We left the comfort of our bed in Ubud to get picked up at 2am in order for us to travel to the bottom of Gunung Batur by car, and then to trek to the crater rim for sunrise.....I think we are probably nuts but it is a must do apparently?!! Gunung Batur is one of Bali's most famous volcanoes and supposedly inactive (we hope). There are lots of other volcanoes around the area but some are too high or too risky to climb. So, with torches in hand and a trusty ...

After our brief stay in Kuta we hopped in the bus to travel inland to Ubud. It was such a refreshing change even though the cries of "hello, you need transport" echoed from every doorway it was a much more relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere. You could probably describe Ubud as a bit of a haven for hippies, art lovers, yoga junkies and those who love the great outdoors. It is a very cool place made up of lots of intertwining streets and allies with lots of art an...

We left the luxuries and modernity of Singapore to fly into Indonesia, our first stop being Bali. As we landed late at night we found ourselves staying in Kuta which we had wanted to avoid for fear of it being another Phuket situation. As morning dawned our instincts were right - Steve was mobbed by desperate traders and dragged into various shops to look at a wide array of tourist tat. It is low season here so there is an air of desparation as people try to m...

We visited Singapore Zoo today and were very pleasantly surprised. For a zoo it was fantastic and it felt really open; the grounds were fantastic and a lot of thought had gone into creating proper habitats for the animals - not a cage or concrete jungle in sight. Some of the monkeys were allowed to roam semi-free (under the watchful eyes of the rangers) and we had a real treat with seeing the amazing orangutans. They were so playful and curious and enjoyed mil...

We were pleased to leave Phuket behind and fly into Singapore for some relief. We expected the city to be bustling and frenetic with lots of character - however we found Singapore to be quiet, unassuming, functional, efficient and a tad on the boring side for a place with so much possibilites...may be we were just looking in the wrong places but we did see a fair bit over the course of 4 days. One of the good things was the transport....no haggling or hot stea...