Kochi: 13-14 and 17 Jan 2013

Artwork on the walls of the Kathakali Centre

Rach says:

We arrived in India after two horrible flights. In Kuala Lumpur we had to land through a lightning storm and it was the worst turbulence I've ever known. The plane dropped quite suddenly at one point and half the people on the plane gasped. I was really nervous about our next flight and that turned out to be a bumpy ride too. On the upside, we spotted the illuminated Petronas towers from the plane

Koh Samui: 18-19 Dec 2013 and 30 Dec - 12 Jan 2014

Where we lounged about drinking milkshakes and reading books

Pete says:

We had a great time at the Samui Beach Resort. The surroundings are nowhere near as exotic and tropical as Phangan, but we had finally found a place sheltered from most of the wind, away from the clouds and with a nice sandy beach and warm (if lively) sea to swim in.  The food from the beachside restaurant was very good, they had a small pool, nice covered seating things to rest on, beach towels, beds and parasols free to guests and

Koh Phangan: 19-30 Dec 2013

Happy Christmas!

Rach says:

We landed in Koh Samui to very grey weather and incredibly high taxi fares...800 Baht (£16) for a 20 minute drive!! Our Lamai "beach hotel" then turned out to be up a mountain, so we got out of the taxi in Lamai town and sat down for some Pad Thai and a beer to consider our options. It was at this point that we met our drinking comrades for the evening ahead: the Norwegian bar owner (also called Peter), his Thai wife (Mimi) and a slightly crazy American

Luang Prabang: 14-18 Dec 2013

With Evelien & Marije at the top of Mount Phou Si

Rach says:

When the rip-off tuk-tuk dropped us off at Muonglao Guesthouse, we found that the place was filthy. Actual LUMPS of dust carpeted the floor and surfaces, there were (mouse?) holes in the walls, insects on the bedsheets and the blackest mouldiest bathroom I have ever seen. It was already so late, we decided we'd have to stay the night - there is a midnight curfew here and places start shutting down at 11.30pm.

Chiang Khong & The Slow Boat to Laos: 12-14 Dec 2013

Boarding the slow boat at Huay Xai

Rach says:

Our next stop was the Thai border town of Chiang Khong, where we would stay for one night, before crossing over to Huay Xai in Laos to board the two-day slow boat to Luang Prabang. Not being ones to struggle with a bit of idling, we were really looking forward to just sitting back with a Beer Lao, gazing at some beautiful views from the Mekong River and settling into the laid-back vibe we'd heard characterises the country.

At 8am the next morning, we were picked up by our tuk-tuk and driven to the border. Swiftly stamped out of Thailand, we were then bussed over the newly opened Friendship Bridge to the Lao side, where we awaited our visas-on-arrival. In the drizzling rain, a pick-up truck was our next less than ideal mode of transport, but whilst Pete, Marije, Evelien and about 5 others

Chiang Rai: 10-12 Dec 2013

Evelien and me on our way back from the White Temple

Rach says:

Chiang Rai is a town dull enough to rival Sukhothai. The Lonely Planet's romanticised write-up shows that it shouldn't be taken too seriously, because "well-groomed" and "delightful" it certainly isn't.

Wat Rong Khun however, just outside the town and better known as the 'White Temple', is an incredible sight. It is a modern Buddhist

Chiang Mai: 6-10 Dec 2013

Playing cards at our very own private table

Rach says:

After a very fast and wobbly 5.5 hour bus ride from Sukhothai, we flew into the forecourt of our guesthouse Naruncha Green on one wheel of our tuk-tuk, almost overturning in the entrance. We are used to these Asian drivers keeping you on your toes, but even so... At least we were greeted with a beer and a Pad Thai each - thanks Marije and Evelien!

Sukhothai: 4-6 Dec 2013

At Wat Chang Lom (Elephant Temple)

Rach says:

Finally our Indian visas were ready and we were on the move. We were headed north to Chiang Mai to catch up with Evelien and Marije and travel with them to Laos, but decided to break up the 12 hour bus ride with a halfway stop in Sukhothai to visit the nearby 13th century ruins of the old capital of the Sukhothai Kingdom.

At Bangkok bus station we were faced with a long row of kiosks stretching to our left and right, each inhabited by an over-eager sales person shouting at us from the window as we wandered by. It was at this point we realised we couldn't remember whether we'd been advised to go with the government bus or definitely not to go with the government bus (we had been warned of various scams such as 'breaking down' near a

Bangkok: 22 Nov - 4 Dec 2013

It is only the lady-slash-boy on the left
that tells this is not a regular bar...

Pete says:

We arrived in Bangkok at night, tired and in need of food. When I asked our hostel's staff where we could get something to eat, they pointed us down a dark empty side street with about 3 restaurants and nothing else. They seemed to think there was nowhere else nearby, which made us wonder if we had picked a bad place to stay. We were amazed to find however, a few days later, that walking a short way in the opposite direction brought us

Siem Reap & Angkor: 17-22 Nov 2013

Early morning at Angkor Wat

Rach says:

In Siem Reap we stayed in the Tropical Breeze Guesthouse which was pleasant, although the room was a bit dank and the water smelt strongly of metal. They did cook a mean chicken curry. It was a short, but dark walk to the very touristy centre with restaurants, bars, shops and markets. We were surprised to find the prices here to be some of the highest of the trip so far (around $7 for a curry and our 3 day Angkor passes cost us $80).

The Journey to Siem Reap: 17 Nov 2013

Typical countryside home in Cambodia

Rach says:

A 7 hour bus journey with 'Giant Ibis' took us from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap. The bus was very new, they provided food and drinks and even a change of driver halfway through. All was well until the second driver took over, driving directly down the centre of the road at high speed and swerving out of the way of oncoming traffic at the last millisecond. After our Bac Ha experience, this was enough to

Phnom Penh: 12-17 Nov 2013

Follow the Yellow Brick Road...
Outside the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh

Pete says:

To get to Phnom Penh we took a 6 hour luxury bus from Saigon with the very good "Mekong Express" bus company, a Cambodian group. The bus was not the newest but did have a toilet and they gave us snacks and water and, most importantly, dealt with the visa and border crossing hassles for us. This was the first time either of us had crossed a land border and it was much like I imagined, except that the bus company did all the hard work and told us where to queue and get our passports stamped and that was it. I had expected some searches but our bags remained on the bus and no-one checked them.

As soon as we got into Cambodia the landscape changed to be much less jungle-like and much flatter and open. It looked a lot like the fens at home apart from the occasional palm tree.  It was very obvious that Cambodia is far poorer than Vietnam and there was no development outside the cities, just farmland and

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): 8-12 Nov 2013

Drinking on the streets of Saigon

Pete says:

Saigon was great fun. It is much bigger and busier than the capital Hanoi and more seedy as well.

Our hostel - Ngoc Thao - was very good and run by a family so you would have babies being looked after and people cooking their tea in reception. The hostel was down a side alley so narrow we could almost touch both sides at once, but people still rode their scooters down

Mui Ne: 4-8 Nov 2013

Just after sunrise at the White Sand Dunes

Rach says:

The train to Mui Ne was the dirtiest of the trip so far. Being really tired it didn't bother me too much and I got under the covers anyway and snuggled down to sleep. Then I felt something brush my arm. I opened my eyes ready to search out and deal death to the pesky mosquito... but a split second later, I was leaping and up and yelling "There's a RAT in the room!!" kicking the bedding away and

Hue: 2-3 Nov 2013

At the Khai Dinh tomb in Hue

Rach says:

We arrived in Hue at around 6.30pm, with a sleeper train booked to Binh Thuan (for Mue Ne) the following evening at 22.24, so we had one full day to explore, which we had been told was 'enough' for Hue. I was really glad that we made the effort to go, as we had a really good day of sightseeing.

My Son: 2 Nov 2013

Exploring the temple ruins at My Son

Rach says:

On our last morning in Hoi An, before taking the train two and a half hours back up north to Hue, we visited the ancient Cham Hindu temples at My Son. The shapes of the monuments made me think of pictures I had seen of Angkor. There used to be 70 structures, but after bombing during the war (it was a Viet Cong base), only 20 are still standing. The site was cleared of UXO just 10 years ago and huge bomb craters still remain.

Hoi An: 27 Oct - 2 Nov 2013

Enjoying a cocktail in a Hoi An bar

Rach says:

Beautiful, beautiful Hoi An! We relaxed for nearly a week in this lovely old riverside town, with its Mediterranean-style yellow-painted buildings with balconies and shutters, colourful lanterns, art galleries and beautiful clothes shops. It felt like a proper holiday place, with a beach just a short cycle ride down the road.

Every other shop was a tailor's and every short walk was accompanied by the repeated shouts

The Bac Ha Adventure Day 3: 20 Oct 2013

With Sun, Neil and Stacey outside the homestay

Rach says:

Sunday was Bac Ha market day, which we were able to reach in a safe 20 minutes carried on our own two feet! I really enjoyed seeing the local women in their traditional brightly coloured clothes and it was another great opportunity to practise my photography. I bought a couple of locally crafted bags and scarves.

The Bac Ha Adventure Day 2: 19 Oct 2013

Can Cau Market

Pete says:

Rachael had heard about a Saturday market in the village of Can Cau, 20km to the north, that was "off the beaten path", "tourists don't go there"... phrases that have become warning signs for me ever since. Sun told us the road to it was "broken" and "a bit bumpy" so we would either need to rent a motorbike to cross the broken bit or take the bus which would take a long route around to avoid the broken part.

The Bac Ha Adventure Day 1: 18 Oct 2013

With Neil and Stacey on the train to Lao Cai

Rach says:

In our Hanoi hostel we bumped into a Manchester couple we had first met in Yangshuo, Stacey and Neil - they had come to the same city and same hotel at the same time! We all wanted to visit the far north of the country, so decided to travel together on an over night train to Lao Cai and then stay at a 'homestay' in the town of Bac Ha, a small mountain town near the Chinese border. From there we would explore the surrounding rice

Hanoi: 12-17 and 21-26 Oct 2013

With friends from our hostel at Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum

Pete says:

We weren't sure what to expect in Vietnam and as we drove into the city I thought it looked horrible - really dark and not the safest of places. However, we stayed in the central 'Old Quarter' and it turned out to be the best place to be.

I liked all of the food and drink places which were just basic concrete rooms with tiny