Adventures in life, travel and teaching

Wanaka Wanderings

Posted on February 21, 2015 by racheldennisotr

After we picked up the camper from Queenstown we drove to Wanaka to visit an old school friend of mine Ali and her two lovely little boys. Wanaka is about an hour from Queenstown and the town is beautifully situation on the banks of Lake Wanaka.

Beautiful lake Wanaka.

Friends since we were 12.

We spent three days catching up on all the news, hanging out with the kids and getting to know the area. Mum and I also had to do a bit of emergency shopping for some warm clothes as the weather was a little chillier than expected – well that was our excuse! On one rainy morning we spent a few hours browsing through the rather quirky, but endearing Transport and Toy Museum, see following post for more on this.

The view across lake Wanaka from Mount Iron.

A rather windy walk along lake Wanaka.

The Transport & Toy Museum on the outskirts of Wanaka.

Posted in New Zealand | Tagged New Zealand, NZ, Transport & Toy Museum, Wanaka | 1 Comment

Road Tripping in NZ

Posted on February 19, 2015 by racheldennisotr

When I told friends I was traveling with my parents in a campervan around New Zealand for a month there were a few raised eyebrows. “Really?…With your parents, for an entire month….in a campervan?!”, “Yes, why not!”. Sure I had some concerns about whether I would cope in such a small space with them, but what an opportunity to share some amazing experiences and create some great family memories.

Mum and Dad outside the van, aka ‘Crunchy’ due to the gearbox, in Wanaka.

Note: I’m currently writing this 16 days into our NZ adventure and happy to report that we’re all still enjoying each other’s company and no one has been abandoned by the roadside yet!

Our transport and accommodation for our month in NZ is a 2006 reg Mitsubishi campervan with the following specs:

Length: 5.8 meters. Height: 3.1 meters.
Berths: Six – but in reality only six very small and extreamely tidy people could happily share this space.
Engine size: Gutless, we are the slowest vehicle on the road, this at least means that you don’t have to worry about overtaking anything!^
Gearbox: Very crunchy, especially from 4^th to 3^rd. I am yet to master the art of the double-declutch, but there is still time.^

Our home and wheels for our month in NZ! Crunchy the campervan.

Our van is possibly the tattiest and slowest campervan on the road, however it has one key feature that none of the other newer vans have – it seats 3 people up front! Not only does this mean that we get to experience the amazing NZ scenery together it also facilitates better family sing-a-longs and conversations and also allows Mum to deliver ‘helpful’ asides about what the current speed limit is!

One of the key features of the van – three seats up front in the cab.

Dad and I have been sharing the driving and, although it’s slow, it’s actually fun to drive, especially when trying to gun it up and around mountain hairpin bends to avoid having to crunch down into third gear!

Road tripping. Driving along Wakatipu lake on our way to Milford Sound.

Pretending to be serious and concentrate on driving.

^Another update: I drove from Wellington to Taupo today and managed two double-declutches resulting in the smoothest 4th to 3rd gear change since records began. We also overtook our first vehicle today, a large tanker type lorry. We were going downhill, in third, my foot to the floor with a helpful tailwind and it was still touch and go whether we would make it. It was a little emotional!

Posted in New Zealand | Tagged Campervans, New Zealand, Road Trips | Leave a comment

Sydney In Brief!

Posted on February 16, 2015 by racheldennisotr

It’s been six years since I moved from Sydney to New York and over three years since I had last visited. Having lived in Sydney for nearly ten years I was looking forward to catching up with good friends and visiting my favourite haunts. I spent two weeks staying with friends on the northern beaches together with my parents who had arrived a few days earlier.

We spent a very happy and busy couple of weeks together that included a very exciting trip to the cricket a 20/20 between Sydney Sixers and Sydney Thunder at the SCG. The Sixers needed 4 runs from the final ball of the match which they managed in a nail biting end to the game! Other highlights included a very rainy Australia Day party, an evening at the Opera House for a wonderful performance of Madame Butterfly and a beautiful bush walk in the Kuring-gai National Park (where I got leeched!).

The Harbour Bridge.

Post opera.

Bush walk in the Kuring-gai National Park.

Leech bites can bleed for many hours due to an enzyme called hirudin that they secrete into the victims bloodstream. Fortunately for me, it was only 40 minutes!

On the Sunday before we left for NZ Nina and I went to the Laneway Festival at the Sydney College of the Arts in Rozelle. A brilliant festival with a great local and international line up across four stages. We saw Eves the Behaviour, Perfect Pussy, Eagulls, Royal Blood, Mac DeMarco, Pond, Future Islands, St Vincent and Flight Facilities….my feet were aching and I was slightly bruised but very happy by the end of it all, I’m obviously not as young as I used to be!

Waiting for Eves the Behaviour at Laneway and ignoring the rain.

Eves the Behaviour at Laneway.

The amazing Meredith Graves from Perfect Pussy at Laneway.

The view across to the Garden Stage at Laneway.

George Mitchell from Eagulls at Laneway.

Royal Blood performs at Laneway.

Posted in Australia | Tagged Australia, Kuring-gai, Laneway, Leeches, Sydney | 1 Comment

Bangkok

Posted on February 13, 2015 by racheldennisotr

Miriam and I finally arrived in Bangkok late on Friday night. Nadine had recommended a guest house called Shanti Lodge where she had stayed on prior visits to Bangkok. It was just what we needed for our two days in the city, cheap, clean, in a good area and with a great restaurant and bar area. http://www.shantilodge.com

We were still very much on island time and weren’t really in the mood for rushing around the city doing loads of touristy things so we opted for a few choice activities combined with leisurely breakfasts, frequent coffee/shake/beer stops and some general pottering around.

Miriam and me.

Thai breakfast at Shanti Lodge.

Blogging in Bangkok at Shanti Lodge.

Tuk tuk style!

The Grand Palace – Hot and heaving, but a must see for first time visitors like Miriam. We didn’t spend that long there, just enough time to get some photos, bump and jostle with lots of other sweaty tourists and take in the key landmarks.

Inside the Grand Palace

The Grand Palace…well a bit of it.

More of the Grand Palace.

Miriam grabbing 5 mins in the shade in the Grand Palace.

A little busy in the Grand Palace.

….more of the Grand Palace.

….more Grand Palace.

Hot and sweaty selfie in the Grand Palace.

Wise words – a sign outside of the Grand Palace.

The Queen Sirikit Textile Museum – Miriam is a costume designer and was keen to visit this textile museum next to The Grand Palace. Although a relatively small exhibition it was well set out and informative. It was also nice and quiet with air conditioning so a welcome respite from the craziness and heat of the Grand Palace. www.qsmtthailand.org

China Town – We spent a few very happy hours browsing through the markets, taking photos and buying lots of very yummy sweets and buns.
Miriam strolling through China Town.

China Town sweet treats.

Pork scratching heaven?

More sweet treats in China Town.

Where to now? Miriam consults the LP.

We ate alot of these!

Lumpini Park – One morning we got up just before sunrise and headed to Lumpini Park to practice some T’ai chi and to join the public yoga class that’s held there every morning at 7am. By the time we arrived the park was already busy with city residents getting their morning exercise fix before the heat of the day. We happily stumbled upon the yoga class which was held next to the main lake and laid out our sarongs on the damp grass. The class lasted for an hour for 200 baht (£4) and although the yoga teacher didn’t speak any English we managed to just about get by without embarrassing ourselves too much.

Morning yoga in Lumpini Park.

Thailand Festival – on Sunday we went to a food and arts festival in Lumpini Park and basically ate are way around the Thailand’s provinces whilst being entertained by local dance and music acts.

Dancers at the Thai Festival in Lumpini Park.

Flavoured sticky rice cooked in bamboo canes.

No idea what these were called but it was a thin pancake filled with coconut and spices and very delicious!

Lunch…well part of lunch!

We queued for about 15 mins to get a bagful of these delicious roasted nuts with chili and fried herbs.

More food from the Thai Festival in Lumpini Park.

Miriam’s flight back to Berlin wasn’t until the early hours of Monday morning, so on Sunday night we had one last curry together, a few Changs and another teary farewell.

Tuk tuk selfies!

Posted in Thailand | Tagged Asia, Bangkok, food, Lumpini Park, street food, Thailand, The Grand Palace, Yoga | Leave a comment

An Unexpected Journey

Posted on February 11, 2015 by racheldennisotr

Miriam and I left Nadine, Island Yoga and Koh Yao Noi for Bangkok on Friday afternoon. We were flying Air Asia from Krabi to Bangkok and the journey went pretty smoothly until we got to Bangkok. We landed at 7pm and were going to take a taxi to our guesthouse however the queue for the taxi was ridiculously long so I suggested that we should take the train. We located the platform, bought our tickets (about £1.50 each) and then I checked with two different people that we were on the right platform and that the next train was for Bangkok.

The train arrived, I chucked our packs into the carriage and jumped on board, Miriam followed. We settled into our seats and congratulated ourselves (rather loudly) on how we’d be in town much more quickly and cheaply than all those people waiting in the taxi queue. We’d been chatting away for about half an hour discussing what we’d do that evening when the ticket inspector came along to check our tickets. “Oh no” he laughed and shook his head as he looked at our tickets, “Not Bangkok”. For a few seconds I thought he was mucking around he had such a big grin across his face, and then, with a horrible sinking feeling I looked out the window to see, not the bright lights of Bangkok, but darkness and a field. Yup we were on the wrong train. I felt dreadful as I’d been the one that had suggested the train and had leapt on board, I should have realised earlier that our carriage was filled with locals and none of the tourists standing on the platform with us had joined us on the train!

The train rattled along faster and faster into the darkness and we had absolutely no idea where it was going or when it was going to stop. I felt totally helpless and very guilty! With the help of our grinning guard I worked out where we were and that the next stop was Ayutthaya* in about 30 minutes. We finally arrived at 8:30pm and were informed that the next express train to Bangkok was leaving in an hour, would cost us 1,350 baht (about £27), and would get in to Bangkok at 11pm. So much for our quick and cheap journey into the city from the airport! However, being positive types of people we made the most of our unexpected journey, found a nearby restaurant, ordered a couple of beers and some food whilst we waited for our train back to Bangkok.

*For those who are interested Ayutthaya is an ancient city and a UNSECO World Heritage Site. We did contemplate staying for the night and visiting the historical park but decided that we would stick to our original Bangkok plans. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phra_Nakhon_Si_Ayutthaya_(city)

Posted in Thailand | Tagged Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, Train Travel | 1 Comment

Island Yoga…or There and Back Again!

Posted on February 2, 2015 by racheldennisotr

After leaving Paradise Koh Yao I travelled by 4×4 further south on the island, bouncing and skidding along an unmade road through rubber tree plantations to Thakhao bay and the home of Island Yoga. http://thailandyogaretreats.com/kohyaonoi.htm#

I didn’t really have any expectations, but coming from the bare-foot luxury of Paradise at Koh Yao, it was difficult not to feel a little underwhelmed by the surroundings. I soon discovered that it’s not the immediate surroundings that makes Island Yoga so special and such a unique place to stay but the people, the yoga practice and the location of the retreat.

Island yoga has a mix of accommodation types, from villas with air-con, to budget fan rooms and dorms. I was staying in a three person dorm with a rather clunky ceiling fan – a slight change from the luxury bungalow with air-con and mini-bar that I’d just spent the last 4 nights in. I loved it and immediately felt at home. I shared the dorm with an English girl, Jay, who quit her job in marketing to head off traveling for two years and was training to be a yoga teacher and Mariana a Swiss German girl. They were the perfect dorm-mates, we got on well, were comfortable with each other’s level of mess* and quickly became happy sharing our small and rather warm space together.

*I’d just like to point out on this occasion I wasn’t the messiest one!

The beach at Island Yoga.

The yoga shala at Island Yoga.

Outside of my dorm room at Island Yoga.

My dorm at Island Yoga.

Sunrise on Koh Yao Noi.

Days started early with a 6:30am T’ai Chi Qigong class on the beach for an hour, followed by a two hour yoga practice at 7:30am and then breakfast. Evening yoga started at 4:30pm for an hour and a half, sometimes longer depending on who was leading the practice. The majority of the day was left free for exploring or simply swinging in a beachside hammock.

T’ai Chi Qigong warm up.

Early morning T’ai Chi Qigong on the beach with David our instructor leading the way.

On Thursday a group of us took a boat from Thakhao Pier and headed off to kayak through a mangrove forest on the mainland. It was a really magical experience as the tide gentle pulled us through the mangroves and alongside limestone cliff faces.

Kayaking in the magical mangroves.

I spent many happy hours exploring the island on a mountain bike. The island is pretty quiet so there wasn’t any traffic to contend with, and apart from a few off-road sections and a couple of hills, the riding was fairly easy going if not a little hot and dusty. One of my favorite rides was a ride north up the western side of the island. There was a ‘Holy Spring Water Well’ that I wanted to visit as well as some remote beaches. The views from the beach across Phang Nga Bay were beautiful; the ‘Holy Spring Water’ was slightly less impressive, but made me chuckle!

The Holy Water Well on Koh Yao Noi!

The guests at the retreat were predominantly European, female and were staying anyway between three days to two weeks at, normally as part of a longer trip. I became good friends with two German girls called Nadine and Miriam who I met at one of the retreat ‘Family Dinners’ in the first few days of my stay. I was due to leave on the following Tuesday and Nadine and Miriam suggested that we all travelled together. We spent a number of evenings over curry and beer trying to decide where we should go. After the tranquillity of Koh Yao we weren’t quite ready for one of the busier islands or beaches such as Phi Phi, Railey or Au Nang. We were happy in our Koh Yao bubble, but felt that we should really see somewhere else. We decided on Koh Yao Noi’s sister island, Koh Yao Yai, a larger, but sleepier island with apparently beautiful beaches.

View from the inside of the Longtail on our brief visit to Koh Yao Yai.

Tuesday morning arrived and after morning yoga practice we packed up, checked out and headed by truck to Lamsai Pier for the ten minute longtail ride to Koh Yao Yai. We arrived at the guesthouse and after about 15 minutes Miriam had the courage to say what we’d all been thinking. “I’m a little disappointed, it’s not quite what I’d imagined”. None of us could specifically say what was the matter, the grounds were pretty, the bungalow was large, clean and well equipped, the view across the bay was stunning….however we just weren’t feeling it! We decided to try another place further south. As we were sitting in the taxi we all started talking about Koh Yao Noi and Island Yoga, how much fun we’d had there, how we missed the yoga and the people already. “Why did we decide to leave Koh Yao Noi?” Miriam asked. None of us could remember why. Our minds were pretty much made up then. We had a quick courtesy view of the second bungalow, jumped back in the cab and headed to the pier to take us back to Koh Yao Noi and Island Yoga.

The travellers return to Island Yoga after a brief visit to Koh Yao Yai.

Posted in Thailand | Tagged Asia, Friendship, Island Yoga, Koh Yao Noi, Thailand, Yoga | Leave a comment

Paradise on Koh Yao Noi

Posted on January 16, 2015 by racheldennisotr

Often described as one of Thailand’s last unspoilt islands, Koh Yao Noi is located east of Phuket in the Phang Nga Bay and was the second stop in our trip. We were staying at the Paradise Koh Yao in the north of the island for a 4 day yoga break which included two yoga classes per day and two massages to ease away the tensions of the day.

http://paradise-kohyao.com/

The beach at Paradise Koh Yao, looking towards the yoga shala.

Days started at 7:30am with a morning yoga practice in the beautiful yoga shala overlooking the bay followed by breakfast at the beachside restaurant. The rest of the days were spent lazily lying on the beach or by the pool, followed by a 4:30pm yoga practice. After a post yoga beer on the veranda of the bungalow we shared we would head out to the beachside bar for sundowners and then dinner in one of the two restaurants.

…and relax! View from a hammock.

Post yoga breakfast at Paradise Koh Yao.

The evening yoga practice was in the Yin style of yoga which is slower paced and poses are held for up to five minutes. Yin applies moderate stress to the tendons and ligaments with the aim of improving flexibility and increasing circulation in the joints. It was the first time I’d practiced Yin and I was apprehensive, assuming that I would find it boring compared to the faster, more flowing style of yoga that I was used to. My concerns were washed…or should I say stretched away within the first few poses of the practice. The requirement for stillness of body and mind was challenging but through focusing on my breathing I was able to get far deeper into the poses and hold for longer than I had imagined.

The yoga shala at Paradise Koh Yao.

View from inside the yoga shala looking out towards the bay.

Yoginis in the beachfront yoga shala.

Tree pose!

After one of the classes I got chatting to Heather who had lead our practice. I discovered that she worked at a yoga retreat in the south of the island called Island Yoga. I quickly and easily made the decision to book into Island Yoga for a three day stay after Shereen and Amy had left for London.

The next day I waved Shereen and Amy goodbye from the pier of the resort, had a little cry, hauled my pack onto my back and headed off to Island Yoga and the next stage of my journey. #allbymyselfie

Posted in Thailand | Tagged Asia, Koh Yao Noi, Thailand, Yin, Yoga | 4 Comments

Fun In a Paper Bag

Posted on January 15, 2015 by racheldennisotr

Traveling with girlfriends, there’s nothing quite like it, especially when sharing a room or bungalow together. So obviously I was the messy one, Amy the tidy one and Shereen somewhere in-between.

Our conversations went from the intense and serious (work, rape culture in the US*, relationships) to the ridiculous (what colour car was the safest, what weighs more, Shereen’s medallion necklace or a boob?)…for those who are interested apparently yellow is the safest colour for a car^, however we didn’t have any scales to prove out the second question.

How brilliant to have girlfriends to share histories and futures to laugh, drink, dance and travel with. As we were getting ready for the New Year’s Eve gala at the hotel I asked them both, “What do you think tonight will be like, reckon it will be fun?” Shereen replied, “Of course, we’ll make it fun, we could have fun in a paper bag”….as long as there was wine!

*I was reading Roxanne Gay’s book brilliant and thought provoking book, ‘Bad Feminist’ at the time. Gay dedicates a chapter to rape culture in the US and quotes some alarming statistics about the number of female college students that have been the victims of rape or sexual violence. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/02/roxane-gay-bad-feminist-sisterhood-fake-orgasm

^According to The AA. http://www.theaa.com/newsroom/news-2011/safest-car-colour.html

New Years Eve warm up!

New Year's Eve at Indigo Pearl. Shereen is always on the left as she's got the longest arms which helps when taking a we-fie!

New Year’s Eve at Indigo Pearl. Shereen is always on the right as she’s got the longest arms which helps when taking a we-fie!

Posted in Thailand | Tagged Asia, Friendship, Thailand, Travel | Leave a comment

The Digital Traveller

Posted on January 9, 2015 by racheldennisotr

Earlier this week I researched and booked a hostel room on www.hostelbookers.com on my iPod Touch whilst lying on the beach. It seemed far too easy, lazy even, but also so very convenient and comforting. Three days ago I FaceTimed with my friend Rachel and was able to see my 4 day old Godson sound asleep in his cot.

Technology has changed how we travel and how we stay connected when traveling. Even the smallest of guest houses or beach bars seems to have free Wi-Fi. Obviously one can opt out, but it seems so far, that everyone I’ve met is traveling with some kind of device to keep them connected and updated. I’m conflicted on this point. I’ve seen people, heads-down, so tied to their devices that I wonder whether they are truly present and mindful about what is happening around them?

Note: The irony of the fact that I am currently head-down writing this blog on my laptop with the aim of keeping everyone at home updated on what I’m doing is not lost on me!

On the last two occasions where I took time out to travel in 1993 & 2004 I took the following ‘technology’:

1993: Film camera

2004: Film camera, mobile phone, CD Walkman

On this trip I had a separate packing list and dry bag dedicated to devices, adapters, plugs and chargers! In the end I decided to take the below:

Kindle: I was sceptical but now I’m a fan. It’s so small and light, I’ve loaded up all my travel guides and maps so really saves a lot of space. Plus when reading poolside you can easily wipe off sunscreen and it won’t get trashed!
iPod Touch – Music, apps and camera. Main device for the ‘We-fie’ (see future post The Art of Posing: Selfies & We-fies).
Fujifilm X30 – I love this camera, it’s relatively small and light for the specs, easy to use and has gorgeous retro styling.
Crappy little Acer laptop – I wasn’t sure about this purchase but I need it for teaching when I’m in Sri Lanka and obviously to write my blog.
Unlocked Samsung Talk & Text Phone – This phone is so old school it doesn’t even have predictive text. It takes me 10 minutes to write one line of text and I’ve reverted to text speak to save time – C u l8tr!

Maybe by the end of my trip I will have a different perspective on what is really needed to stay connected when travelling and it will be interesting to see how my use of these devices changes over this time.

Posted in Thailand | Tagged Backpacking, Technology, Travel | Leave a comment

Flash-Packing at Indigo Pearl

Posted on January 2, 2015 by racheldennisotr

“Back packing seems to have changed a lot since you last travelled Rachel.” Dad was peering over my shoulder at the screen of my laptop as I checked out www.indigo-pearl.com the website for the resort where I was to spend my first week in Thailand. It was a little more Conde Nast Traveller than I had imagined for my first stop or that my budget allowed! A fleeting comment to a friend back in July – “I’m going to be in Thailand for New Year, why don’t you join me?” – meant that for the first ten days of my trip I would be joined by to two of my best girlfriends, Amy and Shereen.

It became clear over the coming weeks as we shared links and suggestions over WhatsApp about where to stay that I was going to have to reset my expectations and daily budget for this stage of the trip. Not that I was complaining, what better way to start my trip and see in 2015 than with two of my closest friends at a spa resort on Phuket!

So that’s how I ended up here at Indigo Pearl, flash-packing.

The reception at Indigo Pearl

Our bathroom at Indigo Pearl – note the ridiculously large shower!

More of the bathroom, looking through to the bedroom

The last week has basically been spent hanging out and catching up, poolside and doing a couple of well-worn tourist trips. We got up early one morning to give alms to the local monks, visited Wat Chalong and Wat Srisoonthorn and the Big Buddha that looks over Phuket island with a wry smile.

The Big Buddha

The 29-metre high reclining Buddha at Wat Srisoonthorn

We welcomed 2015 at a gala held by the hotel with a huge seafood buffet, loads of fireworks and dancing under the stars. A top night was had by all, we were the last to leave and probably didn’t need that last bottle of champagne!

At the NYE Indigo Pearl Gala with some new friends.

For New Year’s Day we thought that it would be fun to spend it recovering on Phi Phi island. Amy had had fun there 20 years ago and Shereen wanted to go on a boat. Let’s just say that it wasn’t quite the recovery session that we had hoped for. It seemed that about 10,000 other people had the same idea, it was heaving! Our hangovers were shaken away however by a rather bumpy and rattling speedboat ride to the island, which in our delicate state, felt like the equivalent of riding the Cyclone at Coney Island for two hours!

Getting our bones rattled on the speedboat trip to Phi Phil island.

New Year’s Day recovery on Phi Phi island

Tonight we’re off to ‘Phuket Simon Cabaret’ (see future post ‘Fun In a Paper Bag’) and tomorrow morning we leave Indigo Pearl for the island of Koh Yao Noi for 4 days of yoga. Flash-packing continues!

[RD1]

Posted in Thailand | Tagged Indigo Pearl, NYE, Thailand, Travel | Leave a comment