The circle

And so I find myself in the same place I set off from, thousands of miles and twenty months lagging behind me reminding me that yes, I have been away. Now I'm back my adventures seem so far behind me already that at times in the last week I seriously wonder whether it actually happened! Nice in a way that everything remains in essence the same. The same faces, some with different jobs, different partners, different houses, but the same people just 20 months older. Many people have peered at me before exclaiming with what could be a snort of relief, "Oh, you're exactly the same!".  I think whatever they were expecting I was also expecting. Some kind of significant change, everyone always remarks that travel is a life-changing experience. Well yes, my life has changed in that now I have to build a new one out of the rubble and ideas and lessons of the last one I had, but Hana as a person has happily remained pretty much identical to the Hana that left the UK 20 months ago. 

I've had such a great time abroad and I learnt so much, about other cultures, my job, myself, but now its over, the circle has completed itself. Its time for a new beginning. After focusing so long on the end of my journey from New Zealand, through Thailand, Vietnam, China, Mongolia, Russia, Belaruse, Germany, France, London and finally to Devon, the destination of destinations, now I'm here there's a gap. Like floating around at zero gravity, or walking into the fridge at work to get something only to find you have forgotten what it is and have to go all the way back to remember. What now for Hana and her adventures? That's the question.

The last leg of my journey through Europe was really smooth and easy and lovely. It felt like a visiting expedition, seeing my old friends Katie, Tia and Paris, and making a new friend called Berlin. Berlin - the one city (other than Wellington) I visited that I would love to live in. I would have to learn German (which frankly is off putting) but other than that its my sort of place. Interesting, grungy culture, lots going on, lots of green and water. Berlin, it was a pleasure to meet you.

I do believe that this is Blog number 100! A fine number to sign off on, although I find myself a little sad not to have somewhere to write now, I've really enjoying putting my little life of travel and new experiences into words. Who knows what adventures the next 20 months hold? Whatever they are my feet are staying firmly in the UK, on my search for a garden, a yoga class and a nice organic cafe to work in (if you are a town and fit these specifications I'd be happy/delighted to make your acquaintance, please send applications via the comments page).

A massive thank you to everyone who has been reading this during my time away, it was an absolute pleasure! 

Moscow

Three days in Moscow! I was sceptical, most people tell me 'just go to St Peters', but you know what, it's a great city. The centre is clean, safe feeling, and full of magic buildings carefully lit up and on display. It's trying hard, and I was pleasantly surprised. The Kremlin buildings, the Red Square - wow! Certainly worth a couple of looks I'd say. Especially St. Basils Cathedral with all the ice-cream cones/onions on the building. Looks like some crazyfied circus tent.

Having Tanyaer meet me for the evening and show me her city was fantastic. I learnt lots of details and saw the city in its full glory with the help of a local. There are musicians and street performers on every corner and in every underpass - from classical to full-on punk, take your pick. We went up to the bikers hot spot, where hundreds and hundreds of bikers come to hang out and socialise with the best view of the city. Magnificent!

The city has a real cosmopolitan feel to it, its much more European than Russian, and I'm really glad I also saw Irkutsk to provide a comparison. Massively different to Siberia. A lovely interesting city where you can buy Russian dolls til your hearts content!

And now to the last, bar one, city on the hit list - Berlin. I arrive with no knowledge and no expectations....

It strikes me that last night was the final customs malarkey I have to go through! Yippeeee. My 27 hour train Moscow to Berlin went without hitch with the help of one of my all time favorites - Pride and Prejudice. Thank you Jane (after reading that 15 times we are now on first name terms).

The Transmongolian - the train journey of all train journey

I sit here thinking, one week and I'm home! One week out of 18 (or is it more now, I lost count) months of being away. One week...so soon! I remember one month ago - one month and I'll be back, and all this to see in the meantime. Now China and the Transmongolian have been and gone - not in a blur of course but rather calmly, in sharp focus. All that amazing contrast and sights and experiences once alien are now swimming around my brain, jostling for a place in my memory bank, hoping they are not the ones who fall off the edge. So many stories, I just hope my dodgy memory will be able to keep up. Tanyaer said to me last night that I will have to be a great grandmother for all the stories I have collected on this trip. Ah well, Babuska-dom here I come. Maybe I'll collect a few more first though...

The train journey was everything I thought it would be. The last part of my trip, from the land crossing into China, I ceased to form expectations of what was to come, I only thought that I must enjoy and make the most of it. The end was in sight, my only responsibility was now to enjoy the filling! With expectation invariably comes disappointment or perhaps that mild confusion when the picture of that town in your mind does not resemble the picture of the town right in front of you. Did I come to the wrong town? you think. A blank canvas really helps!
I had the guide books, but towards the end they mostly lay inactive in my bag, weighing me down with countless information I didn't read and advice/opinions I didn't follow. Well, it was better! Better to take them exactly as they are, a Guide, than as the Bible that some seem to follow relentlessly.
For example, Bryn Thomas, your guide to the Transiberian may be perfectly suited to your and many peoples tastes but frankly it bored me and your map drawing skills are somewhat lacking (to put it nicely). However many many many people proclaimed this as the MOST excellent thing to have on the Transiberian train. Personally I would have preferred a chess set.

So no expectations and many surprises lay in wait. As I boarded my train from Irkutsk to Moscow I put the thought out there that maybe it was time I met some Russians on my train. 10 minutes later my wish was in its physical form - The Russian Army in my cabin. A General Alexis, his wife Tatyana, and a junior lieutenant. We communicated in my favorite non-lingual ways - gestures, the odd word, and pictures of places, friends, family. And of course with food!! Alexis knew some words of English - EAT and DRINK were among his favorite. I got seated in the place of honour in our tiny cabin (next to the food) and was encouraged/forced to eat eat eat and drink drink drink VODKA. And so goes my vodka experience on the Transiberian. The men got gradually worse for wear and started fighting in my honour (the Lieutenant was sitting on my bed, and suddenly the General deemed this inappropriate and throw him off across the cabin!). I promptly left and rallied the troops - the only other foreigner on the Russian carriage, Lo and we joined forces. One night in the Russian carriage was actually enough and we both moved up into the Chinese carriages where there were a few more foreigners, and made some friends to spend the remaining days with.

It was a magnificent experience of a train journey. Highly recommended.

Smacking fish, Vodka and the wonders of Lake Baikal

Lake Baikal, a sacred place of Shamans and the deepest purest waters. It is the deepest oldest lake on planet earth with 25% of the worlds fresh water! You have to go there to believe it. I arrived, the lake is mostly frozen, three days later its changed colour, pure deep icy melting waters.
Home to the Burat people, there are shrines and sacred places everywhere, poles tied with bright cloth and coins and vodka scattered to ask for guidance from the spirits of their ancestors. The nearest village to Olkon village, where I was staying, is KHARANZI meaning 'seeing place'.
We went on a big tour of the island, so much raw natural power. Icy cold to cosy warm in a day, a thick cap of ice disappearing so fast, overnight even.

I'll remember the cutting wind, the overwhelming presence of Baikal, the clear air and beautiful sunsets over the cliff tops. I'll remember the huge kindness of Lyuda, the Vodka celebrations ( a different something to celebrate every night, a different cheers with every shot), the many many legends and stories, the Russian 'jokes', the many tales. For example, step in cow poo = lucky in love, lose at cards = lucky in love. Remarks from Lyudas Grandmother - Boys are not dogs, they do not like bones (ie, eat eat eat some more).

The trans-Mongolian from Beijing to Irkutsk was BRILLIANT. I saw Yaks, Camels - all colours, Yurts everywhere, hours of forest, hours of the Gobi dessert, hours of grassland dotted with the occasional lone person or Yurt. I found good company to pass the tedious border crossings with, good beer and nibbles and cards to while away the hours. The splendor of the Mongolian dining carriage compared to the stark grey of the Chinese one with elated prices to match.

And well....I am so pleased and proud that I am doing this train journey. It really is an epic.

THIS is a GREAT wall

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Today I did the classic! The climbing and long march of the GREAT WALL OF CHINA! It really truly is a feat of human(han)kind. Well, actually the great emperor Chi (who China takes her name from) started it...then it just got longer and rebuilt and rebuilt for thousands of km, thousands. I got to see a part of the unrenovated wall where there was NO OTHER tourists, and believe me that is an achievement on Labour weekend. We walked up to the wall and along it for a few hours, just taking in the endurance and bodies of men that went into it (literally, some say the exhausted dead were simply buried within the wall as extra mortar!). The scale of it is just...breathtaking. It never really served its purpose as defense against the marauding neighbours, but it did provide a safe trade route facilitating the exchange of goods and ideas from the middle east and India.

Not only did I see the GREAT WALL, but also took the mandatory culinary experience of Beijing today too. Peking Duck! I am stuffed as a stuffed duck. Delicious.

Beijing, like China in general, is a confusing mix of old and new, of frantic rebuilding, breakneck speed development and remnants of an old way of life. You've got the traditional Hutongs, where many people live, next to just-built shiny complexes. It would have been interesting to see Beijing before the Olympics, you can almost see the Huge effort that's gone in to try and Westernise the city. The subway is 10 times better, cleaner, more efficient than the London underground, some streets are so clean (forgetting air pollution of course) its like walking through a model village. Then you turn a corner and the streets a mess of mud, dirt, rubbish and workmen. I've had a few people say in perfect English "Hellooo, Welcome to China" whilst giggling with the excitement of being able to speak their one English phrase! A mix is what it is.

Yunnan times

Who'd of thought that a month ago I never even wanted to come to China, and now here I am just in one tiny part of it, Yunnan, commiserating that I can only see a small part of the province. What about Shangri-la and all the small Tibetan villages, what about Dali music festival, starting the day after I have to leave for Beijing, what about all the various Yak products I'm yet to try. There is simply never enough time to do everything. So in all of China's vastness I will only experience a part of Yunnan, and Beijing. I am thinking that a return trip some day is a must.

The China of my imagination a few weeks ago doesn't exist. True, the language is hard. I learn a phrase off by heart then try and use it...blank looks. Its the tones, I can mimic them but I can't remember them just so. One word can mean five things using the five different tones. Its tricky, and coming from a foreign mouth with a foreign accent the Chinese just don't understand me.
I have taken to another form of communication - someone is talking, instead of concentrating on the words you let them all blur together and just listen for the tones, the sounds that make up the general sense of what they are saying, the body language, the language of smiling and hand gestures. Even if you have no idea what each other have said, you have still had a nice conversation. Yesterday I climbed a mountain with a man and his horse for my guide. Neither of us spoke the others language but at the top I brought us both beers and we chatted, each taking turns to say something or laugh at something. Funny!

Travelling in China you meet a very different crowd of people than in SE Asia. Travellers here a more discerning, more interested in the local character and history than in finding a beach to drink cocktails on. I have now met many people who have travelled or will travel across Russia by train. I meet people every day on their way to Tibet, or coming from Burma. Places that are hard to travel in, places most people wouldn't see the point of going to for so much effort. But people who go there want to see for themselves, take a look. You can never know what awaits you in a place, or what you will personally experience, until you go for yourself. You cannot experience the worst and best moments of life vicariously. You cannot experience a place through any persons words, although they can take you closer. I met many a moaner in Vietnam who hated the people and found it horrible "good riddance Vietnam" they said. But this was not my experience at all. Sometimes the person and their attitude creates the experience they have.
It is inspiring to meet travellers from all over the world, all with different tales to tell and takes on life. And people who have been to those far fetched places most of us would never dream of going like the Middle East. Last night at dinner a Norwegian fellow announced that Syria and Iran were absolutely his most favorite places on the planet. The people so delighted that someone was coming to see the country, the beautiful architecture and rich history. It makes me realise that what I'm doing is not scary at all, its pretty tame compared to most people here!!

Tiger Leaping Gorgeous

I did it! I trekked the magnificent Tiger Leaping Gorge. A really stunning experience, a two day hike up the mountainous paths through Naxi territory ending at the legendary spot where the tiger leaped roaring waters to escape the hunter. This was somewhere I had seen in magazines, a place people rave about, somewhere I assumed I wouldn't make it to. But make it I did! As we were getting on the bus there were the usual trekking sorts with their Hi-tech equipment - fleece, poles, the best boots, the works - and me in my knackered trainers and floaty trousers. I got a look up and down from one girl like "you're going to walk in that?" At the end of the day my trainers held out, as did my legs and energy levels and we reached the guesthouse 2 hours before the Outdoor Shop Expo Girl!! Ha!

Tiger Leaping Gorge is in the Northern part of the Yunnan province, near the Tibetan border. Naxi people (pronounced Nashi, like the pear) who originated from Tibet live here. It really feels like a part of the old China that I wanted to see, it has a special feel to it. The river itself was pounding with energy, mesmerising. We sat down there staring into the roaring white water an hour before the long steep climb back up.

I feel really lucky/happy to be here. Finding a travel companion was almost too easy - "oh you're going this way too? Great! " Its nice to share the journey with someone else, who is chilled out and enjoying the journey. We part ways in a day or two, such is the way of travel! The gorgeous gorge would have been somewhat daunting alone. Its a big climb up and has proved a lethal trail for many a trekker.

I have many many many pictures from this walk, however I seem to have deleted the DCIM folder when I plug it into the computer - the pics are still on the camera...how to get them off? Any advice welcome!!

I remain in Lijiang, in the beautiful old part of town full of winding streets and bridges across streams and Naxi stalls. The town is very touristy but then theres a reason for that! Its lovely. Its a fine town to get lost in, wandering the cobbled streets for hours, drinking Yaks yogurt, eating dried Yak, and drinking Yunnan coffee. We stay at a place called Mama Naxi's. Impossible to find but if you get lost you just phone Mama and she says "Mama come pick you up now". She cooks delicious feasts every night for the small price of 15 yuan (1 pound 50p!).
I decided that clearly I could only see a very very small area of China in my 20 days and so I stay in this province until May 1st when I hop up to Beijing!

All is well xx

PS- Having an AMAZING time in China! The people are really very nice, they can't speak English but they do their utmost to help you out. It feels very safe, and rarely do I think someone is trying to rip me off. The only thing I can't get used to is.....drum roll....the hacking and spitting. Urrrgg makes me retch! Even nice pretty girls do it. Gross gross gross.

Tea In China

Today I had the most lovely Chinese day! I think I saw a great part of Chinese culture - the park and tea drinking. I decided that my misadventure yesterday was not so much fun and today I wanted to choose a mission/destination and just go and enjoy it and not get lost.
A good sleep helped too as I didn't get much of that on the bus into China, so yesterday was a bit strained. Today = relaxation.

So I successfully found my way through the windy streets of Kunming, past street food stalls and markets, to Green Lake Park. In Vietnam the parks were my favorite part of the big cities, places where all people came and exercised and socialised. It is the same here in China, however the main theme is different, instead of exercise it is MUSIC. One in two people you see are participating in some kind of musical action, be it dancing (Chinese style line dancing) playing an instrument, singing or just swaying to the music. You see all sorts of instruments strapped to backs on the way to a gathering. It is just the way here, explained Joseph, people come to the park to relax and enjoy. Joseph saw me coming a mile off and came and introduced himself. A Chinese retired English teacher, he just wanted to practise his English. And so we strolled around the park chatting away. He then made a phone call - "Ok HaNa, now we go experience real Chinese afternoon". He took me a way up the road to his friends tea-shop, a place on the road selling tea to buy, but not by the cup unless you know him. It was amazing, a whole hour tasting different teas. There is a real ceremony that goes with it, the tea man explained, translated through Joseph, what it was all about.

I tried local green tea, Taiwanese tea, and my favorite, red tea which was 25 YEARS old! I brought some of this to take home and share with those tea drinkers amongst you. He also gave me a gift of Jasmine tea. Amazing experience. He just kept filling and refilling my little cup, I have never drunk as much tea in my life, and that's saying something!!! I think the people here are really nice, it was clear that Joseph was just keen to practice his English and big-up China to me! If this would have happened in Vietnam my first thoughts would be, uh oh how much am I going to have to pay him at the end. This was never even a thought today, I was happy to pay for the tea and it was a nice time all round.

trekking with hilltribes

My last supper, Pho in the market

My first supper, no idea what i ordered but it was HUGE!!


Well everyone, I am now in CHINA!!!!!
I finally bit the bullet and decided the time was now. I started to realise that once I'm there I will be wanting to make the most of it and see what I can see. So then the inner debate - Dali or Lijiang? Pandas or Terracotta Warriors? I was happy to find a growing enthusiasm for a place that I hadn't really thought much about before.

Before I entered the land of the unknown, I had one last stop in Vietnam. Sapa, land of endless rice paddies and hill-tribes. The MOST beautiful scenic town I've ever been to. You go there, meet the ornate, friendly hill-tribes, trek chatting with them through the villages (avoiding local dogs), buy some of their amazing craft work, and breathe the mountain clouds. Yes, the clouds dance all up the village and drift into town in cold moist waves. You cannot help but breath it in. A magical experience.

Then a 15 hour bus ride took me from the border (which was not the hideous experience I imagined, they didn't even take my Lonely Planet away!) to the city of Kunming. The bus ride was somewhat interesting with some almost none-existent roads, police boarding the bus for one hour and interrogating some people, and a 3 hour traffic jam at 2am!! No one speaks English, and no one understands my poor attempts at Chinese, and few taxi drivers know where my hostel is (if in doubt just get a taxi I thought, easy I thought!).

Tomorrow I am up off into the hills, I choose the town of Lijiang.

Hanoi

I'll be honest. I didn't like Hanoi when I first arrived. It was OK. Another city, albeit a nicer city than most, but the hustling, the pace, the heat all assaulted my senses on arrival. I mean, it was nothing like HCMC, but I like my quiet slow-paced places that you just slip into unnoticed and unharmed.

Hanoi, we arrive at 4am, safe in the knowledge that we have (for once) booked ahead with the promise of a little man with a card displaying ours names standing in wait to take us to our lovely hotel room. No little man.
A barrage of taxi drivers all shouting for our attention. We wait. Still no little man. An official offers me a pipe (opium perhaps). I decline! In the end we hastily barter for a taxi and are bustled into an unmarked car. Oh great,
I think, certain death. Too tired to care much. A brief tense journey and we are there at booked hotel, to a smelly dirty hotel room with a leaking bathroom and unwashed dank-smelling blankets.

So that was the start. Add to that the confusion of a new Asian city where you are treated as a walking cash machine, people always calling for your attention, trying not to look lost when you feel very very lost, a loss of travel companion, a dog bite. Bad start.

But now! Slowly but surely I've come to really love this city. Its endlessly chaotic, always something eyeopening around every corner;

Dog meat for sale in the market, complete with little skinned tail
Weaving of traffic, driving both directions, both sides of the road
Conical hat wearing women carrying incredible loads on their pole and baskets

Last night I experienced the Beer Hoi corner. A few street kitchens selling local brewed beer for cheap cheap price, similar to the fresh beer we found in Hoi Ann but a distinct first taste of vinegar in beer number one (two and three the vinegar taste had mysteriously disappeared). The police turn up from time to time and everyone packs away their plastic chairs and stands around pretending to pretend they aren't drinking on the street before sitting back down the millisecond the police turn the corner. The nearest toilet is an experience. Clutching 1,000 dong you walk down a dark alley where you will find a wizened old Grinch man who takes your money and directs you to the dirty squat toilet (not that you mind of course, when you gotta go...)

I have a few favorite local street kitchens that I've been going to, and I'm taking great delight in trying new foods each day. Today was some kind of Vietnamese pasty creation off a street vendor. I'm still very curious about the white gloop and chopped up churros being sold at the end of the alley - shall i get one? whats in the gloop?

And the lake, the lake is the peaceful heart of the city. If you get lost, find the lake. If you are having a bad day walk around the lake twice. If you are having a good day walk around the lake twice. You will find exercising young people, old woman in a slap-slap form of exercise, old men flinging their arms around (again exercise), canoodling couples, tourists, everyone just enjoying the lake and the shade. Its lovely. A centre-piece.

So my theory about not being able to tell what a place is like until you are there a while stands firm. What a relief I got bitten by a dog and had to stay a week longer!

Not lost! Victorious

Today was the first day in Hanoi that leaving my front door and walking for 2 minutes has NOT rendered me lost and head down at every corner scanning the map for my location. Often when I find the location I then proceed to go the opposite direction than intended, sometimes this is good ( I find the unexpected - a street dedicated to bike seat coverings, a Pho stall, a street of creepy puppets) and sometimes bad (suddenly in the bike-fixing street, complete with grease-covered leering men or energetic salesmen who step in front of you, not understanding the word No).

BUT TODAY - I have been on two missions. Mission one = rabies jab take two. Mission two = lunch and coffee search. And no lost Hana's. No map consultation. I do believe I have finally got my bearings in the old quarter (or a part of it).

In the past every time I have moved to a new city, Cardiff, Plymouth, Oxford, I explore until a vague map is drawn in my head. This takes a while as without a map my sense of direction is pretty bad. I go to each area and explore until I have a clear sense of whats what, then gradually the different areas begin to slot together, slowly but surely filling in the blanks and colouring in the gaps in my head-map. The end result is a feeling of having some sort of understanding of the city, a grounding effect. So today this is whats happened in Hanoi. The two areas that I have explored have come together....I recognise streets and places I've eaten. Its a nice feeling, it has taken 6 days though, and I've still another 2 while I await my train to Sapa.

Its definitely not a bad city to spend some time in, and the hostel is full of backpackers coming and going everyday so theres always people to talk to. Its nice just to stay still for a while. I met a girl who's just been travelling solo in China last night and she really enjoyed it - the hostels there are good and are one of the only places that will have an English speaker. So that's reassuring. I'm starting to look forward to the next adventure!

Hanoi the 2nd

So back I have gone to Hanoi, the lovely Northern city of Vietnam. This is good as there are many things here I haven't seen, many dishes I haven't tasted. Today I came across a whole crowded cafe devoted to Bun Cha. I am ushered upstairs and squeezed on the end of a table full of Vietnamese people all eating the same thing. I am brought -

A large plate of salad leaves
A bowl of chopped garlic and chili
A mound of rice noodles
A bowl of what i think is sliced apples in a light juice of some kind
A bowl of mini pork burgers in a broth of sorts
A plate of delicious spring rolls

The lady mimes out what I should do with all this food: noodles in first, pour on broth, add chili and apple, eat. Yum yum it really was a treat!!
Even though i think they charged me tourist price not local price (we're talking 4$ not $2!!) I really enjoyed the surprise of finding such tasty local food. I am a keen fan of Pho - the rice noodle soup which you find everywhere in Vietnam. Its delicious, nourishing and cheap! I have never been a fan of lumpy soups (hate minestrone) but this ones a winner.

Since my incident with hostile dog on MONKEY ISLAND, I've come across more people who's situation is similar or worse. One girl got attacked by a crazed monkey in the same place, she had to beat it off with an umbrella. So I consider myself lucky.
Ha long Bay tour was a bit of a disappointment in general for me, as they shunted me around pillar to post so as soon as i met people i had to join yet another group and do it all again. Then the mad dog incident to top it off....but it was beautiful. All misty and Lord of the Rings esk. Its a sight to behold, those limestone outcrops towering above you as you sail serenely past on your Junk boat. I don't seem to be able to upload anything sadly! Oh well, more pictures soon.

I stay in Hanoi a few days longer, awaiting Rabies vaccination number two...

As China draws near and my lovely travel companion returns to normal life I am left wondering what I have signed up for. Surely a normal person would have just travelled round south east Asia as a long stopover/brief interlude before getting on the quick, easy flight back home? When did I decide it was a good idea to cover this massive distance overland all by myself?? Madness. Having enjoyed the comfort and ease that comes with travelling with a friend for three weeks I now understand that travelling alone is a lesson in endurance. With someone else you only have to deal with all the travel hassles (people constantly harassing you to buy something, finding accommodation, booking onward travel) half the time, not all the time. All the time = hard work. I'm not sure why I would choose hard work over easy at the moment.

I know that I really really really want to do the Transmongolian Railway, and if it wasn't for that I would now be booking a flight home instead I think. But as it stands I cannot abandon the many hours of organisation I have already put in, the vast amount of money I have already spent on visas and trains, and the anticipation of the journey. I feel bad that I am not looking forward to the next stage of the adventure - surely this should be a great fantastic time of my life? But I feel like China is the obstacle I have to overcome more than anything else. A huge, vast expanse of total foreignness to face entirely alone. At the end of the day its only three weeks...but then I think THREE WEEKS, that's ages if its as harsh as I think it will be.

What I am hoping for is to encounter some lovely travel companions to share the time with. It feels much safer and calmer with someone-else. Strange to me that I should now be thinking like this when before I have been so adamant and sure that I want to and can do EVERYTHING myself. I'm still sure I can, but I am no longer sure I want to. Why put yourself through that when it could all be so much easier? I am, at any rate, entirely committed, and I abandon thoughts of abandoning everything because I never want to think of myself as a wimp and too scared to continue. But the thought of China alone scares me alot. Any help/advice/support from anyone would be totally appreciated. And of course if anyone wants to come out here and join me for this leg that would be amazing.

My plan is to take each day as it comes. I'm going to stay another week in Vietnam, until the end of my visa here, before heading into alien-lands. Step by step should be OK. I think the border control and the big cities is the most daunting - my Thailand border experience was horrible with the woman ("that journey overland is IMPOSSIBLE, you will never make it, you might get Deported" DEPORTED for what Miss Mean? Trying to go the interesting way round?)
Step by step is the only way I can handle all the many steps ahead!

I divided my journey into thirds -

First Third - My holiday time in Thailand and Vietnam (one month completed and greatly enjoyed!)

Second Third - The hideous unknown of China where great uncomfort awaits (yes I know this is a very negative way to look at it, but sorry I'm worried about it and its hard to be excited when you are very worried!) One month

Third Third - The transmongolian and back through Europe - really looking forward to this, as I get to do a magical train journey, see friends along the way, and it's the last leg = almost home!! One month

So now budgeting has got a whole lot tighter, and I am a whole lot less sure of whats next....
(actually the next week holds some lovely treats like Ha Long Bay and the northern town of Sapa, before I reluctantly leave Vietnam. I will be telling you about that I think, yes!)

xxxx Really immensely looking forward to seeing freinds and family. In fact wish you were all here now (or I was there perhaps).

Quirks and perks

There are many elements that make up the travelling experience. Some days I just love it. Some days I just want to be home in a circle of friends and family, not having to deal with it. Constant packing, unpacking, leaving, arriving, its as tiring as it is fascinating. The towns here vastly different everywhere I've been so far - each have a different feel, the women wearing different traditional dress, each with speciality foods, and standards of serving them. Suddenly the coffee has changed from the dark caramel syrup of De Lat to an even darker brew which tastes of rum. The women here in Hue have a rather Chinese style dress that reaches the knees but has long splits up both sides to the waist. In Hoi An they serve Vietnamese tea with everything for free.

I am not sold on Hue as a city, however a series of quirky amusements have made it a place I'll remember.

Firstly:
Here, as anywhere in Vietnam, Cyclo and Moto drivers hassle you and follow you everywhere - "One hour good good pricccccee, How are you Mr Sir? Where you from?" "Easssssy rider siiiir, where you from?". You quickly get sick of it and learn the only way to get rid of them is not to respond, it feels horribly rude however if you say/do Anything, even smile, they latch on and in the end you just end up being ruder - "I SAID NO THANK YOU".
Yesterday we caved in. A sweet looking (and also poor and ill looking) Cyclo driver offered us Good cheep price, and we accepted. Planning to see the whole citadel by foot (looked small on the map) by the end of our Cyclo tour I was pleased we took him up on the offer. This sweet little man cycled the two of us (heavy load by any standard!) around all the sights, gabbering away in semi-recognisable English in between fits of coughing. It ended up being much longer than an hour, and as we hopped off we gave him double the price. His little face just fell as he looked on (by now he's looking a bit peaky, I feel bad!) and he says " But you were THREE HOOOOOURS". We quickly gave him his due to big smiles. Its a fine way to see the city but I did feel a bit 'lady of the manor' as we pass all these terribly poor neighbourhoods.

Second funny of Hue -
Last night our search for food took us to the end of the alley - family restaurant it said - we turned the corner to shouts of delight. A boy runs out of the restaurant and towards us grinning ear to ear, half way he realises he is brandishing a knife and hastens to hand it to his sister. He takes us both by the arm gabbling away (again in semi-English which you can only answer by the nod and smile method) and draws us into a deserted restaurant. Uh oh I think, if its deserted its a no no. We look at the menu and shuffle away promising to come back 'later'..... His poor disappointed face haunted me walking away, and we decide to risk possible food-poisoned death, putting our lives in the hands of this eager-beaver family.

They're all there, mother (cook), father (drinker and watcher of the gate) brother (keen-as waiter) sisters, grandparents, aunt, uncle, the lot! There are all beaming and staring and coming over to shuffle this and ask that. The boy is babbling about orange ducks and lemon chickens and we leave our order in his hands. Our request for wine meets blank looks but then something dawns on the mothers face, words are said, the boys runs out returning 5 minutes later with a bottle of red De Lat wine! (The next day we return for coffee and he proudly shows us that Wine is now on the menu!! And overnight they have erected a glass cabinet full of alcohol)
The Duck cooked with orange and the Lemon fried chicken (the boy collects the lemon leaves from a bush near to my right ear) were delicious. It was one of those meal moments! We unearth the facts - they are from the countryside, and just opened the restaurant two weeks ago. They are proud happy people, so pleased we were pleased. Just lovely. Simon gives them a Fleurs Place book and as we leave the whole family is gathered round browsing.

Its the people you meet and these funny little experiences that make a place. I've been really enjoying sharing the travel experience these last two weeks - its soooo much easier with two people for sure. Next we are off to Hanoi on the night train....

Jungle Beach Bunch

Wow, I'd forgotten the good old beach holiday, complete with surfing, sun-bathing, reading (heaps), eating (excessively good food) and sleeping in beach huts. One of life's great pleasures, doing nothing but relaxing.

Jungle beach was way way out, you had to know it was there. We didn't plan on it but after a chance meeting of a girl whose only words to us was to rave about the place, well then we decided it was worth a look. Beautiful beachtime. Hmmmmm.

I'd also forgotten how much i enjoy a spot of surfing and bodyboarding, although its so much nicer when the sea is as warm as a bath! We had to hide from the scorching sun most of the time - getting up early was the key. I managed to avoid the burn as much as I could but am distinctly browner than i was.

We knew on arrival that beachtime = money, but after staying two nights and bonding with our group we decided two nights more was in order. The other people there were so lovely, and by the end it felt like we had all come on holiday together, sad to leave them behind! Our bill gave me a heart attack that I am only just recovering from - this hotel I bartered mercilessly for the cheap cheapness of $4 US a night!

But it was worth it! Home-cooked AMAZING Vietnamese communal meals each night, where you got to sample lots of different dishes and eat as many bowls of rie (rice) you can fit. I loved it, although the owner was something of a Canadian lord of the manor, I'm too high and mighty to talk to you on your level peasants. However the Vietnamese ladies of the kitchen off-set that completely with their wonderful smiles and giggling sense of humour. Each night we played games and sat chatting around the campfire. Good times.

We are now in the wonderfully old heritage town of Hoi Ann, lovely architecture everywhere, and old old town houses (we picked one of these to stay in!). It's the town of tailors, you can get anything you want made up, and I come away from here with a much needed winter coat. Not any old winter coat though mind - my very own little-red-riding-hood 100%wool coat. I love it! Spent a long time bartering my way down to $50 US, phew. It's a great coat, made to measure, I just hope the postal system here gets it home safe before me.

A coffee nation

Did you know that Vietnam is the second largest exporter of coffee? Its EVERYWHERE here in Delat, a mountain town much cooler and calmer than the city. We have been sampling the local delights of course and find coffee to be the winner so far - it is served through little cup-sized filter-cafetiere-type contraptions and STRONG, black or with condensed milk. So very sweet and very black, just like a delicious syrup that'll make your eyes pop open for hours.
They also grow grapes for wine up here, def on the sampling schedule for this evening!

What else - oh yes, the joy of crossing the road. I may have touched on this briefly before but it deserves its own special section.

CROSSING THE ROAD IN VIETNAM, a brief introduction.

Picture this - a never ending relentless stream of motorbikes and mopeds with the occasional bus or car coming through, and the odd old lady carrying her wares on poles and baskets. Tooting, honking and beeping away at each other, in fact the horn is used as a surrogate brake it seems. So a mass of traffic, alive and honking, certainly no plans to stop for a wee Falong girl. And no, there is no other way, crossing the roads is a must if you want to go anywhere.

How on earth do you cross?

• Use the crossings, but don't think for a second you have right of way.
• Wait until there is a slight gap, gather your wits, courage and step calmly out into the fray.
• Walk steadily and deliberately through, walking your path with clarity of vision. You are getting to the other side!
• Do stop moving when a big bus or car is coming.
• Stop if you are beeped at, as that means, "out my way I'm not going round you".
• When you are in the traffic the motos see you and go round you, however if you start nervous jittering and jumping they won't know which way you are going and will probably squash you in the confusion.
• Do accept help from little old ladies. This requires a major turnabout in thinking - no longer is it we, the youth, helping the old across the road - roles are reversed. (Yesterday an old lady, stooped and bent, grabbed my arm and guided me through the traffic. For a moment I thought "yes, a good deed, I am giving assistance to a wee Vietnamese lady, good one!" But no, as we reached the safety of the pavement she patted me on the back and strolled off. I noticed the locals giggling away and realised that it was the other way round.)
• Forget the hedgehog code of road crossing. There is no Stop, Look, Listen in Vietnam.

I am getting better...

Vietnam

Check out the wiring here!!

Banana lady in the middle of the junction!

I'm here! Vietnam let me in, phew. HCMC is so different from Bangkok, as Vietnam from Thailand so far. I had half expected real similarities, and of course there are, but its totally foreign again. All the language and customs I just learnt are now different!

I have met my friend Simon and we are exploring the city, although both of us are keen to get out into the mountains tommorrow. So to De Lat, a mountain haven hopefully, away from the craziest traffic I've ever experienced (in Thailand I could almost decipher the rules, here...nothing). Crossing the road is a mad and scary time - you just have to walk out slowly and deliberately into the stream of motos, and avoid the buses.

Unexpected obstacles

It would seem that airport people don't like you leaving and arriving on one way tickets, in fact they hate it and are a bit mean. They let me on this flight to Vietnam after trying to get me to buy a flight out before I left, then they threatened that I may be deported on arrival! I wonder if all people trying to travel overland have these problems initially. I hope they will let me in Vietnam! The woman on the desk told me off for a while - "its not so easy easy as you think, you can't just travel all the way to UK overland. Impossible." I described my route again and again until someone decided to let me through. I get the impression they are covering their backs as they made me sign something saying I was responsible for my own actions - well duhh!

So I think I may have to talk my way into Vietnam and hope for the best. I suppose I may have to buy a ticket out of Vietnam if they are mean there too, or worst is I get deported and come home sooner and see everyone. It would be a great shame to miss any of my journey and I will try not to let that happen, but at the end of the day what will be will be and I will try not to get upset about the difficulties that happen. I started to feel a bit wobbly after the interrogation by mean Thai lady at check-in, but I decided she was just doing her job and making sure I knew what I was doing. This isn't the easy way for sure.

The uncertainty of how official people react to my journey, whether they obstruct it or challenge it, means I am just thinking one step at a time. The things I most want to do are

a) have a nice holiday in Vietnam and see the country
b) travel on the TransMongolian

The rest is not so important to me. China I see more as an obstacle than something I really want to do as it is so vast and seems overwhelming by myself. Any advice or comments on any part of my planned journey are very appreciated.

Love Chiang Mai

After a few days here in Chiang Mai I want to stay in Thailand longer!! The people really are super friendly and don't hassle you as I thought they would. The Saturday walking market was spectacular, with stalls packing in for a mile stretch full of hilltribe crafts, clothes, food, Thai silk, and mobile massage units everywhere. I shopped, ate, then had a glorious foot massage with 30 others all talking and laughing in Thai. Such nice people.

The massage school is incredibly well organised. I'm in a class of 8 and we have already learned how to do head, neck, shoulder, face, side back, lying back, leg and arm thai massage - so much information is crammed in my head right now. Its really interesting, much harder than it looks, and by the end of the week I'll have the knowledge to do it but will need plenty of willing volunteers for practice.

Tonight I'm stepping up my adventurous food eating and will try my first Thai curry. I hope I manage to get a mild one! Hana and curries don't normally mix, but how can I not try eh!!

Temples, massage and dancing girls

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Now the temples are of the religious variety, not the ones found on my head which immediately stopped throbbing as the train rolled into the Northern (and cooler) city of Chiang Mai. Profoundly nicer, calmer and more pleasant than Bangkok, I must say its a welcome relief. On my wanders today I came across many temples but this one in particular had all the action; dancing hilltribe girls, loads drumming, many Thai's all dressed up and banqueting. It was a sight! The temples are so very colourful with ribbons and gold everywhere.

I have now experienced two thai massages, one half hour, one hour. My conclusion so far is this: Thai massage is slightly uncomfortable/verging on painful at times, but with careful consideration assessing one massaged leg verses the as yet unmassaged leg, the former felt much much happier than the latter. And now I do feel very floaty light. Yes, all in all an enjoyable time, the slight pain is worth it!! So I look forward to explaining a bit more of the ins and outs of Thai massage tomorrow when I return from day one of my course.

I am now feeling better about travelling - I travelled on the overnight train here in close quarters with a Thai/Romanian couple with a young daughter. They taught me a little basic Thai and a little about the culture. It made me think about why people do travel and what you should take away from the experience. I had been feeling a little lost at the thought of not having a job or purpose other than getting home. The thought of trying to fill days and days in strange foreign lands left me a bit blank. Now I realise that hopefully I'll be learning lots all the way, about the countries and cultures I'm travelling through, about the different food, customs, languages, transport systems! and about myself too.

A chinatown adventure

Today has been pretty interesting considering I woke up this morning (after 12 hours!!) wondering how to fill the time before i got the night train up to Chaing Mai. I decided no more Buddhas and temples but a day of book reading and sipping drinks. This continued until midday when I thought I'd check out what was around the train station - result= hecticness, and a bag not so much locked up but left trustingly in a corner with a million other bags. I got there, I figured out where I'd go later, I left.
An onslaught of taxi drivers began touting for my business, and after a while I managed to get one guy down from 200 baht to 40 (still high for the short distance). My bartering skills are rather sporadic and probably I am getting ripped off left right and centre but I thought this was pretty good - "Take me to Chinatown" said I, proud of my taxi skills. He leads me over to a MOTORBIKE...well I got on and had the ride of my life, if you consider fearing for your life at all turns that! No helmet, CRAZY wiggly in and out of traffic at breakneck speed. Phew, I was clinging on I tell you. We get there and in my hurry to get off I near fallover as my legs have gone dead pressing down so much to stay seated. Despite the fear factor and the intense city fumes (feel like i smoked 30 cigarettes in 10 minutes) it was fun!

Chinatown....well, I thought Khoa San Road was crazy, but thats just full of tourists. Chinatown is dirty and PACKED, with people, with motorbikes inside buildings, on walkways, everywhere, and food and stalls crammed in so much theres barely room to pass. I found it fascinating but too too hectic, so after a while I left for the sanctuary of a park.

Phew, what a day. Off to train station again.

BANGKOK is sweaty!!!!

Phew, haven't been this hot and muggy since...maybe Hong Kong was like this, Ghana definitely was, and I believe I got used to it somehow. I've had three showers already today!
Anyway, typical Brit to go on about the weather (please note, not moaning but stating a fact) when there's so much else.

Update - turns out Hana got idea of a quick flight over to Thailand a bit wrong. In total it took me 22 hours from Christchurch to Bangkok. Got here though, I'm even surviving the city with much more ease than I thought I would. ITS CRAZY, and I'm not sure I like like it, but it certainly is fascinating and full of everything going on everywhere. I brought a cheaper but still good camera at the airport, have been taking plenty of photos of temples and Buddhas getting up to a section of tricks including; reclining, being emerald, being gold, being HUGE., etc.

Eating - now I must admit that the idea of the inevitable stomach upset goes not sit well with me, I wish to avoid it entirely. However that hasn't stopped me munching away on streetside stalls. I ate a unidentified soup for lunch, a little spicy and crazy content (might be meat might be octopus) for my liking. Then a coconut delight, then thai pancake, freshly squeezed juice...hmmm. On my wanders through the streets of Bangkok I found food markets selling all sorts of fruits and veges, places where I could spot no other tourists! An achievement I thought.

Where I'm staying is PACKED with backpackers, the whole massive block is just backpackers really. So I met a nice couple this morning who gave me some pointers. Its OK being here though, comforting in a way.

I've just got tomorrow til 6pm here before I board the night train to Chaing Mai in time for my massage course.
Note - Thai massage is the scary full on one, not lovely oily Swedish massage. So will be very very interesting, I shall have to have a Thai massage myself here before i go (in the name of research you see).

Australia...6 hours in Melbourne

Hello!
New Zealand is a mere speck in the distance, map marked in my mind with all the places I visited, the circles I turned. Amazingly I feel like it is a clean closed chapter. Mission accomplished. I had a lovely time, I almost went to all the places I wanted to go (there's always that one or two that you sacrifice isn't there), I learnt a whole heap of things, I met some lovely strangers who became friends and re-met a couple of strange-ones who were already my friends (and who are of course always lovely and always will be). I worked in two of the most incredible places I have ever been - both right wham bam on the sea! Both beautiful places, full of learning and new recipes and new friends.

This week I have been getting more and more nervous about leaving, but still knowing that I am very happy to be leaving as it is my time. It couldn't be any other way I think, as the knowledge that 'its time to journey on' cannot be ignored. And now that I have been suspended plane-bound thousands of feet above planet earth and landed, safe and well, only to do it again in 6 HOURS, I feel much much calmer. I feel good actually despite getting up at 3am and not yet having had breakfast..hmmm coffeee I smell coffee.
Current brain activity involves wondering whether I should buy a basic but nice new camera, one that has a shutter speed faster than 1 minute between photos, one that doesn't get in a grump and refuse to turn on sometimes.

Argument for - current camera and batteries are

• clearly dying
• Really bad quality
• Massive (taking up my precious space)

New modern camera is

• Tiny
• 10 Mega pixels

BUT

• Money I might need to eat in last leg of trip (although after slaving away all summer I have a little extra than planned)
• Can't bear to throw something away that still technically works...sometimes.

Well, at the end of the day I'm going to be travelling half the world, what a shame not to have decent photos of it.

So things seem to have taken a boring turn, sorry about that folks. I do believe I've almost convinced myself to buy a new camera. Dum dum dum.

I will be blogging away like a happy little blogger LOTS in the next three weeks. Goody gum drops.

Moving Moeraki

So finally, the cord is cut. I have left Moeraki, land of sea and seals, fish and fishermen. About time, but hard to leave. Hard to wrench away from somewhere that has been 'home' for the last 5 months.

I have been filling the week before the big departure with novels, novel sightings, sightings of whales, and long-since-we-last-met friends.

Christchurch brought me the best coffee yet, perfect coffee art, deliciously strong and creamy flat white in the most atmospheric gorgeous building in Little Lydllton. Also the old man on the bus for a chat chat about the good old days and the best cafes, the farmers market and sunshine. Centre of Christchurch, eating sushi. Suddenly Boobs on Bikes slowly zoom past in precession, this years Queen of Erotica proudly taking the lead (no photographs no). I turn a corner - Scotsmen everywhere. The annual bagpipe band competition, all seriousness and quilts.

Highly unusual. I'm in Whale Watching Central now with the lovely Pippa Williams. So nice to have a slice of home here for massive chats and wine in the hot tub.

I fly to Bangkok on THURSDAY. Very nervous. Part of me absolutely can't wait and will relish in the challenges ahead, part of me just wants home without all the scary/interesting/amazing in-between travelling part. I am wrestling with my bag, throwing things out left right and centre to achieve the lightest luggage yet. Why oh why is it still like a bag of bricks on my back? Why...

Ukulele dreams

Last night we saw these guys, the wonderful, hilarious and slightly crazy (in the make-you-laugh, wholesome-delicious way) Wellington Ukulele Band. Here they are, the nutty peeps...

Yes. The lovely Oamura Opera Theatre has had its revamp and enter Ukulele hilarity (and a good dose of musical talent and singing excellence of course) for the opening night of Oooooooooo, the Opera House re-opening festival! So there we are being entertained up in the circle, looking down on these masters of musical comedy. Curtain. The End.

But no, off we go to another musical venue. The Penguin Club! "Its hot, its so damn hot" their words not mine. The Opera House's Alter Ego.

A place I've been meaning to visit since I arrived here, a renowned music venue that has hosted many a famous musician in its time. Not something I'd expect in sleepy old Oamaru but last night it was kicking off. Open mike night. A mixture of eclectic local characters jamming around on stage. A couple of beers and local watching took place. Enter Ukulele's. Amazing. They got the Ukuleles back out after some encouragement and were away with an Artic Monkeys tune.

A great night out in Oamaru. Never thought I'd say that! Good times.

Tales of glut and chutney

Luscious apricots, fat juicy strawberries, lovely looking rhubarb, plums a plenty, wild passionfruit ripe and dropping to the ground, apples steadily growing, their time drawing near. That's Moeraki now, in summer. Fruit coming out my ears right now. I do love it. Preserving, pickling, freezing summers bounty to be enjoyed later in the year.

When I am an old lady you will walk by my little cottage and be mesmerised by the smells wafting out from my little kitchen. Sweet smells of jams and chutneys which I will sell to passers by and give away by the dozen to friends and family. I will be the holder of the areas most renowned secret chutney recipe, as discovered by accident one hot summer in 2034. People will come from miles around, not knowing what was drawing them to my little cottage by the sea, but leaving happily, jam in the bag tea in the belly.

Til then I am busy pitting endless apricots. I say endless, but yesterday I finally pitted the last apricot from the last crate (7 crates in total). We were so happy a Mexican wave spontaneously happened, Hana, Sue, Simon, Andrew...."Er Andrew, are you looking for the Mexican? Earth to Andrew" (still waving into the distance). At Fleurs Place we now have: Apricot jam, jelly, chutney, compote, coulis, sauce, sorbet, icecream, creme brulee, roasted, stewed, and frozen. A Mexican wave of congratulations and relief. Enter Fleur looking slightly cheeky. Bad news....Another box of apricots arriving tomorrow, a gift from an old Central Otago buddy of hers. Phew I think, I can deal with just a box, after all those crates. But no, not a normal box, a fruit pickers BIN. Meaning 150kg at least... more sauce?

Anyone got any jam jars?



I gave some apricots to my lovely neighbour Rayleen. Shes making fruit salad jam today and will be bringing me a taste! Delightful.

Chutney of the week - Rhubarb and Orange. Fresh, zesty, delicious. The best way of using up those old stalks of rhubarb at the end of their season. Recipes are for sharing (apart from the one i discover summer 2034), so let me know if you want this one.

the hills the hills, run to the hills

I do love a good hill it has to be said. With all the contours and valleys, sometimes they remind me of the wrinkles of a puppys skin...and sometimes not. The hills in the picture are the Danseys of Danseys Pass, although who Dansey was and what he did pass I have no idea.
They were gorgeously stunning, 60km of gravel road through mountains, an odd odd pub slap bang in the middle, nothing else for miles.
Hills like that remind me why its good to open my eyes and look.

So only 2 weeks of work left, and it still seems like an eternity to go. So a change of mind is necessary, a few more hill viewings, some proper dog walking...It always amazes me how much your state of mind affects everything - hard things are easy when you are relaxed and happy. I'm really excited about travelling on, to the point where i'm anything but relaxed...want to be travelling now! Thats the great impatient in me coming out. Off for a walk.....

Eternally Optimistic?

The world seems to be in financial chaos. I seem to be very much on a plus when it comes to money. That meaning that I have just about enough to get me home the way I want to get home. And then. Well onwards and upwards isn't it?
I keep reading about financial recession and downward spirals and doom and gloom on the job market without feeling any actual effects. Maybe I'm lucky. Maybe I'm just a travelling gypsy-type without financial commitments greater than an ability to set myself up in the next place. Maybe there'll aways be hospitality jobs going. I can see that this crisis is very real for much of the world, and worse to come, but it always was a system based on stupidity. Had to topple sometime. Hopefully in the calm after the storm (whenever that comes) the bigwigs of financedom will look at the whole and not encourage people and countries to borrow more, more, more.

I just seem to be working more, more, more. Its not that its more hours now than at the beginning, just that my energy for it has waned as the times gone by. I've learnt that my body can only take so much work work work. A balance is required for that level of constant energy output and seen as theres only so many hours in the day (8 of which are required for sleeping) its been pretty impossible. All great things have their downsides, this job has been the hours. Unsustainable for my body, but do-able for 5 months. I don't think I've ever been as physically weak as I am now, and that's hard to deal with when I still want to be as strong, if not stronger and more capable, than all the men! Going to yoga puts it all in perspective and reminds me how much respect and time you have to give to looking after your body and mind. You can't simply be running on all cylinders all the time without replacing that energy or maintaining the equipment. So 3 more weeks to go for me, and i am trying to make the most out of it. Trying to find the energy to really enjoy my last few weeks in Moeraki, as sure as sure can be I will miss the place horribly when I go.

My friend Monty

Nothing in my blog since Christmas?? Must mean I have a life says Laura!

Life in Moeraki continues as per usual with the normal dose of insanity, craziness and fantastic feats of nature. I can't say I ever find it dull, a normal complaint from young uns passing through "theres nothing here, nothing much going on...". I wondered what they weren't seeing. How can you fail to see the entertainment in the local soap opera unfolding, day by day a new story comes to light. Same anywhere, any small Local village has its 'characters', its issues, its stories. Moeraki's tale centres around the wee fishing village, the beer-downing fishermen, and the rest of the weird and wonderful collection of people inexplicably drawn to the place.

For such a tiny place there's alot going on. Two galleries with local artists work proudly displayed, much of it from local Maori's, fine work it is too.
An award-winning celebrated restaurant, one of the very best fresh and local places in New Zealand - that being demonstrated by the hundreds of customers that flood through the little wooden door daily.
Nature in all its glory, fierce and wild and just there. A trip up to the lighthouse past the Kytes transports to the another world almost - the sea and her creatures as nature intended but metres away. Yellow eyed penguins just chilling out in front of you, seals basking in the sun, the strong smell of seaweed up your nose, in your hair. Everything seems bigger, more powerful up at the Lighthouse.

Last week we lost a chef (back to jail), almost another chef (on fire in the smoker) all the dogs (mercilessly evicted by the council), and many of us staff almost lost ours minds over the sheer volume of customers flooding in. But then something amazing happened...
Her Majesty the Sky put on a show like never before. The most humbling display of light and shadow, hard and soft focus, delicate sweeps of watercolour and the vibrancy of oil colour. All at once, but moving, always changing and evolving. I was stunned. I just stood there with my broom, staring, exclaiming, staring mouth open for 20 minutes while the sun went down and the sky went up in flames. Gayle took a picture, maybe one day I'll show it to you.

So don't tell me nothing happens in Moeraki kids.

Juliana, my lovely flatmate leaves today. Sad. That opens up another chapter of my Moeraki story however as new staff'll be moving in shortly. Stay tuned...