laurie was here

I always love it when readers of this blog submit your own travel questions; any help I can offer in getting more people out on the road, the better.  Here’s one that came through recently that some of you thinking about taking a trip out here may find useful.  Cheers and happy travels.

hey laurie,
my names siti from perth. i’m backpacking south east asia in april/may to malaysia thailand and vietnam! your spending was so cheap and i just wanted to know how u got onto accommodation and transport? is it hard finding accommodation, did u know where u were going each time? it’s my first time back backpacking and i’m going for 3 weeks in each country. any recommendations?? :) siti

On February 29, 2012, I canceled all my job interviews and bought a one-way ticket to Bangkok instead.

still probably the best status update I’ve made

Ten months later, on January 2, 2013, I canceled another one in Melbourne and decided I still wasn’t ready to report to an office everyday, even if it would be in Australia.

I had decided to settle down in Melbourne for a while after getting a bit tired of the constant unpacking and repacking, meeting and leaving, moving and asking directions that is backpacking in a foreign country.  I wanted to cook for myself, I wanted a bike, I wanted a bed of my own, I wanted to hang out with friends and do normal person things like go to BBQs, date, attend local shows, know everyone at a house party, and watch movies at peoples’ houses.  (All these things have happened in the month I’ve been here, and it’s been exactly what I was looking for.)  I studied in Melbourne for a year back in 2008 so I know and love this city well, and still have friends around.

Carlton Gardens - my neighborhood park

I also planned to look for a job, since Australia is crazy expensive.  I already have a part-time job I do online, but it’s not quite covering my Aussie expenses so I figured I’d get another one to restock some savings for my travel after Australia.  I love Melbourne and expected to stay here a few months at least, so went searching for full- or part-time office work.  Job hunting is weirdly one of my hobbies, so I usually find what I’m looking for, and in this case found a couple of positions that would suit my background and interests well.  Not long after I submitted my application I heard back from the one I figured I would have the best shot at, for a project management position at a big international game company with an office in Melbourne.  I scheduled an interview and began the familiar preparation process.

Except, unlike most times I’ve had interviews, I just couldn’t get that excited about it.  I knew I could get it and I knew it would be good experience and probably pay well, and yet… nah.  My time here is just too precious, too good to waste behind a computer indoors.  

I gave it some thought and figured, how many more opportunities will I have to live and play in beautiful, vibrant Melbourne during the summer?  

And, how many more opportunities will I have to work in an office?

…yeah.  

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In a few days I’m moving to Australia.  I don’t know for how long but, as always, anything is possible.

Like my ticket to Bangkok, I was kind of drunk when I bought a flight to Perth two months ago.  It was my first night in Vietnam, I was hanging out at a bar with the only two expats who lived in the town, and I used the wifi to check my email using my phone.  Is that ever a good idea in a bar?  Personally I don’t think so but based on the fact I do it every time I have the opportunity it doesn’t seem to have registered with me yet.  In this case, doing so gave me an excuse to avoid the increasingly inappropriate advances of one of the old men, so I became more engrossed in the activity than I normally would be.  Long story short, AirAsia was having a sale and 15 minutes later I had bought a ticket from Kuala Lumpur to Perth, Western Australia, on November 15.  It was $130.  You probably don’t need context to know that, drunk purchase or no, that’s a really good deal.

Since then I’ve had this date to look forward to.  I decided soon after I bought the ticket that I was going use Australia to settle down and take a break from backpacking.  By the time I get there, I’ll have been homeless for 7 months.  While fun and liberating, unpacking and repacking your life every few nights does get tiresome.  I guess that in my old age I’m finally getting domestic urges: I want to unpack all of my clothes, and hang them all up - I want to have more than three outfits to choose from.  I want to go grocery shopping and cook for myself, buy wine for later and chill liquor in the freezer.  I want to have friends that I can call up and do nothing with.  I want to go on actual dates again (not that wandering Khao San Road together, drinking beer on the street in the neon glow of the ping pong show lights isn’t hella romantic and all), awesome dates that I’ll plan based on my local expertise.  I want to buy tickets to shows in advance, I want to have opinions on all my local bars, I want to have bloody mary supplies always on hand, I want to do my own laundry, I want to take home leftovers, I want any stray hairs on my bed to just be my own (in a hostel, it’s always a mystery).  I want to master the local transport and I’ll also own a bike.  And dammit, I want a gelato rewards card.  And all these things will happen, because I will make them.

The last time I was Down Unda I cuddled the world’s cutest marsupial, so I know anything’s possible:

I leave Thursday night and arrive in Perth Friday morning.  I already have weekend plans set up with some locals, starting with a bike ride to the beach immediately after I land.  This is the weather forecast for the weekend; in Australia, the schools are letting out and that infectious summer buzz is just starting to bloom…

….yeah.  This is going to be good.

By 1pm I had completely lost my sense of time and direction. 

I had started out from Bangkok the previous night, unsure of how the following day was going to work, just knowing I needed to cross the Thai border to Myanmar (Burma) and then head in the direction of Koh Phangan, which could be accomplished in a number of ways. 

Bangkok southbound bus station, 9pm

From Bangkok I had a sleepless bus ride to some random border town, Ranong.  I got in at 6am, the day still dark and the air sticky with humidity, and immediately hired a motorbike taxi to the border.  ”Where you go?” “Burma.” “OK.”  In my delirious state I found this exchange highly amusing.  Usually “Where you go?” is followed up by the hostel I’m staying at or a general location where you can find cheap digs.  But this time - take me to Burma!  Sure - you got it.

The Thai border exit point in Ranong was basically a small pier, and its primary purpose appeared to be a fish market, the stench of dead sea life throughout the entire area as strong as anything I’ve ever smelled, huge mounds of fish piled up on tarps outside the small immigration area. I’ve done a number of border crossings over this trip, but each time I do one like this it really impresses me with just how far removed I am from the paranoid ultra-security of American borders.

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My day started with a long local bus from my hostel in Kota Bharu, Malaysia to the Thai border.  Immigration was slow and empty, and no one really paid much attention to anything I did.  I filled out an arrival card, presented my passport, and that was it.  Nobody spoke to me and my bags were never checked.  When I walked through to the Thailand side, I was greeted by some goats milling around in the departure lane.

The goats were in charge of immigration, while the sheep had the highways under control.

Once in Thailand I took a motorbike taxi to the train station and booked the next train to Bangkok, which would turn out to be a 24hr journey.  All the sleeping berths were taken - the best seat available was a 2^nd class seat in a car without AC.  I decided to go for it as I just wanted to get to Bangkok, and at this point in my trip comfort is definitely a dispensable option.

I had read that this region of Thailand was particularly prone to violence and terrorism, and that most Western governments advised their citizens against travel there if possible.  Apparently even most travel insurance is void while traveling here (Sungai Kolok).  Bombings are common, this incident having occurred three days before I was there.  I had heard of trains being subject to attack here, but not recently.  Technically I could have avoided starting my train journey there, but I try not to let fear make my decisions for me and logistically it made the most sense based on where my last location in Malaysia was.

When I got to the station the increase in risk was made dramatically clear by all the armed guards and military personnel patrolling the area, their assault rifles and handguns casually hanging from their shoulders or belts. 

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With a grueling overnight bus ride and unbelievably slow “express” ferry, we’ve finally arrived in our next destination - the island of Ko Phangan - after spending a crazy and sweaty 5 days in Bangkok.  From visiting countless markets, to exploring random back alleys, to becoming experts in local public transport (including boat), to eating our weight in pineapple and watermelon, to partying with the locals (and tourists), all in temperatures hovering around 100 degrees, we felt like we had gotten a good amount from the city.  It was great fun, awesome people, and overall a delicious, sweaty experience.

One great way to escape the brutal heat and humidity: 100 baht for day access to a nearby pool.  We knew that was too expensive, and we didn’t care.  It was worth it.

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We’ve only been in Bangkok a few days, but I feel like we’ve experienced a lot of what this city has to offer.  On our first day, we ended up spending the morning with a tuk-tuk (mercenary 3-wheeled taxi) driver who, after we turned out to be not quite as easy marks as we first appeared, became very friendly and accommodating, and spent the next few hours giving us a personalized tour of the city’s many temples.  Apparently, it was a special festival for many of them, and we were given access that is only available 3 times a year.  At each temple we met crazy friendly people who were working or visiting there for the holiday, and they were all really happy to show us around and tell us about its significance.  Everyone was so friendly almost to the point of it seeming like a scam, but if there was one it never materialized.  I think most people are just really nice here.

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We’re finally here and settled into Bangkok.  Checking in on our first day was an epic adventure, followed by an epic reward.  From managing to find each other at the airport after 24 hours of flying despite no working communication methods, from navigating two different Thai public transportation methods in the sweltering heat, to slowly making our way through a crowded marketplace where bikes share the sidewalk with pedestrians, to finally finding our hostel nestled in on a side street, all the while carting our big backpacks around, it was a wonderful feeling just to step inside the (air conditioned!) lobby and set our stuff down.  Checking in however, took the exhilaration to the next level.  When we got to our private room ($4.50/night each), we quickly discovered that not only did it come with a queen-sized bed and a (stocked!) minifridge, we also had our own bathroom and shower!!  This was ridiculously exciting, in fact two days later it still is.  Both of us have done hostel traveling before, and this was a first for both of us.  We couldn’t believe our luck, and spent the next few minutes wrapped in shouts of joy and exclamations of disbelief.  We treated ourselves to a minibar beer, and everything was perfect in the world:

So this is it!  I’m currently on a Singapore Air flight somewhere over the Pacific, on my way to Hong Kong, then Singapore, then Bangkok.  It’s a long flight – about 24 hours of total travel – but it’s nice to relax after a truly epic going away weekend.  Oh and it was also my birthday yesterday, so you can bet there were definitely some exhaustingly fun times leading up to this.

It was really special to see everyone who made it out to at least some part of the weekend, and it really reminded me of all the treasures I’m leaving behind in San Francisco. Goodbyes always suck, but seeing all my beautiful, amazing friends made me confident that, whatever happens, I have a pretty stellar track record when it comes to making positive life decisions.

Michelle and I are on different flights right now, but they have roughly the same timetable, so we were able to hang out at the airport for a little while before takeoff.  Her flight was a bit earlier than mine, and I sent her off with a “See you in Bangkok!” which was slightly surreal to say.  Also, her carry-on backpack was only filled with snacks, including a giant bag of goldfish crackers.  I appreciate that, as well as the evident focus on food that this trip will likely have.

…And a bonus postscript especially for those at karaoke last night: as some of you may remember, the song “Orinoco Flow” (or Sail Away) by Enya played a small but fabulous role in this weekend.  Earlier in this flight I was watching The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and, during a scene where the serial killer has his victim strung up and ready for torture, he puts on that song to get aroused.  It was a pretty special moment, and gave me my first tiny bout of homesickness.  Katie, that one is for you.

Since I bought my one-way ticket to Thailand I’ve just been reveling in the excitement of leaving the country and being unemployed in San Francisco in the meantime.  It’s been an epic week and a half since I decided to do this, and I hadn’t done any actual planning for the trip itself.  

Yesterday my travel buddy Michelle came up ostensibly so that we could plan out more of our trip, and that basically consisted of us getting drinks and agreeing that we didn’t actually want to plan anything concrete beyond exploring Southeast Asia.  I feel like you tend to have the richest experiences when your schedule is flexible and you say yes to unexpected twists.  Both Michelle and I have experienced this firsthand when we’ve traveled before and it’s awesome that we’re both on the same page.

But since she did come up from San Jose on her day off, we felt we should do something productive, so we booked our first hostel to stay at when we arrive in Bangkok.  We got a 2-person private room at the New Road Guest House for 4 nights; we didn’t do a whole lot of research but it had generally good reviews and was in a good location close to the train.  The best part though, was when we got to confirm our reservation they required a 10% down payment, which in this case was just $3.66 USD.  For a private room for both of us, for FOUR NIGHTS.  Epic, just epic.  ”I got this bill,” Michelle laughed.  

I can’t wait to stretch out on some of the most beautiful beaches in the world with my $5 room while eating my dollar pad thai and drinking my dollar giant beer with the sun on my face and the water at my toes.  This trip is going to be amazing… anything less isn’t an option.