Khao Lak, 30th October 2016

Dear readers,

Where to start!

Long talks about western food, nightclubs and beautiful beaches brought a party of 6 of us to Krabi. Only a three hour bus ride away in a rainy bus (by rainy I mean it was raining INSIDE the bus due to a very questionable AC system) and we were on the sandy beach of Ao Nang watching the sunset. Yes ladies and gentlemen you hear right, the sun has arrived! We have had 5 days of beautiful sunshine even though it has tried to rain for about an hour each day. Not complaining!! Krabi is the perfect destination for tourists looking to combine the beauty of Thailand with an Irish pub. However, I must admit it is way more beautiful and pleasant than Patong which I found completely unbearable.

Us three girls decided to take a day trip to the four small islands opposite Krabi's bay on a longboat where we turned every shade under the sun starting from red and ending in green. Whether it as the choppiness of the water or the driver's choice to use his foot as a means of steering the boat I still don't know. Despite my previous boat trip being a massive success, on this particular ocassion we ended up on a couple of tiny islands which were struggling to stay above water due to us being joined by the rest of the population of Asia. We spent two great nights having sun-downers on the beach followed by some dancing in the only functioning club of Krabi before jumping on the bus home. All in all a successful long weekend.

My birthday (which seemed to spread across two days due to the time difference) included scrubbing turtle tanks and wadding through swamp water and mud, in an effort to help the local community implanting mangrove saplings. But do not fret! An excellent round of boozy charades following by a adventurous outing down the alleys of Khao Lak the following night, brought the celebrations to a perfect end. The best part however, was the 'mixed grill dinner' on Friday. The concept is simple. The restaurant provides the fire and the diner is expected to seat themselves, find the raw ingredients for their meal in the kitchen, serve themselves, cook their food and then eat it. And all for the fabulous fee of 4 euros. What a bargain! In actual fact its cooler than it sounds. Basically, there is a room that contains a variety of marinated meat cuts, fish and vegetables for one to choose from. The idea is for you to select your meat and what you would like to put into a broth. You are then given a pot of coal per 4 persons, upon which they place a flat tin grill with lard and you can cook your meat to your satisfaction and brew a broth at the bottom of the tin grill. The result.. delicious! And probably some traces of salmonella as the power went out half way through but whose counting? But do not fret we were provided with a glowing light bulb with which to light... well nothing...

Put a beautiful highlight on this weekend we then spent the rest of the night on the local beach with some beers in hand, excellent people, great chat and a stunning rolling thunderstorm to entertain us.

Today involved a day trip to the small (or as it turns out, not so small) island of Kho Kho Khao or the very inviting abbreviation of KKK as most fishing boat seem to prefer. For 50 cents we took the boat into the harbor where we had a wonderful meal that made our eyes bleed from the chilly before renting some motorbikes or, as seems more appropriate, scooters to tour the island from the local restaurant. Turns out that the rental service does not have motorbikes on hand, but rather requires a few minutes so they can ask the locals interested in participating in this financial venture to hand their motorbikes over to some very inexperienced, very giddy western tourists whose eyes gleamed at the prospect of whizzing around the island. Not a single driving license was exchanged nor a look of unease as the keys were handed over and off we went!

A beautiful drive on the single tarmac road of the island took us to the beautiful Hula beach bar where we spent the afternoon floating and sipping. On our return we came a cross a few obstacles the most memorable being the crossing of some water buffaloes across our path. One does not mess with water buffaloes. A detour through the remnants of some of the hotels whose foundations managed to survive the tsunami,along with a picture stop at the WW2 Japanese landing strip in the middle of the island brought us back to the restaurant in the bay.

With some additional volunteers in house, I am about to craw back into our now overpopulated room and begin my evening ritual in preparation for some turtle tank scrubbing tomorrow morning. All in all, a fantastic week with some fantastic people. Of course, it would not have been possible without a cockroach or two in the bathroom.

With two weeks to go before the climb to base camp I feel that it is time that I resume the routine of schlepping myself along a jogging track at least 3 times of week or else I fear I will not be able to drag my bear belly up the hill... I will of course provide feedback of said mission in my next post.

Goodbye until then!

Phang Nga, 21st October 2016

Dear readers,

It has officially been one week since I joined the group of volunteers at their base in the Phang Nga region of Thailand and I am slowly slowly becoming accustomed to life in the very small and very quiet village.

The setup consists of (currently) 9 international volunteers and 7 members of staff. The rooms are of a 6 person sharing basis and are modest but comfortable and most importantly, roomy. We also share a big common room consisting of a kitchen, dining area, small lounge and projector screen setup. This is where people tend to gather to forage for food, read, study, lesson prep and flop. The hardest parts to get used to have been the screams coming from the cold showers (there is no hot water in the village) and the noise created from the torrential rain falling on the tin roof. Imagine trying to sleep with an orchestra of 4 bongo drummers, 6 maracas and 12 riceshakers giving the performance of a lifetime. The dogs and chickens that have kindly offered to patrol the street outside 24/7 also duitifully let us know if anyone or anything comes down our road at any point dur Nv the day and night by howling mercilessly at the unwelcome intruder. They are very vigilant....

Living in a region which in 2004 was completely flattened by the tsunami, our village is only now beginning to recover from the devastation and loss of lives brought about by the freak catastrophe. Very sobering. The memorial in the village of Baan Nam Khem shows the size of the tsunami wave that struck the region. Even though smaller that one would expect, it was the current of the waves that caused more destruction that the size of the waves themselves. More people died from the second wave having re emerged from safety to help those in need thinking that the worst was over.

The worst part is that no one really knows how many people perished in 2004 due to the thousands of undocumented Burmese refugees who were never included in the statistics, and whose bodies were never recovered. Despite the incidents of 2004 still being so fresh in people's minds, it is truly amazing to see how smiley the locals are and how quickly they have managed to reconstruct their lives. This being said, there is still so much that needs doing.

In terms of my input, I have taken the decision to join the conservation program here instead of teaching (fewer volunteers and more time spent outdoors). Seeing as the majority of schools that we work with are currently closed for the holidays I figured I would be of more use out in the field so to speak. I have quite literally doven head first into the swamps of Phang Nga. Having treked in water up to our knees, through jungles with the most unfortunate looking bugs and crawlers, and having submerged my arms up to my shoulders in mangrove swamp waters, I have definitely challenged the insectophobe in me. Even though my team feels like I may be over exaggerating, I think I convinced them of my phobia when a large spider fell into our kayak yesterday. I believe my interpretive dance of fear and panic deserved at least a 9/10 for effort. I don't think I have ever folded that way before in my life.

The best part so far however, are the turtles! The organization is currently working on a headstart program of baby turtle incubation where we put some serious elbow grease into scrubbing tanks, scrubbing baby turtles and applying a special purple iodine solution on them to help with infection which gets literally everywhere. Two days of scrubbing later, it no longer looks like a large balloon filled with purple dye exploded all over me. The stuff just does NOT come off!

I am currently writing this post sat comfortably on a long distance bus where my time of meditation has brought meto the following conclusions:

1. When on a Thai bus, bring an umbrella. The airconditioning system very considerately waters you to make sure you are constantly refreshed.

2. There is no escape from the rain. Put a jacket on, suck it up and move on with life as the locals seem to be able to and still maintain a smile on their face. We brits have a lot to learn from them.

3. If it looks like a bug, feels like a bug, and crawls like a bug, run. Screaming. Because it will follow you, find out where you live and slowly slowly make you completely paranoid.

4. 3o clock sharp could mean anywhere from 2.30 to 4.30.

5. Make sure you like rice before you visit.

6. ALWAYS check your boots before you put them on as the toads and centipedes here have a long running game of hide and seek which one eventually and unwillingly participates in.

I am writing this 1/3 of the way trough a 4 long bus journey with some of the volunteers. We are looking to go away from a beautiful rainy beach escape to one of the local beach towns. I am sitting next to a lovely 60/70 year old Thai man and I am about to offer him an Oreo (yes there is a guy and yes he sells western food for a very special price just for me... dodgy doesn't quite cover it) and befriend him.

So far so good!

Phuket, 14th October 2016

solo traveling is not what I expected. Instead of aimlessly roaming the streets of Phuket and crying myself to sleep at night I chose to grab the bull by its horns and do as much as I can in the three days I have in Phuket. Surprisingly, I have had a pretty great time on my own!

The flight over was long but comfortable with Thai Airways now ranking as my favourite airline of all time. The in flight entertainment was entertaining and the food was edible. Best of all, it got me to where I wanted to go! And on time! 

Juicing my phone up on a delicious 12G internet package, I set out to explore the old town of Phuket. A bit taken aback by the chaos on the streets, worn out buildings and electrical wiring definitely conducted by a cross-eyed technician, the city still holds a certain unspoilt charm to it. Entirely walkable both day and night the city holds and array of small shops and eateries decorated with some of the newer and more westernized cafes, bars and bistros. Tourism in Phuket amasses to a few families, couples and backpackers all of whom (myself included) feel comfortable walking the streets both day and night in search of soul kitchens with comfy chairs.

The best part of it, is that one can eat a delicious local meal for no more than £4 #winning! Let the fat diaries begin! 

Day 2 involved a day trip by speedboat to Phi Phi island (yes yes we are all grown ups here), Khai island and Rayan Island. The day took two interesting turns before we even left the marina. First, I was the only English speaking person among a group of 25 Thais and second, it rained and rained and rained. Good thing we were intending on getting wet anyway. 

Despite the masses of other boats and tourists that wanted to join in on our little seascape, the beauty of the Thai islands is jaw dropping and truly unique. All one has to do is put a mask on and look at their feet in the water to find an entire shoal of extravagantly colored fish staring up at you expectantly. Then when you look up you are surrounded by King Kong like cliffs. I found solace in a lovely newlywed couple from Laos, who despite having flown out for their firsts trip since being married were kind enough to help translate the guides jokes for me and kept me company. If they are reading this, I wish them all the very best for their new lives together. 

In the evening I found company in the 'Prohibition Bar' in central Phuket run by a very friendly and welcoming Auzzie expat called Steve and his wife. Apart from being one of the only places open after 9pm it also had the most welcoming decoration. Deciding that I wanted I sit outside I approached when the waiter who waved at me saying that it wasn't appropriate at this time. Thus, I was ushered through the bar, past the stairs and through a hidden book shelf into a back room. Super cool if you as me. There I made friends with Steve and Michel from Canada and we drunk our way through the night sharing life stories and painting hand prints on his bar. Brilliant. Definitely a must for anyone passing through Phuket. 

As I write this, I am sat on Patong beach which in my humble opinion is a perfect example of how the tourist industry is ruining Thailand. Enough said really...

Tomorrow I meet the volunteering team and venture inland for a completely different experience. 

Things I have learnt so far:

1. A smile gets you a long way with the locals

2. Mild hot actually means eye bleeding, ear burning, sweat invoking heat

3. It does not rain in Thailand. The heavens open and expel the rain that they have been holding for the past year all at once. Every day. For at least 2 hours.

Now I just have to find a way to stop staring at the horrifically burnt plump tourist sunbathing in a speedo in front of me.

London, 9th October 2016

Dear readers,

For those who have followed my attempts at blogging in the past, you are probably rolling your eyes whilst reading this sentence, noting the epic failure of said past blogging failures. I nonetheless ask that you grit your teeth and bare with me on this final effort to blog my upcoming travels through the far-East.

As some of you may or may not know, I am about to embark on an adventure of self-discovery and charitable work where I will be schlepping myself through the exotic countries of Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan.

Nepal will pose a particular challenge as I have set myself the daunting goal of climbing up to Mount Everest base camp. As I sweat and cry my way up the mountain, I have asked those of you who are able, to donate to the fund I have put together to buy mosquito nets for people and families threatened by malaria. Please find more details and a means of donating on my web page: https://www.fundraise.com/lara-salzer/lara-salzer-levi

Every little helps!

I have decided to go head first into this new adventure with few expectations and great enthusiasm to see and learn. I will be leaving my loved ones behind with the hope that they will be patient and understanding of my choices, even though they have already been as supportive and encouraging as anyone could ask for. I thank you deeply and will no doubt use your energy to motivate me when times get hard/there is a large cockroach in my sleeping bag. I will miss you dearly. You know who you are.

Where my blogging attempts have failed in the past due to tight schedules, lack of high tech gadgets and (let's be honest) motivation, I will be making my own path on this occasion, with only myself to blame for the massive flop that is to ensue (if it comes to that).

The purpose of this blog is mainly to keep my family, friends and others (define as you like) up to speed with my movements, and to keep a mental note of my travels for future recollection when sat at a desk on my lunch break. If these scattered ramblings of a mad woman can come to the use to other travellers, even better. Please note that I am not and do not pretend to be a writer of any merit or experience so please allow your eyes to twitch at the typos, phrasing errors and illegible jibber jabber and keep reading. Most of my writing will be done in questionable conditions but I will do my best to maintain a  certain standard of writing.

For this reason, I have decided to be strict with myself and enforce the following rules:

1. Try and blog once a week
2. Keep it short and sweet
3. Include pictures when available/ when I figure out how to do that
4. Be honest
5. Keep it light

As this journey will bring with a lot of personal change, I decided to kick start the process and make some changes of my own by donating my maine of hair to charity.



That being said, I would love for you to tune into my 'Great Adventure' which will hopefully begin to take form over the next couple of days!!

In the meantime, wish me luck and no crying babies on the flight!

Keep smiling,

Lara