Rich writes… G'day from Oz! We got here a couple of weeks ago, taking a bizarrely inexpensive business class flight from Kuala Lumpur (we felt very out of place among the respectable business people). First stop was Melbourne, an incredibly pleasant (if slightly unexciting) city, where we met up with Nic's parents. We each had a few gifts to exchange, although the contact lenses and fresh clothes we received were admittedly a little more welcomed than the sel...

Nic writes… As Rich noted in the last blog, the first part of our trip in the Philippines got off to a bad start, but improved infinitely once we escaped Manila. Thankfully, our luck continued for the rest of our stay and we can barely remember the capital anymore. From Coron, we flew to Bohol to see the chocolate hills and tarsiers. Leaving Coron was an interesting experience. Firstly, the airport had a power cut so our boarding cards and luggage labels were ...

Richard writes… We have been in the Philippines for a few weeks now. For me, this is probably the country that I have been looking forward to the most, and has been on my mental "to visit" list ever since I heard other backpackers raving about it during my post-university travels 7 years ago. Has it lived up to expectations? I'll answer that at the end… Frankly, our trip didn't get off to a great start. The city of Manila does not have a great reputation, a...

Nic writes… After leaving a very chaotic Ho Chi Minh City, we took a guided cycling trip into the Mekong. Over three days, we cycled (apparently) c.100kms along narrow pathways past rice fields, through palms groves and fruit plantations and, predominantly, alongside various canals and waterways. We also cycled over the highest bridge in Vietnam which, in the heat and humidity, was pretty tough going. Along the way we visited a floating market and a place wher...

Richard writes… Happy New Year!!! We are currently in Saigon, having a lazy morning in bed after last night's festivities, so I thought it would be a good time for an update. Today, coincidentally, also marks the halfway point of our trip. Since leaving Nepal we have had a varied couple of weeks travelling down Vietnam. To get here, we took a bizarrely long route which included an overnight stop over in Kuala Lumpur. We spent 6 hours in a rather cool capsule...