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Archive for February, 2009
Barambang Island, Brunei>, Feb 28, 2009
My student suggested this place during our last Tourism club. He descibed the island as “very unusual” and that alone intrigued my curiosity. So we set to tour that island that weekend.
We left the jetty around 8.30am by the water taxi. It costed about 2 dollars to get across and the journey only took around 10 minutes. The sceneries from the jetty to the island was simply beautiful, and passed some small islands, the most interesting one is the Lumut Lunting island.
Lumut Lunting:
Legend has it that Lumut Lunting was originated from a cock that belonged to the legendary mythical Brunei hero called Awang Semaun. The story was that he had a cockfight game with an aristocrat from Java. His cock’s name was Mutiara while the one from Java was called Asmara. His cock won and the aristocrat’s cock was injured badly, flew to the sea and turned into an island called Pilong Pilongan. The aristocrat was very ashamed of his lose and cursed Mutiara into an island called Lumut Lunting. According to the locals, Lumut Lunting is never submerged underwater even during high tide.
Lumut Lunting was a very tiny island, 20 people could easily cover the whole surface of the island. We only passed the tiny island and went straight to our real destination, Barambang island. There was a new settlement area with houses look the same everywhere and built on stilts on the river bank. There were not many cars around as the island is separated from the mainland and the only way to get cars on the island is by renting a ferry and that would cost 100 dollars. Most of the cars that we see there were either very old or not working anymore. People prefer to travel by motorbikes and bicycles on the island. There was only one van there that serves like a public bus and it cost 50 cent per ride. We decided to just walk as the weather was not that bad. There was only one road, made of concrete so it is easy to get around without getting lost.
Along the journey I managed to take some amazing shots of the island’s beauty. Nature pretty much have control of the island, and I could see that it is trying to reclaim its place on the island by coiling around the lamp and electric posts. Our first stop was a small grocery shop. The sun was getting stronger but that didnt deter our spirit to explore the island. Our main destination on the island was the Bujang Pahang hill, rich with its mysteries and history. We reached the hill after walking for an hour or so. On the foot hill lies a natural spring water. The sight of the spring water was not very impressive but the view of the water flowing out from earth was amazing.
We walked passed the spring water and started our ascend up the hill. There were a few flights of stairs made of concrete so the climb was made easier and less slippery. Personally, I think the stairs were making your climb very tiring as the height of steps were not uniform. One my students was panting by the time she we were half way to the top. I had to stop and waited for her to recover. Luckily I brought with me a bar of Mars chocolate so I gave it to her to help her gain more energy.
Somewhere in the middle of the hill, we made an excursion to visit an abandoned coal mine that was built in the 1920s before oil and gas became a major industry in Brunei. It was my first time seeing a coal mine, and I was surprised with the size of the mine. It reminded me of the Cu Chi tunnel in Vietnam. I can’t imagine how the people back then worked through that tunnel. Rumour has it that the tunnel went as far as to the other side of the river. I thought to myself that if that was true then Brunei could be the first country to actually build a tunnel under water. I asked the head of the village if that has ever been proven, he told me that somebody tried to check how deep that tunnel go but had to turned back as there was no oxygen deep inside there. There were still debris of coal scattering on the opening of the mine, so I collected some coals to bring home as souvenir.
We reached the top of hill an hour later. The view was simply breathtaking. I could see Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital city of Brunei on my right side and Limbang, Malaysia on my left from the top of the hill. We took our time there and took some photos there to remember our achievement. On top of the hill, there was a very unusual layer of rocks. Legend has it that the rock was actually a Top belonging to the legendary Awang Semaun. I am quite sceptic about that but the history of it was still fascinating. Some 20 minutes later we continued to the other side of the hill to visit the Kelawar cave (Bat cave), and as the name suggested the cave was the home of some bats. Sad to say, some visitors who went there had left their drinking bottles and other things in the cave and this somewhat defected the beautiful cave. I wish people stop doing that. The cave was not that deep, infact it was more like a big rock that look like a doughnut as you can actually walk through it and it was not deep at all. I could see water trickling from the ceiling of the cave, I was not quite sure how the water got there.
We got down the hill and continued our adventure to explore more of the island. We noticed that there were only three shops there. We reached the road deadend around lunch time. There were a few houses there and a small grocery shop selling basic necessities for the residents of the island. We asked permission from the shopkeeper to stay and rest in her shop as there was a small balcony right outside of her shop. She was a very kind and friendly woman somewhere in her fifties. A few steps away from the shop was a jetty. We went to check it out. There was relaxing breeze on the jetty so we decided to rest there, I could have takes a nap there.
We left there an hour later and ready to head home. We walked back to where we were dropped off early that morning. Though we were already tired from climbing the hill and the long walk we carried on anyway. The hot sunny weather was starting to hurt our skin but we had fun. After walking about 30 minutes, we stumbled upon the public bus (the van) and hitched a hike for a mere 50 cent fare. As it was only a small van, two of my kids had to sit at the back of the van without the seats!
5 minutes later we were already in the jetty and headed home.
Siem Reap, Cambodia>, Feb 28, 2009
We stayed in June 04 so this is outdated as its now 09 but I hope it hasnt changed. Now then, this place is more than the sum of it’s parts. The rooms are large and clean. The bathrooms though basic are clean and everything works in there. The guesthouse also has a lovely open sided raised restaraunt where you can get free coffee, breakfast is served and food available all day. There is a beer fridge upstairs as well that you help yourself to and write down what you take in your book (pay at the end of your stay), also upstairs is a tv which shows documentaries on Angkor when requested, as well as a CD player for use by any guests.
The thing that makes Jasmine lodge so special is Mr Kunn, the man is a legend, he speaks 4 or 5 languages, is impartial when it comes to advice on where to go and who to go with, can sort out onward travel arrangements and a whole host of other things. Ask him about his wedding, or Cambodian folk tales. An excellent place.
… co-sanctioned by the European Tour and the Asian Tour. I know it may sound strange. … Eu said. He said few cities in Southeast Asia could enjoy such high-level exposure to promote …
Psou, Georgia>, Feb 02, 2009
First of all. Abkhazia is not Georgia anymore. Now it has it’s own government, borders, flag and all the stuff you need to have to be called Independent. But still it’s not recognized as a state by anyone but Russia and probably Venezuela. So, not a single foreigner can get there except UN and russians) I’m really happy that I spent couple of weeks there. I saw a lot of interesting things, spoke to a lot of interesting people, I hope I’ll go there again sometimes, cause that’s a whole mountain region we couldn’t explore cause it was unreachable at the time.
Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam>, Feb 26, 2009
Our Plane (PAL) Arrived On Time. After disembarking we proceeded to the Immigration Counter (HCMC’s Airport is very impressive, Very Clean and Modern, Better than NAIA 1 and 2 and 3). There were a lot of Immigration Counters, all were with long lines, but a Uniformed Man pointed us to Counter 34 which had only 2 People Lined up. In front of us was a Filipino who was working in HCMC. He gave us some tips about HCMC. After clearing Immigration we proceeded to the customs area where bags were XRayed. After clearing XRAY we then proceeded to the Currency Exchange. The Filipino we met at the Immigration Counter was also there and we asked him where the Bus to Downtown is. He told us to follow him and we proceeded to a Bus Parked just outside the airport. The Bus was almost empty. We chose our seats and we were on our way to Downtown HCMC.
The Airport Bus proceeded to the Domestic Terminal where it picked up some passengers. The Lady Conductor approaced us and showed the Ticker. Fare was 3,000 VND or just 8 PESOS!!! The Bus stopped at several Stops before we arrived at District 1. We were unsure of where to go down until we saw our Hotel from a Distance (New World). We pushed the red button but it seemed not to work, so we just stood up since another Vietnamese stood up and looked like he was getting ready to go down. The Bus went farther until it stopped at De Tham Street. The Street was located near HCMC’s Main Roads so we were met by a LOT of Motorcycles and Scooters. Crossing Roads was a real challenge, you will get scared at the sight of rampaging Motorcyles. We consulted the Map that the Immigration Officer gave us, we went to Le Lai Park and soon we were in front of New World Hotel.
The New World Hotel is very Big, The Lobby is very Impressive with High Ceilings. We were met by a bespectacled Vietnamese Girl at the Reception. She was very gracious and greeted us. We showed her our Reservations from AsiaRooms. She then asked us for our Passports and asked us to Fill Up some forms and also asked for the Credit Card used for the Booking. After checking her computer she asked us if we wanted 1 Big Bed plus an Extra Bed or 2 Singled Beds plus an Extra Bed. We chose the 2 Singled Beds Option. She then told us that since we were checking in Early (it was 11am, Check In time is 2PM) she would have to check Room Availability. In a Minute or Two she gave us the key to our room (Room 823).
The Room of New World Saigon seemed small to me, but it had a very Large LCD TV, a Big Bathroom with very nice Toiletries. The bed was very nice with matching super soft pillows.
Manila, Philippines>, Feb 26, 2009
We left our House around 5AM and arrived before 530AM. After checking in (Without Any Check In Bags) we then went to the Departure Tax Counter and paid the 700 Pesos per passenger Tax. Then on to Immigration. And proceeded to the Gate which was still closed at this time. Boarding as written in the Boarding Pass was 630AM, by 630AM it was not yet boarding time. Around 7AM they announced that it was now boarding. We settled down to our seats (Row 15) and listened to the usual Video Presentation regarding the safety procedures which must be followed. After a few minutes it was Take Off and we were on our way to Ho Chi Minh. Hot Meals were served, it was a choice of Sausage and Chicken Adobo. We all chose Chicken Adobo. The Chicken Adobo did not look at all like Adobo and definitely did not taste like Adobo also, it tasted more like Roast Chicken, but nonetheless it was still very tasty. A Fresh Fruit bowl, Bread and Ensaymada was also served. We touched down at Ho Chi Minh 920AM. On Time.
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