My 2009 Year Of Travelling In Review

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My 2009 Year Of Travelling In Review: "
2009 was another very full on year of travelling for me, with trips happening nearly every month from my base in Bangkok. Just as with 2008 (see 2008 review here), much of my travelling was scuba diving related as I continued writing for Scuba Diver AustralAsia, Asian Diver and newcomer EZ Dive magazines, along with Bangkok Airways‘ magazine Fah Thai. Much of the time I was on a boat heading to remoter parts of places like Burma and Indonesia that are not normally seen by travelling on land. Certainly my love of Indonesia is deepening more and more with several visits there during 2009 – Bali remains a fantastic place to hang out , I’ve got several good friends currently based there, and the landscapes both above and below water around Komodo, the Banda Sea and Papua are nothing short of mindblowing.

El Deir (The Monastery), Petra, Jordan

I also did a couple of big non diving trips, to France and Jordan, both of which were immense fun. The peculiar thing about my travels in 2009 is that virtually everywhere I went I’d been to before, whether to introduce family and friends to one of my favourite places in Asia or because I was on assignment or simply because I wanted a second look. This is also a sign that I am getting really, really old. There is something great about returning to places (provided you don’t expect them to be the same) – you are familiar enough with the place to not worry about the logistics of finding your way around, which gives you more time to savour whatever it was that drew you back and, maybe, delve a little deeper into everyday life there.

Welcoming Committee at Lamalera Village, Alor, Indonesia

For 2010, I’ve decided to try and slow down a little bit so that I can actually get some stuff done at home – the only downside of travelling so much is that it’s difficult to complete the various evil schemes I’ve currently got cooking. That and I’ve got a great bunch of mates in Bangkok who I’d like to hang out with more – although maybe being away is better for my liver…

Below is a roundup of where I went, with relevant links to previous posts here on Travelhappy and on my other blog Divehappy.

January

The beautiful boulders of Pygmy Palm Point, Mergui Archipelago, Burma

The year began with me heading off into the wilds of the Burma’s Mergui Archipelago on the MV Jazz to write a story about diving in Myanmar, one of Asia’s last diving frontiers. If you’re looking for beautifully desolate top side scenery and being truly on your own (except for the occasional dynamite fisherman), this is the place to go. It’s amazing how different Mergui is to Thailand’s Similan Islands, only a few miles south.

February

Gateway to the Temple of Literature, Hanoi

This was a slightly nutty month as I had three different groups of friends passing through Asia at almost the same time – arriving in Hong Kong, Hanoi and Bangkok – so, thanks to the miracle of low cost airlines, I spent a memorable evening in Hong Kong before heading back to Bangkok and then flying straight out to Hanoi for a couple of days of foodie heaven with visiting friends. A week or so later my mates Rich and Doog arrived in Bangkok for a guided tour to Angkor Wat in Cambodia and then some beach chillaxing on my favourite island in Thailand, Koh Lanta.

Beng Mealea Temple

This was almost like a greatest hits of my favourite places in Asia – it was my fifth visit to Hanoi in as many years and while the traffic is starting to get to an insane critical mass, it still retains its charm and the food is just superb. See my story Don’t Miss: Hanoi for why I like it so much. Angkor is starting to show signs of stress from so many tourists visiting it – there was a lot of scaffolding up at several temples – but it is still awesome. And, despite its popularity, if you get up early you will still have many of the temples almost to yourself before 8.30 am – I did pretty much the same itinerary as I wrote up in Angkor Wat: A Brief Guide a couple of years ago, minus the walk up to Kbal Spean and with a highly recommended visit to the lost temple of Beng Mealea instead.

March

Guess who the handsome devil is in the top right of the picture…

Off to the Maldives to write a story about travelling and diving in style on the “floating hotel” Sachika, a luxury liveaboard. (Yeah, I know, tough gig). As well as spending time diving in the Maldives, we also visited the incredibly posh “beyond stars” Soneva Gili resort (see my Soneva Gili review with pix) and the Sheraton Full Moon too. It was pretty interesting seeing how the other half live – not a trip I could afford out of my own pocket.

April

was spent in Bangkok having a rest. This was the time of the first Bangkok tweetup, which was also on the eve of what turned out to be the major civil insurrection in Bangkok caused by the Redshirts. At least they didn’t close down the airport again.

May

Sea Snakes, Gunung Api, Indonesia

Headed off for three weeks in Indonesia, first stopping in the Lembeh Strait to get some underwater photography tuition from Mike Veitch at NAD Lembeh resort, and then flying across to Ambon to join MSY Seahorse for an intrepid journey across the Banda Sea. This included diving at Gunung Api, the Volcano Of The Sea Snakes, which is possibly one of the more brave/stupid things I’ve done, although it’s nowhere near as dangerous as it sounds.

June and July

I got sick at the end of my trip in Indonesia so these couple of months were spent quietly. That is perhaps the biggest downside to frequent travel – the continual flights and changes to schedule, routine etc does seem to have quite a debilitating effect, much more so than backpacking (ie being on one long continuous trip). It was good to take it easy for a bit.

August

Eiffel Tower at night, Paris

This month was a highlight of the year as I returned to Paris for the first time in 12 years, spending a week there in the glorious August sunshine. I fell in love with Paris all over again and it didn’t feel very different from when I’d first visited there as a backpacker straight out of school – except that the Parisians seem even more friendly and definitely everyone speaks English a lot more than before. I’ve never really understood the Parisian reputation for being rude – I’ve always found them to be the epitomy of courtesy in general. Yes, you get some asshats, but that’s true of anywhere.

I would definitely recommend renting an apartment in Paris rather than staying in a hotel if you are going to be there more than a couple of days – renting is a lot better value even if it’s not cheap. We stayed in the posh 16th Arrondisement and there was a supermarket literally next door where we could stock up on French wine, bread, cheese, coffee and chocolate for next to nothing — and we had a kitchen to prepare our own baguettes too, so it actually works out that you’re saving money if you like to stuff your face – and if you’re in France, it’s obligatory to stuff your face.

Herge Museum, Brussels

From Paris I did a quick side trip to Brussels to see some friends and also to see the Herge Museum – the creator of TinTin – and then headed back into France to go to Normandy, to stay at an old chateau near the D-Day Beaches to celebrate a friend’s 40th birthday. This was an amazing time as I got to catch up with some old dear friends I hadn’t see for years, and as well as hanging out we visited the Bayeux Tapestry and paid our respects at the American, British and German war cemeteries. From here I headed back to England to see my parents and catch up with more friends – and, amazingly, the good weather held throughout the entire month. It couldn’t have come together any better.

A definite side effect of being in Paris again was a renewed interest in exploring more of Europe. Because I travelled in Europe so much when I was younger, I’d become a bit blase about it, especially as there is so much in Asia I wanted to see (and still want to see). But being in Paris reminded me how much of Europe I should explore, especially southern Spain and Italy, which somehow I’ve never visited.

September

Back in Bangkok, there was a month of retrenchment as I moved apartment and got settled in to being back in Thailand. Given the frequency of how often I’m away, it made sense to downsize to a smaller, cheaper studio apartment – which has worked out well. At the end of the month I did a quick trip to the south of Thailand to go diving at Koh Losin, one of Thailand’s best dive sites that’s rarely visited due to its location. Known as a hot spot for whale sharks, I was completely stunned when, at the end of our first dive, a whale shark turned up as if on cue! It didn’t hang around for long, but the fact we saw it at all was amazing.

October

Maldives seascape

From October onwards, I got into a frankly looney travel pattern where, over the next 8 weeks, I spent more time underwater than I did on land. I did three trips back to back, with just a few days off inbetween back in Bangkok before heading out to the next one. The first one was back in the Maldives on the new boat MV Orion. (Another tough gig). Once I returned from the Maldives, I was back to Indonesia…

November

Komodo Dragon, Horseshoe Bay, Komodo

…where I spent four weeks on the MSY Damai, Indonesia’s newest liveaboard, sailing around Komodo and across the Banda Sea again, covering a distance of some 2000 miles in all and diving on some of Indonesia’s – and indeed, the world’s – best dive sites. Our trip also included a visit to Rinca island, one of the homes of the Komodo Dragon, who had no qualms about getting uncomfortably close for photos… you can read a complete account of the dragons and Komodo Diving on Divehappy. Even after four weeks on the boat, I was sad to come back to dry land – the crew on the boat were great and I met some fantastic people, as well as exploring the endlessly fascinating underwater sights of Indonesia. I really need to become a millionaire so I can spend more time doing this…

December

Sphinx and Great Pyramid, Giza, Egypt

A week after I got back from Indonesia, I headed to the Philippines to explore Apo Island, just off the coast of Dumaguete. I stayed at a place called Bahura Resort, which is beautifully put together (pix and report to follow). There were very few people there too, so you’ve got a huge infinity pool to yourself if you want to just hang out. The diving was way better than I expected, and I’m currently putting together

The year ended with me returning to Jordan for the third time to meet up with my parents and play tour guide around the ancient ruins of Petra, as well as the Roman city of Jerash near to Amman. I first went to Petra when I was 19 (which is, gulp, 18 years ago) and finally persuaded my parents to come and see what I was raving about. They were suitably impressed and the colder temperatures were perfect for exploring the huge city. We celebrated Christmas with a walk in Petra in the morning and then wine and cheese rolls for our Christmas lunch with present opening afterwards. Magic.

I saw in 2010 in Cairo, having stopped over to finally see the Pyramids and Cairo’s Egyptian Museum, both of which were amazing. New Year’s Day saw me heading back to Bangkok. I’d like to say I was diligently making my travel plans for 2010, but actually I was drinking heavily to try and make the reality of the fat guy sitting next to me spilling out his seat into mine go away. Hopefully it’s all up from here…

This article was originally posted at: Travel Happy

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My 2009 Year Of Travelling In Review

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