May 20, 2012
Hi, i'm Stu from North Yorkshire / Nottingham, UK, and this is my blog.
This year i quit my job to travel the world.
Browse my blog and photos via the maps!
full article #tags: , [0] 
so far...
The lightning is amazing here. Non stop thunderbolts, dramatic forks hitting the horizon and between clouds.
I've been in the Perhentian islands (north east Malaysia) for a week and its really nice, especially after the chaos of Kuala Lumpur (KL is the opposite of Singapore) and the run down disappointments of Tioman island.
The diving is super cheap here, and tomorrow I might actually do some - I've been a bit ill for a few days, the worst I've had in the whole year. Still, I've been snorkelling with huge sea turtles which was downright amazing.
full article #tags: update, [0] so far...
i'm in Singapore. it's vibrant but at the same time very clean and well organised.
Also i've got this song stuck:
Looking forward to Night Safari followed by the Manchester Derby tomorrow night.
After that i'm heading north into Malaysia
full article #tags: update, music, [2] so far...
No point going to bed with a 1am flight out of Samoa, and then a 7am flight out of Auckland to get to Sydney. I did get two different free breakfasts though.
On the flight over from NZ i was sat next a race horse trainer who was coming over to bid on some new thoroughbreds in the Easter auction.
He then told me about how they constantly fly horses back and forth between Australia and NZ, and how he once flew to South Korea on a 747 jumbo transport plane with over 100 horses.
It never would have crossed my mind that there are all these horses at 30,000 feet every day.
The hostel i stayed at in Sydney was near the station in an area almost exclusively made up of hostels and travellers. But here most people seemed to be on working visas, and live in the hostels on a long term basis.
Nearby was the inevitable china town, and then the downtown was just full of tourists. I'm sure some ozzies live there somewhere though.
so my first concern in australia was actually to get a visa for America.
Thus i was printing off bank statements, qualifications, contracts, photos etc to support my application
it was a nerve wracking wait at the consulate on the day, since you could overh [read the rest...]
full article #tags: update, [3] so far...
full article #tags: , [4] so far...
just heard an American woman ask for a Hawaiin pizza without pineapple
every vehicle in Fiji has after market stereo, even if missing 2nd and 3rd gear and windows
and the speakers are always hifi speakers or large home made wooden boxes, stuck awkwardly
also amazing industry in car upholstery, seats, dash, walls, even ceiling wallpapered
and seats usually covered in protective plastic (fair enough) but funny like old folks, buying nice furniture but never daring to sit on it
Samoa
fales fales fales. and lots of imposing churches in contrast.
so fales all different shapes sizes. basically a hut or house with no walls.
you can see right in, right through. often no furniture, maybe a fridge and a tv.
outside toilets and showers away from fale
evidently its pretty consistently warm and doesn't rain much
incredible neatness. like the whole island is a best kept village competition
immaculately mowed lawns and verges, ornamental hedges, strategically planted colourful shrubs and flowers along the roadsides
fautau beach fales lalomanu beach
all dead coral due to 2009 tsunami. saw a turtle though!
massive shame cos awesome beach and perfect lagoon for swimming at any [read the rest...]
full article #tags: update, islands, [4] so far...
so here we are.
half past 2 in the morning 3 in the morning. half past 4 in the morning (yes faithless insomnia reference)
tannoy: "you may now collect your bags and proceed to your hotels"
confirming without ever actually saying that flight FJ253 to Apia has been cancelled.
it looked sure to leave, planes were rumbling overhead all day and the flight to LA went out at midnight
i used up my fiji dollars on snacks and souvenirs in the airport shops to get rid of the cash
but have now had to cash a travellers cheque to get money to use the motel laundry
ironically finding the required $5 whilst checking shorts pockets.
so now i have $80 to burn, but the hotel and food is already paid for by the airline.
just had a shave after nearly 2 weeks. first had to tape together my razor which had become the latest thing to disintegrate in my bag
ok now will try to think back a bit and go in chronological order.
starting with return from mamanuca islands, cos i think i wrote about those already
free night in bamboo hostel. its practically free anyway at $12 (4GP) including breakfast and free wifi
they make their money on food, beer, and funneling backpackers to their other [read the rest...]
full article #tags: adventures, update, islands, [3] so far...
Well today I'm a year older. I returned my rental car (after 3 day trip down the Great Ocean Road), and cooked some poached eggs and fried potatos. I never had poached eggs until Vancouver last October (tabs Amy) but they figure regularly on the menu nowadays. And every time I eat them I wonder where Swiss Lukas has got to in his cycling adventures - last heard from crossing Mexico.
Then I settled down to finish off reading 'Emma' by Jane Austen and also finish off the wine from last night even though technically it was still morning. Its my birthday though. All the shops were shut this morning for Anzac day. Anyway, Jamie said I was being girly and we went to drink pints of lager and watch rugby. When we got back Nicci had bought a cake which was nice! It was Orange choc sponge.
Anyway, I've got a proper update about Australia to write plus the backlog from the islands. Tomorrow.
Thank you to everyone who has helped me through life and travels so far.
full article #tags: update, reflections, [4] so far...
today i went to the US consulate in Sydney, and blimey if they didn't go and give me another visa! So it's back to summer camp in New Hampshire.
So the plan is:
Get home at the start of June, have a couple of weeks saying hello and sorting myself out.
Fly off to America for camp, and travel to Florida and the south till mid September
Spend Sept/Oct hiking and cycling around the UK.
the english winter? not sure, maybe a ski season, australia working visa, or temp work to save for next trip (south america or asia where it's nice and inexpensive)
in the meanwhile i've got a couple more weeks in Australia and then 5 weeks in Asia.
full article #tags: pondering, [2] so far...
full article #tags: , [8] so far...
full article #tags: , [3] so far...
Ok I've been blogging offline for the last month, sorry. But internet isn't everywhere in Fiji and Samoa and I didn't miss it. Why would you want to spend time on a computer when you've got beaches and kava? And news is always bad, including the football results.
I'm now in Sydney, spending the day walking around the big tourist landmarks, and now finally a brew pub. Unfortunately the beer cost £6 a pint here so I won't be getting drunk (fiji was less than £1 a pint sigh)
Visa interview (for going back to USA summer camp) is on Wednesday. Crossing fingers, toes etc.
full article #tags: update, [3] so far...
flight 6am
airport 4am
catch bus 3am
= not paying for bed for the night, cinema then internet cafe!
full article #tags: update, [6] so far...
So the day before yesterday i went bungee jumping for the first time. Awesome!
Yesterday i hiked the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, advertised as NZ's best day hike. And to be fair, it's hard to imagine a better day hike.
19km sounds easy enough, but that doesn't include the optional climb to the summit of the volcano used as Mt Doom in the Lord Of the Rings movies. I forget the real name. Anyway, that constitutes a gruelling two hour climb (literally a climb) up a 45 degree slope of scree, sand, and jagged volca [read the rest...]
full article #tags: amazing, [9] so far...
full article #tags: photos, cities, [6] so far...
so i just arrived in Taupo.
After Whangerai i hired a car and drove up to the most northerly point in NZ, Cape Reinga, where Maori souls depart after death on the journey to wherever.
I picked up a german hitchhiker called Max and we climbed up a big hill with 360 views, it was a fun day.
Next day i was struck down with travellers stomach and had to spend a couple of days in the hostel within easy access of a bathroom.
Then i took a scenic 12 hour train journey down to the bottom of the north island, to Wellington.
Whilst NZ prides itself on being a country of nature etc its a shame that over the last 150 years since it became populated, 80% of its natural forests and habitats have been destroyed.
A lot of it is now just barren looking hillside with sheep dotted about.
I spent the last week hanging out in Wellington with students, seeing bands, climbing small hills and turning up late to environmental protests. (no arrests this time)
In my last week i plan to go bungee jumping, sit in some warm mud, walk the Tongariro crossing, (reputed to be one of the best day hikes in the world) and go "black water" rafting in the Waitomo caves.
Then onto Fiji.
over and o [read the rest...]
full article #tags: update, [10] so far...
full article #tags: , [6] so far...
well, not a huge one. Just a quick word for an initially unconvincing looking paperback my friend Karl gave me before i left Arizona.
Desert Solitaire (edward abbey)
amazon.co.uk
wikipedia
It's written by a guy who spends a couple of summers working in Arches National Park in the US, in 1960's days when mass tourism was still just over the horizon. As well as his observations and local stories, we get his musings from long days spent alone with no distractions from thinking, and a forthright social commentary with some eerily accurate predictive statements on the direction the world has headed, all in a great writing style.
on amazon second hand for $1.26 and well worth it!
full article #tags: books, [11] so far...
so bus (intercity.co.nz) from auckland to whangarei
i guess i've been spoiled. yesterday i dived at what jacques custeau rated one of the top 10 sites in the world, and it wasn't even the highlight of the day.
that sounds wayyyy too boastful and ungrateful but its true
the diving was good, but at more than double the price of diving in the cook islands it wasn't doubly as good.
The boat was full with about 20 people, which made the water seem almost as crowded with people in masks as it was with fish, kelp and crustaceaous things.
And i saw stingray, moray eels, porcupine fish, large shoals of other fish, swam under rocks, through an arch with the sunlight dancing down in shafts into the depth of the water.
But in the cooks i was diving with 2 other people, just us in the ocean, with all that amazing coral, shark, and tropical fish.
I wouldn't say today put me off diving, but maybe i'll wait till i get to cheaper places and feel i'm getting value for money. I know this trip was supposed to be about experience, not money, not shirking things because they seem expensive when i've already paid a fortune getting to the other side of the world,
but everything [read the rest...]
full article #tags: diving, amazing, [9] so far...
New Camera. Panasonic TS3
So after my Sony compact camera finally having a malfunction that couldn't be fixed by bashing it off a table, i wanted a new pocket sized camera.
In the Cook Islands several people had waterproof cameras, which i was very envious of given the amazing snorkelling.
So i got one of those. It can go down to 12m underwater, which is frustratingly short of scuba depth, but absolutely the best available in a camera without spending several hundred pounds more on a special housing.
And it should be fine to get bumped around in a bag, splashed in a kayak, dropped on a sand dune etc. In theory.
Will update when i've tested it out more.
Regarding my other new camera (the Panasonic G3 i bought back in New York), i love it to bits (apart from in low light when i can't hold it steady long enough)
full article #tags: cameras, [13] so far...
