mo for america is to maybe buy an old Dodge and drive across, still early days yet and I’m trying not to plan anything, but looking forward to the unexpected!

Sue: The rest of the trip, not knowing what the next day will bring!
Also looking forward to seeing Mum & Dad in Australia, it will be an early and my only Christmas present!!!

What has surprised you?

Gav: The generosity of people who have nothing to gain and the ruthlessness of people who have nothing to lose

Sue: I can live without hair straightners!!!!
Also that this travelling lark is a lot easier than I expected!

Favourite Album of the moment?

Gav:Black Eyed Peas, Highway 61 Revisted and David Hasselhoff’s Greatest Hits
Sue: Black Eyed Peas

Best book you have read since we set off?

Gav: The Damage Done by Warren Fellowes
Sue: Damage Done & Memoirs of a Geisha (a close second!)

Favourite Joke of the moment?

Gav: Erm,mmmmmmmmmm, blond pushes her car into a garage and says ‘It’s not working’ the mechankic takes a look at it for a while and fiddles about under the bonnet. When he’s finished he says to the girl ‘It’s Ok now, just crap in the carburetor and she says ‘Oh dear…How often?’
Sue: As you all know, I cant remember any jokes to save my life!

What is each others worst habit?


Gav: Sues....mmmmmmmmm....howmuch space have we got left????!!!!Noseying and getting half a story about stuff and then thinking I'm interested in what the couple next to us on the bus had for breakfast! Oh and obviously faffing.

Sue: Gav is really untidy......I walk into our room and think we have been robbed!!!
Also he is very grumpy...especially in the mornings!!!

What is each others best quality and how has it benefited the travel experience?

Gav: Her ability to laugh at my jokes....no her ability to laugh at stuff when things get a bit hairy is cool and also her ability to fall, trip and lose balance when we're in a social situation to break the ice that's commendable! This is a true story that i saw with my own eyes and i wish I had the camera at the time. I was getting a drink on this river raft and sue was sitting on a plastic chair and was litterally gorping at the people next to her and the chair began to give way, with plenty of time to save herself from falling she chose to keep staring and went down staring!!! Now viewer that, as the dear departed Roy Castle said, is 'Dedication'

Sue: Gav's sense of humour, he can always make me laugh whatever situation we are in!
Also his guitar playing has helped us meet some great people!
PS I have now learnt 3 chords on the guitar so watch out David Brent!!

What creepy crawlies and wildlife have you seen?

Gav:Huge Great Farty Sounding Toads, all kinds of lizards from 3 inch to 6 foot long, angry flying ants, Big ugly airy dragonflies, Ephelants, Turkles, Fishies, SlipperySnakes, Crazy Crocs, Cheeky Monkeys.

Sue: Bullfrogs, Lizards, Snakes, Flying Ants, Cockroaches, Butterflies, Spiders, Beetles, Monkeys, Crickets, Hawks, Storks, Elephant, Turtles and Dogs with fleas!


What tips would you give to people thinking about going travelling?

Gav: Plan a little and do a lot. expect the unexpected, practice bladder and bowel control, learn a bit of the language. learn the local knowledge. It's easy the hardest thing is booking the ticket.

Sue: Just do it!!! Its great fun, everyday is an adventure!
Pack light!! Its hard to do but thats hot off the press!
Buy a Lonely Planet, it does become your bible!
Dont have a planned schedule......cos it will change!!
Oh and of course get yourself a BLOG!!!!!

Has the trip changed your outlook about life in the UK?

Gav: ‘I think it’s a bit early to say but I think life in the UK may be a bit strange after all this. People said ‘Oh you’ll get the travel bug’ and I suppose I have!

Sue: It has reminded me of how lucky I am to have such good friends and family!
I know its cheesy, but I do mean it! I have seen and met less fortunate people and it makes me appreciate what I have got!
Also I would like to travel more, city breaks over weekends and exotic holidays when I can!
Lastly I dont want to work ever again!!......but of course I will have to get back to the real world!!!

What is the meaning of Life?

Gav: Have the craic!
Sue: Its life Jim, but not as we know it!!
Also as a good friend said to us before we left......"Its all about the journey"
and that is sooooo true!!
Gav: Yeah but he also said something about smelling of fish too so ..............!!!!