Finally in Ngapali!

It only took a good 17hours to travel from Mawlamyine to Ngapali beach, but oh my was it worth it! After a terrible journey with little to no sleep, we were picked up at Thandwe airport and driven through the street the lies parallel to the beaches. After driving past white sandy beach after white sandy beach and through a landscape of rolling hills covered in crops and expanses of drying fish, we arrived at the particularly celebrated beach, Ngapali. It was stunning. Although our room wasn't right on the beach, the hotels restaurant sat on a veranda that poked out into the serene beach. While we thought the beach was going to be crowded with tourists it was a pleasant surprise to see a deserted white sandy beach that sat in a little bay in front of us. With palm trees spilling onto the sparkling sand, locals selling baroque pearls and colourful shells, fresh fruit juice and fresh fish stalls poking out if the trees, the setting couldn't have been more idyllic. Just to top the few days off that we had there, at night the horizon was light up by squid boats in preparation for our lunch the next day!

Last day in Yangon

After only a few days in Yangon, we were already on our last day before heading on to a small town in the South East of Myanmar called Hpa-an. We spent our last morning walking around downtown Yangon, including the Sule Paya and the morning markets. Selling everything from fresh fruit and vej to flip flops and tie-dye t-shirts, the streets were alive with vivid colours and bustling locals. We had tea at a traditional Burmese tea shop and some sort of delicious bean sprout and tofu salad as lunch on the streets. And after a sweaty day in the blistering heat, we were relieved to get back to the hotel for a cold shower before the 10 hour bus that awaited us.
The bus stop was the most hectic jumble of buses, taxis, mopeds and rickshaws muddled in with people carrying piles of all sorts on their heads I had ever seen. And somewhere within mayhem Bianca and I had to figure out which bus was ours. After standing for a while, dazed and bewildered at the confusion around us, we found the travel agents and managed to settle into our seats without too much further stress.
Much to my surprise the roads all the way to Hpa-an were well maintained and not too bumpy. Unlike the cliff edge and quarry like potholey roads that connected the towns in india, the roads here in Burma are more comparable to rolling hills with the odd jerk that made for quite an enjoyable and comfortable journey. As such, by 5am the next morning, we were loading ourselves up again like donkeys as we arrived in Hpa-an.

Yangon

After arriving in Burma yesterday, and finally seeing Bianca, we were very much the ultimate tourists today ticking off the main attractions of Burma's capital, Yangon. Including the phenomenal Shwedagon Paya, the Chaukhtatgyi Paya (the reclining Buddah, an impressive 65m in length!) and a tour of the neighbouring monasteries, it was a wonderful way to start the trip in Burma!

Wrong order

I apologise for the haphazard order of my posts, after thinking I had updated in the right order but they have loaded in the wrong order. To prevent confusion 'soon to Burma' is the most recent!

Kuala Lumpur

For the past few days I have been lucky enough to experience Malaysia's capital. Fortunately, I again have friends from school who live out here and they have been showing me around and recommending this and that. I have had a wonderful first few days, seeing Berjaya Times Square, the Petronas Twin Towers, the Menara Tower and the KLCC, with Chinatown, Merdeka Square and Petaling Street on todays agenda. I will try my best to find a good while to write some more detail about my activities, at the moment I am being kept very busy and ran off my feet trying to see the best of Kuala Lumpur.

Singapore

After a long day and nights travelling i finally arrived in Singapore. It was immensely humid and after finding my hotel, I wondered the bay and high streets. The first day didn't last long as
I had hardly slept on the plane and passed out at 6pm for a good 17 hours in bed! The next day I met Aaron, a friend from school who lives in Singapore. He had leave from the army for the weekend to show me the sights. I was lucky enough to stay in his beautiful house in a lovely area of Singapore. Over the weekend he showed me to the zoo, the botanical gardens and around the best places in the city! The highlight had to be the exclusive bar that was fronted with a library but, after saying a secret password, the bookshelf opened up to an incredible cocktail bar! We also had the best local dishes and all in all it is safe to say I had a wonderful time that definitely wasn't long enough!

Soon to Burma

After a short but sweet stay on the Thai island of Koh Phangan, I am back in Kuala Lumpur for a night before flying to meet the beautiful Bianca who I have missed and can not wait to see again. I should probably also mention that I can't wait to visit Burma as well as catching up with B, but we all know where my priorities lie!