ElleTee Travel

Bermy Girls & a Full Moon on Koh Panghan!

2010-07-08T17:52:00.016-03:00

Since returning home I've been asked by quite a few people if I plan on updating the blog. I hadn't realized so many of you actually read it! I guess I'd better fill you in on the rest of our crazy travel adventure...

So we finished off our tour of South East Asia with a serious going out party. Possibly the biggest one of my lifetime - Full Moon Party on Koh Phangang Island, Thailand. It all started a few days leading up to Full Moon when we arrived on the Island. While exploring the Island on our rental bikes we realized that it resembled Bermuda more than any other we'd seen before (still not quite as beautiful of course!).

One of the highlight of the Island were the unpaved roads that were very windy, steep and to add to the danger (...or adventure!), cluttered with speeding tuk tuks full of excited tourists. Riding in the back of those things late at night as the driver went full speed around sharp corners in order to make it up the next hill is something I will never forget!

We spent one day searching for the beach with the worlds largest sand bar, but ended up finding a pretty cool palm tree to play on and waterfall to chill by instead!

We found the sand bar the following day though... and it was worth the wait. The rest of our time was spent relaxing in our Bungalows, enjoying a fantastic meal in one of the restaurants or cafes that were scattered across the Island. Or in one of the many stores that lined the streets of Had Rin, watching Kirk & Cabral shop their little hearts out :)...

...And then there were the party's at night where we witnessed people from around the world let everything they had hang loose, giving us a glimpse of what the party would be like on Full Moon when thousands more people came to join in on the fun.

After seeing how wild people were on the nights prior, we were all a bit apprehensive about the party on the day of the Full Moon. However after a few gulps frpm our buckets of rum swizzle and our bodies covered in neon painted designs we were ready to join them. We had the time of our lives dancing and chatting for hours and hours on the sand under floating Chinese lanterns, laser and black lights and of course a stunning, and never forgotten Full Moon.

And the night would never have been the same without Kirk and Cabral there to spice up our night even more!! I LOVE YOU GUYS!!

Cambodia - suk sabai sai sabrok!

2010-04-18T11:53:00.053-03:00

PHNOM PENH
After another long bus journey, we arrived in the sweltering, sprawling city, Phnom Penh. Our first stop was the famous Russian Market, Psar Toul Tom Poung. It is packed with rows and rows of trinkets, jewellery, art, clothes and food... It was fun for the first 20 min until the heat and smells forced me to step outside for a breather amongst the many tuk tuk & mototaxi drivers... who turned out to be pretty sweet guys once they accepted that "NO, for the fifth time, I do not need a ride anywhere!!" (the most said phrase during our visit to Cambodia).

Sarah joined back up with us in Phnom Penh after a visit to the coastal city of Sihanoukville! To celebrate we enjoyed a night out on the town. We were very surprised by the night life in Phnom Penh and had a great time... However, after realizing that just about every Cambodian girl in the club was a prostitute I found it hard to get past the amount of sadness & pain I could see through the dancing & boozing...

We spent a lot of time driving around the city in a tuk tuk with our favorite driver who we called Angelo . It was a great way to see the rugged, crowded city and its people. On our last day with him, Angelo very kindly pulled over and treated us to some very sweet & refreshing surgar cane from a street vendor. Thanks Angelo! We visited one of the many Pagodas in Phnom Penh, Wat Phnom, which can be recognised by a gigantic clock outside. It had the most beautiful Buddhas that I had seen so far...

Choeung Ek - A memorial filled with more than 5,000 human skulls that were left behind at the Killing Fields located near Phnom Penh. Signs were posted around the field to mark the spots where over 300 victims were detained, executed & dumped daily by the Khmer Rouge executioners during the 1975-1979 genocide...

BATTAMBANG
Rach & I continued west to the very quaint town, Battambang. We explored the countryside, following the Sangker River by bike and past many remote villages and amazing scenery on our way to Ek Phnom. Sadly, we saw many shoeless kids walking along the dirt roads on our excursion... One of these shoeless girls was hiding from the sun inside the ruined temple and she stole my heart. I wanted to steal her away and take her home with me... instead I gave her the measly 8000 Riel ($2) that she needed for a week of school...

Phare Ponleu Selpak - we went to this amazing and, from what I can see, extremely effective arts school and orphanage to see their circus performance and were blown away by the talent and passion we saw. We had dinner at the school and had the chance to meet a couple of the performers, learning their stories and the problems that Cambodian children are facing today. We returned the following day to purchase a few of the students amazing paintings and hope to be able to help this organisation in a much bigger way in the future....

SIEM REAP & The Arrival of Kirk and Cabral!

I have never been so shocked, surprised and excited to see someone in my life, until 2 of our best and wildest friends from home jumped out at us from the shadows in Siem Reap, yelling "Aye gurl, What bus you catch?!" I think Rach & I must have woke up the whole city with our shrieking. We had no idea that our friends had been planning this surprise and Sarah & Jessie had been in on it for months! You guys are amazing!! XX

Angkor Wat - One of our days was spent exploring the spectacular Ankor Wats. We learnt a lot about the history and culture from our Cambodian tour guide who, as a child, was one of the first people to start working as a vendor at the temples after the Khmer Rouge genocide.

Out of the hundreds of Apsara carvings around the Angkor Wat this was the only one smiling...

Enjoyed a Khmer cooking class at the Temple Restaurant on Bar Street.

Had a treatment by Dr. Fish after a night out.... can you guess who's feet the fish liked the most??

Chres Village School & Orphanage

One day we loaded up a tuk tuk and headed out on our way to surprise the kids at the Chres Village Orphanage with toys & food. Jess handed out photos of the kids that her boyfriend Johnny had taken during his stay at the orphanage last year... They called him Teacher Johnny and spoke about him with the brightest smiles I've ever seen. They were ecstatic when they found their face in a photo!

A group of us learned how to play with a South East Asian toy that looks like a badminton birdie with a spring at the top. Its supposed to be kicked around without touching the ground... I saw a group of people doing some pretty wicked tricks with it in a park in Vietnam. We also enjoyed some hula hooping, colouring, a failed attempt at dodge ball & later a session of very entertaining (for us mostly) karaoke.

There were 5 classrooms, one of which was turned into the girls bedroom at night. The teachers told us how they loved coming to work as the children were always so happy and eager to learn.

If your interested in learning more about this amazing orphanage go to - http://www.cambodianorphanage.org.uk/

The people in Cambodia are the most kind hearted people I've met on my travels and I have truly been touched by this amazing place...

A breeze through Vietnam...

2010-04-15T07:19:00.037-03:00

With only a week to get through Vietnam, it seemed as though we spent the majority of our time on buses. Luckily, the beautiful scenery we came across was definitely worth it. Hanoi was our first stop. We managed to find the best Hostel around - Drift Backpackers, which was our home and family away from home for the few days we were there.

Our first day was spent at the Maison Centrale Museum - a prison built by the French in 1896 to detain the Vietnamese opponents to colonialism, and then again during the second World War to house the Americans. It was very eye-opening & a great introduction to the Vietnamese culture.

The following day we joined a few of our new friends on a day trip to Halong Bay which was beautiful, yet sad when we realized the amounts of pollution that tourists like ourselves were creating around this spectacular collection of small limestone Islands.

We were still able to enjoy the fantastic seafood lunch that was served on the boat, a visit to a floating village, a short kayak through the arches in the Island cliff sides that lead into serene lagoons, and a stroll through the enormous Dong Thien Cong caves.

One thing we noticed when arriving in Hanoi was the endless amounts of scooters and motorbikes that littered the city roads. We were told that the only way to cross the road was to take a deep breath and just walk, and hope that the riders would avoid you... it was quite a rush once you got the hang of it! We were surprised to find that the popular bars with the with the cheapest beers were on the corners of a junction of 2 busy roads with stools basically in the middle of the street. We learned to hold onto our beers very tightly that night.

I will always remember Hanoi for the very calming lake that was placed in the middle of this crazy, scooter infested city. We spent a lot of time strolling around this safe haven, and even witnessed the appearance of a turtle, which is lucky according to the Hanoians, and that hadn't been seen in the lake for nearly 10 years. Unfortunately Jessie had to leave us in Hanoi, and Sarah who had already seen a bit of Vietnam, was on her way to Cambodia, so Rach and I made our way down the coast to Hoi An.

Hoi An is a charming little city in the middle of the Vietnam coast. Filled with cute cafes, tons of tailors and shoemakers, this quaint city is every girls dream. Rach & I spent our days cycling between appointments, enjoying homemade passion fruit sorbets, Vietnamese pancakes and learning how to make a few light and very tasty Vietnamese dishes. An excursion with our friend Chris along the coast led us to a very bizarre cave that had wall carvings and statues that we decided must be some one's gruesome visions of demons and hell.

We enjoyed an authentic meal of Vietnamese pancakes in the neighboring city, Da Nang, and a good night out on the Cua Dai Beach. We managed to stumbled across the street side hotspot for local workers who were either starting their day or finishing it and were catching up on an early morning meal of mystery meat & noodle soup on their miniature tables and chairs in near silence. We decided to join them... Being a vegetarian... and 2 mixed girls from Bermuda, this encounter made for a very interesting experience.

The closest we got to sightseeing in Saigon after 24 hours on a bus and a 2 hour stop in Nha Trang, was our trip to the Saigon Central Post Office - a beautiful Gothic building that was constructed when Vietnam was part of the French Indochina. The highlight of our stay in Saigon was the cheap and delicious food that we devoured in abundance at the Ben Thanh market.

I definitely think that another, much longer, visit to Vietnam is needed in the future... even if it is just to satisfy my intense love for the many tasty treats we came across in Vietnam - Vietnamese iced coffee, tea, mango salads, fish hot pots, pancakes, homemade passion fruit sorbets, grilled corn & chili sauce were just a few of my favs.... mmmmmmmh yum!

Sabaidee Laos!!!

2010-03-28T10:33:00.013-03:00

Our next destination was the People's Democratic Republic of Laos, the destination on our itinerary that I knew nothing about except that it is the least well known country in South-East Asia and you can go tubing on a river. To get to Luang Prabang we had to cross the Thailand-Laos border at Chang Kong, about 8 hours minibus drive from Chang Mai. The Mekong River serves as the border between Chang Kong and Huay Xai. We had expected to take a two day slowboat from Huay Xai to Luang Prabang, as is the customary backpacker method, however due to dams being built in China upriver, the river was too dry and shallow to be able to take the slowboat so we had to take a minivan. A minivan for eleven hours on windy mountainous unpaved roads. Though the drive was less than comfortable it gave us a great way to see the undeveloped lush and sprawling mountainous landscape of Laos.

I fell instantly in love with Luang Prabang, a tiny French village on a peninsula of the Mekong River. Shops and cafes are built in colonial France style, orange-clad monks wander from temple to temple and cafes serve up sumptuous Laos coffee and croissants. We explored the temples and shops around the main road, getting suckered into buying too many silk scarves at the night market.

Our most memorable day here was our visit to the Tat Kuang Si waterfalls. Ashley and I decided to be adventurous and bicycle to the waterfalls... 35 km from Luang Prabang. Did I mention that Laos was mountainous? And that we don't cycle? The 10 km mark was the hardest. Sitting on the side of the road dizzy and regretful, ready to give up and hail a tuk tuk to take us the remaining 25 km, the passing tuk tuks with laughing passengers, Jessie included, encouraged us to put our pride first and finish the ride. The ride to the waterfall was a test of the body and spirit. We enjoyed the beautiful countryside at a more leisurely pace than one out in a tuk tuk. We arrived at the waterfalls 3 hours after setting out and about one hour before it shut. The waterfalls were a true Eden. Lush foliage lined the blue waters of the waterfalls and swimming lagoons. One of the swimming lagoons had a ropeswing attached to an overhanging tree and after a 35km bike ride we didn't hesitate to swing into the freezing cold lagoon in a manner that would make Tarzan proud.

The following day we set off for Vang Vieng. We were told by many that the tubing on the river is the thing to do. We had no idea what exactly this entailed. Much like Koh Phi Phi, Vang Vieng turned out to be like a European spring break with less of the westernization... We found cozy bungalows on the other side of the river away from the town. Stunning limestone cliff faced mountains surround the area encapsulating this hidden gem destination. The nightlife was a line of bars set on an island in the river. Bucket Bar (yes, they serve drinks in buckets) started the party off, which would move to the neighboring bars throughout the night and into the early morning.

After a good night's sleep in our bungalows we decided to check out the tubing experience. Beers in hand we set off on our tubes for the first populated bar on the river. Every bar had a trapeze pendulum swing - so dangerous... for those unskilled non-Bermudians anyway, yet so much fun! We spent the day jumping off of high dives, and shocking the crowds by diving off the swings. A lot of our day was spent cringing at the people who would realize their fears of heights, barely making it off the platform before they ditched the swing... way to close to the rocks that jutted out at the foot of the platform. The best bars are at the top of the river and quickly regretted renting tubes.

We got in touch with our adventurous sides and dallied scooters through the countryside and over some rickety bridges to discover stunning limestone caves and lagoons that rivalled Bermuda's. Our much needed tour guide equipped us with headlamps and took us through a cave crawling with big cave spiders. Fears of the dark and spiders (and particularly spiders in the dark) were challenged.

Our final stop in Laos was the capital city of Vientienne. Wanting a break from spending several hours travelling on the bumpy unkempt roads around the windy mountains in a minibus, we decided to kayak down the river from Vang Vieng to Vientienne (well technically we drove an hour and a half, kayaked for a couple of hours and then drove another hour). Vientenne was much more developed and western than everywhere else we saw in Laos but it was still incredibly charming. Unfortunately we did not have the time to do the city justice. We ate some wonderful food and hit up the local bowling alley which was strangely and wonderfully playing recent hiphop - definitely forgot that we weren't at Warwick Lanes!

Laos was the biggest and best surprise of the trip so far and I had the time of my life. Laos, thank you for the wonderful memories!

Always with us.

2010-03-06T12:53:00.005-04:00

My thoughts, heart, and all of my love is with my Mitchell Family for their unbelievable loss.

Peter, I will miss you dearly. You have always shown me such an amazing amount of love and made me feel like part of your family - it has meant the world to me. I am truly thankful to have had the opportunity to know such an amazing man who has given so much to so many. I love you.

Jessie, I miss you already. I love you and wish I was there with you... Stay strong and remember that he will always be with you.

Thailand: From Dancing in Phi Phi to Zipping around in Chiang Mai

2010-02-28T01:55:00.026-04:00

Thailand - After a late night flight we arrived bright and early in beautiful Thailand and headed straight for the popular backpackers area, Khao San Road, Bangkok. As it was so early, rooms were not available so we ditched our bags and headed down the road lined with stalls. What a change from India where we often were searching for other backpackers, the road and restaurants were packed with Westerners. With only one night in Bangkok this time around, we explored a bit of the city by Tuk Tuk. Our driver was a mad Thai man who popped wheelies every chance he got. Bahhhhhht!

We headed South by an overnight bus from Bangkok to Krabi, a port to get to the Western Islands. This bus was slightly more comfortable than the overnight bus in India, but annoying because we had to switch buses at 5am. From Krabi it was a ferry to Koh Phi Phi.

Koh Phi Phi is a beautiful island in the Indian Ocean with high cliffs and flourishing greenery. With over 6,000 new tourists arriving daily, many of which were European, it is like a European Spring Break destination for a good time, good weather and good views. We spent five days here enjoying massages, snorkeling, diving, hiking to viewpoints, drinking buckets and dancing.

From Phi Phi we headed to Phuket. Where unfortunately Sarah left us and headed to Vietnam. We miss you Sarah, can't wait to meet back up with you in Cambodia!

For our day in Phuket we rented bikes and explored the coastline. We enjoyed freshly cooked seafood at a little fish market, gazed at the breathtaking views from the "Big Buddah" and did a bit of shopping in the lively town of Patong Beach. It was quite an adventure, especially navigating in the dark back to Phuket town. We got slightly lost, drove in circles for a bit and had an interesting encounter with two local police men. Remember to take your license if you ever rent bikes in Phuket!

We flew North to Chiang Mai next where we spent eight days enjoying the city and surrounding areas. Chiang Mai has the largest market I've ever seen, The "Walking Street Market" on Sunday. It spans for several blocks down one road then branches down two side streets for a few more blocks. We spent four hours walking up and down the streets buying trinkets and getting massages, still not managing to get through the whole thing! We also visited a Thai Silk factory where we observed and learned how to make Thai silk using a manual loom. You have to be quite coordinated to handle it!

To feed our wild side we ventured out of the city and up the mountain for some Zip-Lining with the Thai run company Jungle Flight. It was a rush to swing from sky bridge to sky bridge staring out over the Thai rainforest. We highly recommend this company, the guides (Capt. Jack Sparrow & Tom Cruise especially) were very comical and made the adventure that much more interesting and fun.

Chiang Mai is home to "The Tiger Kingdom" where you can go and cuddle with the beautiful animals. We had a great day snuggling up to big, medium and small tigers, even a small lion.

Rachel turned 24 while we were in Chiang Mai. HAPPY BIRTHDAY RACH! We enjoyed a lovely evening in celebration starting with an all-you-can-eat buffet at one of the nicest hotels in town - the Shangri-la. We followed this with some Muay Thai boxing, and ended the night at a Rasta bar where we bopped to the beat of a great live Ska Band.

After Chiang Mai we headed to the border in Chiang Khong to cross the Mekong to Laos...

Rishikesh: A Little Slice of Heaven

2010-02-12T15:34:00.011-04:00

Rishikesh, Uttarakhand - also known as the Land of the Gods, made for a perfect and bitter sweet ending to our exploration of India. We were very lucky to have stumbled across the Shri Sant Shiva Ashram which couldn't have been more perfect. Situated right beside the famous Lakshman Jhoola suspension bridge, our very large balcony overlooked the holy river Ganges, framed by the majestic Himalayas in the background.

We spent many days here pampering ourselves with yoga, massage and Reiki appointments, and enjoyed many fantastic meals at our favorite restaurant in town - the Little Buddha Cafe. We enjoyed a hike to the waterfall, a dramatic run in with Char and a grumpy monkey, and a very authentic cooking course - making for a very fulfilling week.

Goodbye for now India.....

Rajasthan: Squatting and Seduction

2010-02-12T15:32:00.009-04:00

Our longing to return to Pushkar faded quickly on the long drive back to Delhi, with an over night stop off in Mandawa. It was on these drives through Rajasthan that we noticed so many intriguing things that are commonly seen around India. We learned that Indians know how to make things fit - if there is not enough room inside a bus, they'll just hop on top!

We witnessed hundreds of Indians in the squatting position that men and women commonly use when chillin with their buddies on the side of the road. Also, it became apparent to us that only women are seen working in the fields in the heat of the day, or walking the streets carrying heavy loads on their heads, while the men sell food and useless items from their stall or sit around chatting with their mates.

My respect grew even more for these women when I noticed how each one wore their beautiful, brightly coloured sarees even when hard at work... What I love most about these sarees is how they help a woman look beautiful and innocent yet slightly seductive, as it covers the majority of their skin while framing their figure in a very feminine way. I've noticed that they are always graceful with the way they carry themselves and their confidence shines through as they walk with their heads held high and their gazes focused.

We realized how uncommon it is for Tourists to visit these villages one day, when we decided to purchase some fruit from a small vendor on the corner of a village street. We managed to attract a large crowd of boys and men, each one with the same look of excited astonishment on their faces as they stood just a foot away from us, staring. It was a very strange experience... but worth it - the oranges tasted amazing... although they didn't top Bermuda's oranges!

We learned later after speaking to a fellow traveller that the boys in the village were probably standing there with hope that we would choose one to fall in love with and marry. Apparently marrying a westerner is one of the best things that could happen to an Indian man as it would free them of their caste. The caste system is still very strong in India and most men are expected to do the jobs that their families have done for hundreds of years. It is common to find a rickshaw driver or a waiter at a family run restaurant with a medical or law degree. We have heard many times not to say thank you for these services as "it is their duty to serve us."

One thing I do envy about the Indian people that I have met, is how content they all seem with their lives... and the certainty of their life's path.

Racing Camels & Broken Scooters in Pushkar

2010-02-11T02:05:00.008-04:00

We arrived in Pushkar, Rajasthan after a long drive through many very small, authentic Indian villages and lush scenery. Pushkar is a very old, holy city at the edge of the desert surrounding a lake. After arriving at our hotel, we immediately decided to extend our stay. Just like most places in India, Pushkar is very unique, with a good balance of locals, pilgrims and westerners strolling though the main market street in town. Vendors were stocked with silver jewellery and bright natural stones and crystals, along with the typical travel apparel that can be found all over India.

When hoping to explore a temple beside the holy lake we were bombarded by hundreds of pigeons and a number of men who proceeded to sit us down individually and take us through a blessing process where we sent thanks and love to our families and made a wish as we threw pink flower petals into the water. As expected we were asked for a donation which supposedly goes to the children in need around Pushkar - although skeptical, we all gave a small amount hoping that it would find its way to them. We were then given a piece of string to tie around our wrist as our passport to Pushkar - which shows that we have been blessed.

We had the intention of exploring the neighboring villages but found ourselves stranded on the side of a road because the scooter we rented decided to breakdown. Luckily the breathtaking scenery helped us keep our cool, while we met many friendly Indians. It was amusing to us that each and every person that drove passed us whether on a bike, truck or tractor stopped to lend a hand. We got a tiny taste of what an Indian party must feel like... in the middle of a road!

Later that same day a couple of us discovered the amazing world of reflexology and yoga, while others literally raced camels through the desert and played with the locals amongst the sand dunes at sunset.

After only a few days, we felt at home in Pushkar and found it extremely hard to leave...

Jaipur: 3 Idiots & Saree's Galore

2010-02-07T00:51:00.011-04:00

Jaipur, also known as "The Pink City", is the land of Saree's and Jewelry... and is where I fell very deeply in love. The city market streets, Johari Bazaar in particular, were lined with store after store, all packed with from ceiling to floor with the most beautifully embroidered and brightly coloured silk and georgette sarees, pashminas and bed wear. Jewelry stores were decorated with a range of cheap to more pricey ethnic gold and brightly coloured stoned jewelery... As Rachel said, "It was to die for!" The amounts of bangles that lined the store walls was overwhelming but never failed to excite us. We left Jaipur with very, very heavy backpacks.... and even more amounts of inspiration. I hope the tailors in Vietnam are ready for us!

While in Jaipur, we enjoyed our first Bollywood film - 3 Idiots, a very entertaining and more dramatic than expected comedy. The theatre, the Raj Madir, made for a very fulfilling movie experience. Filled with hundreds of excited middle class Indian children, the inside of the theatre was a spectacular site to see. This replica of a giant pink birthday cake was the perfect setting for a very involved audience to enjoy a Bollywood film. Slightly lost at times, Harry's very high pitched laugh made it easier for us to join in at the appropriate times.

One of our favorite activities in Jaipur was exploring the massive Amber Fort high up on the hills right outside of the city. We met two very enthusiastic boys at the Monkey Temple, who followed us up the hill yelling useless facts at us and asking 50 questions a minute, while telling us their life stories all at the same time. After declining their services multiple times, their adorable persistentcy eventually won us over and we finally accepted that they would be our tour guides and new friends for the day... However, they weren't our friends at the end of the day when the tip we offered them wasn't good enough. Either way, I was happy to have met them. We witnessed some of the most amazing and breathtaking views of the beautiful 'Pink City' from these sites, putting Jaipur high up on my list of favorite cities in the world...

With a new addition to our foursome - Char, a journalist from London, we paid a visit to Chokhi Dhani - an all inclusive night of traditional Indian activities that is popular with locals. We enjoyed a buffet of Rajasthani food, with all the curry, chapati & salad you could ever imagine, a replica of a typical village, dancing, elephant rides, slides, carousels and our favorite, and most interesting activity - palmistry. It made for an entertaining night of laughs and hilarious photos opts...

I can't wait to go back to The Pink City!

Agra & Ranthambore: Where's the Taj Mahal?!... and the tigers?

2010-02-06T05:16:00.014-04:00

We arrived in Agra after the following day to more coldness and even more fog, yet were still excited, and itching to catch a glimpse of the spectacular Taj Mahal. Not really knowing why exactly, we found ourselves at a very nice jewelry store selling amazing stones that are found in the walls of the Taj and were swept away again to a small workshop, where we were shown how these stones were installed in the intricately carved marble walls of the Taj Mahal.

With our hands full of goodies and our very empty pockets we were introduced unwillingly to Deepak, our tour guide for the remainder of our stay in Agra and the Taj Mahal. I'm very sad to say that because of the fog all I was able to take away from the Taj was the beautiful dramatic entrance and walkway leading up to it and the detail in the walls that I had been instructed to look out for. I think it was Jessie who said, "I forgot that the roof the Taj was dome shaped until I looked at a postcard some guy was trying to sell to me on my way out". If it wasn't for Deepak, I may have considered demanding my 750 rupees back.

Deepak was a very sweet young Indian guy who was currently putting himself through college. After sharing with us the romantic tale of the Taj, Deepak proceeded to ask each one of us how old we want to be when we get married - those of you who know some of us, might understand the humour in this question. He then proceeded to explain to us the Indian perspective on love, relationships and marriage.

We learned that most Indian women usually want to and usually are married by the time they reach their early to mid 20s... for men it doesn't matter but they are normally a bit older - early to late 30s. It is still very common for marriages to be arranged. Unfortunately for the women, it is their families who are responsible for finding them a suitable match, regardless of whether or not they ready or agree to their match. Whereas it is normally up to the man to decide when they are ready. They are then given options to choose from when necessary. Deepak says that he will marry once he has finished school and has enough money to take on a wife. Love was never mentioned. Although he had been in love once.... when he was 13.

We said our goodbyes to our new friend Deepak and drove 9 hours to Ranthambore, Rajasthan where we were to go on our first Indian Safari. Our experience with the Tiger Reserve in Ranthambore turned out to be a pretty similar one to the Taj Mahal... Deserted and cold. However the beautiful scenery and peaceful feeling of driving with the roof down in India at 6am made it worth while. However the very "interesting" food we encountered at a "restaurant" that we found in the basement of a local house, at a table right next to their dirty laundry, drove us out of the little village of Ranthambore earlier than expected. We headed for Jaipur, in search of warmth, nutella pancakes and banana porridge to comfort our very upset tummies....!

Click to view more pics from Agra & Ranthambore!

Delhi: No Hurry No Worry Like Chicken Curry!

2010-02-06T04:35:00.012-04:00

Namaste!
So we arrived in cold, foggy Delhi and were immediately swept away and passed from one helpful Indian man to the next...! In one day we managed to see many of the sites including The India Gate, the Parliament House & a half built Monkey Temple with time to spare for a stroll through one of the most luxurious malls I have seen. Thanks to Visit India and a lot more money than we had intended on blowing in India, we also had a car arranged starting the following day to take us around the key places in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

This is when we were introduced to Anil, our driver, who ended up being a huge source of our amusement and Indian cultural educator for the duration of our tour. Anil, who we called Harry (short for Harry Potter), was a 31 year old very little Nepalese man whose favorite movie is Harry Potter, & whose music play list consisted of Shakira, Ricky Martin & the Backstreet Boys. It was Harry who first opened our eyes to the common nature of the typical Indian man we were to come across - very unexpectedly blunt, usually slightly offensive yet always endearing in a weird way.

View our pics of Delhi and more!

Calagute, Baga & Condelim, Goa

2010-01-27T03:47:00.004-04:00

We found THE spot where locals go to vacation - on Calangute and Baga Beach. We were amazed by the number of Indian males (who were always either fully dressed or wearing only their underwear) that we saw marching up and down the shoreline amongst the hundreds of bikini clad Westerners. A little overwhelmed by the whole seen we decided to enjoy it from one of the many restaurants that lined the back of this beautiful and very long beach. We spent a lot of our day squirming at the site of the many parasailers that were seen being launched, even after sunset, and brought in right on the beach in between the masses of people - we're still baffled at how they managed to avoid the sunbathers.

It was in Calangute that we rented bikes and explored the surrounding beaches and forts. We enjoyed an amazing lunch at the Sunset Restaurant that overlooked Baga Beach from across the Baga River and sipped on beers at Condelim Beach where a huge oil tanker had run aground 10 years prior.

We would recommend these beaches to anyone looking to enjoy a bit of relaxation & culture and suggest that you shop around for hotels rather than settling for the first cheap room you come across.... the room we managed to find made our last stay like like a 5 star resort... but I suppose it was worth the 300 rupees (~$7) a night between the 4 of us.

Enjoy our pics and stay tuned!

A Slice of Paradise - Palolem Beach, Goa

2010-01-27T02:58:00.009-04:00

If you're looking for a place away from the rest of the world where you can seriously relax, I would recommend that you head straight for Southern India...

Click for more pics from Palolem

Palolem beach is one of the most serene places I have ever encountered. With yoga, massage and meditation facilities lining the beach, we had no problem blowing off the little stress that we had accumulated in the first week or so of our travels... Rach and I let our inner child take over and lost ourselves on a desolate island at the end of the beach surrounded by huge stone boulders perfect for hopping along, and cliffs perfect for scaling across. We wound up having to fight our way through the mozzy infested overgrowth to avoid tumbling down the cliff side (Mom, you may have had a heart attack if you'd seen them)... but we made it out ok... and only half eaten & scarred (emotionally & physically).

The rest of the time we spent enjoying the market, the sun and a Silent Disco which we found to be a very interesting experience! There is nothing like standing amongst a crowd of people dancing to a beat that only they could hear - ear phones were worn with 3 live dj's blasting different music through each channel. It took a while, but a couple of us were able to join in on the dancing with reckless abandon, while the others quietly stood in awe of the fire spinners and trapeze acrobats... Not really sure if Bermy is ready for this sort of thing... yet.

We were sad to leave our little slice of paradise (nutella pancakes and all), but knew that there was much more to see in the North... and reluctantly hopped on a plane to Dehli.

Enjoy our pics from Goa - and stay tuned for our stories from the North!

Beach hoppin in GOA

2010-01-24T06:11:00.008-04:00

Thanks for the prayers - we survived renting mopeds and had a blast! There's nothing more exhilarating than riding on the streets in India; it definitely beats rush hour traffic on Front Street! Project Ride prepared us well!

Click for more pics

We started out our adventure with a nice beach vacation. After a lovely 14 hour bus ride from Mumbai, we arrived in Goa and started our trip in Arambol at the northern end of Goa. We Bermudians are well equipped for the beach life, but this is different. The cows and wild dogs sunbathing caught us a little off guard. There are no reservations here - you just show up and see what beach hut colony or guest house has availability and it's all about luck getting a good one. We didn't have the best of luck... but it was somewhere to sleep. We explored the markets and beaches to find freshwater lagoons and endless cliff side views. We enjoyed many curries and Nutella pancakes while soaking in serene and spectacular sunsets alongside the countless hippies. We made a day trip to Anjuna beach where we made friends with a dog we named Shakira. She followed us around and sat with us on the rocks and even ran to us for protection when two male dogs started harassing her (we didn't offer much protection as we ran from them too!).

Next stop - Calangute

Click to view the full set of pics.

UK & MUMBAI pics on BermyNET

2010-01-16T04:30:00.003-04:00

Mumbai from our hotel window...

Click here to view our full set of pics from the UK & Mumbai.

Mumbai - a few teaser pics

2010-01-15T02:30:00.008-04:00

The Blufrog Bar

Rach & The Gateway of India

Cows in Mumbai

Honk if you love MUMBAI!

2010-01-11T01:47:00.006-04:00

After a long flight to Mumbai we were still very excited and slightly numbed by not having had much sleep. We, thankfully, had a car arranged to take us to our hotel and managed to skip the potential chaos of having to find transportation.

We spent 2 days in Mumbai walking the streets and taking in the sites around us... easing ourselves into the culture slowly. We hung around at The Gateway to India but couldn't stay long before the vendors selling things became too much for us. A few of us enjoyed our first curries at Cafe Leopalds on Coloba Causeway, where we also browsed the many stalls set up with trinkets and very enticing jewelry. We found it very hard to hold back our excitement when we found a store of gorgeous vividly coloured Sari's. The store was decorated with very extravagant silver furniture that we were tempted to send home. :p It was hard to pull ourselves away from this refreshing gem in the rough... At night we enjoyed some live music at the swanky Bluefrog bar and later some lounge music at AIR, an open roof bar on the top of the 4 Seasons Hotel... these were by far the nicest bars I think we will see in quite a while!

The thing that struck us the hardest were the many terrifying experiences in a taxi on the streets of Mumbai. There were no actual lanes or kind of control and everyone felt the need to honk at each other to let them know that they were behind them, overtaking them, mad at them, just any reason to honk really. It's a shock that we didn't see any accidents. Blood pressure rose as we sat in our taxis with other cars, motorbikes, bicycles, animals and pedestrians coming at us from all directions. We came within inches of crashing into something many many times. But we made it out unscathed....

...And on that note we are off to rent some bikes in Goa! Pray for us!!!

(pics will be uploaded very soon... well as soon as it takes to find decent internet connection anyway!)

1 DAY LEFT

2010-01-03T15:59:00.005-04:00

Happy New Year - from the UK!
Heading to MUMBAI tomorrow after a few days of walking up and down Oxford Street in LONDON getting some last minute shopping done with Jessie (whos been here for 3 weeks) including a quick lunch with Sarah, followed by a short stay in Crowborough and a stroll down the Brighton Boardwalk with our friends Lindsay, Henry & Russell. Having met up wth Rachel, in Berkhamsted at her Aunt & Uncle's country home, who arrived today I think we're all about ready, and extremely excited, to get out of the cold streets of the UK and into the very crowded streets of Mumbai...

Will let you know how our first glimpse of India goes in a few!
Ash x

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T14:31:00.003-04:00

Merry Christmas Friends and Family!

I hope everyone is having a FABULOUS, FASHIONABLE and FAMILY filled day...!

❤ Ash

The biggest hassle in India

2009-12-16T12:25:00.019-04:00

This article was sent to us to help us prepare for what is to come...!

Rach I think this may be a huge help in your quest to not be "so nice" ;o) ....yes, it really is a problem she faces daily!

Travel writer Chuck Thompson on the evil genius of Indian salesmen -

"Indian salesmen are impossible. The irrepressible over-ambition of the country’s merchant class stalks you like a disease from the moment you step outside your hotel, forcing you to become the kind of blinkered, “Get the hell away from me” survival-mode tourist tosser you’ve always promised yourself you’d never become. Being white in this country puts a target on your back the size of a garlic naan."

Full article - Chuck Thompson | CNNGo.com

TMC Christmas Party - Ash's Last Day!

2009-12-14T12:01:00.015-04:00

I'm gonna miss you TMC! I am so happy to have met you all.

I had a great time at the xmas party... Goodluck to you in 2010.

Make sure to check my blog when you're bored at work ;)

Click for more TMC Xmas Party Pictures

Only 24 Days Left!!!!

2009-12-12T14:28:00.002-04:00

Travel Advice & Warning

2009-12-09T08:51:00.016-04:00

With Jessie being the first to leave on Sunday, the leaving parties have started! We've heard some really good words of advice & warning from our friends and family on the lead up to our adventure. Here are a few:

- Get used to being stared at. (It is normal for Indians to stand and stare for as long as they desire!)

- Trust no one.

- Get a massage every day.

- You are basically a bullseye with a backpack on your back.

- Talk to as many people as possible... during the day.

- Take time to talk to the locals.

- You're going to get to Goa (hippy area in India) and not want to leave... and if you do leave, you'll most likely be wishing you could go back.

- You're all going to hate each other by the end of it.

- Never separate.

- Take LOTS of pictures.

- Never pull out more than one bill at once.

- Have lots of single US$ for sticky situations.

- Have toilet paper with you at all times.

- You have to test the street food.

- Stay up all night to watch the sunrise in each place.

- Just remember, no where will ever be the same as here.

---Farewell dinner (many more to come) with the girls at Tratt.

Cassie Design

2009-12-02T10:50:00.015-04:00

One of my latest creations - made for Cassandra.

--> Side pleated silk skirt

Our Itinerary

2009-12-02T09:52:00.007-04:00

Our flight itinerary (most likely to change along the way!):

Bermuda --> London End of Dec
London --> Bombay, India JAN 5th
Delhi, India --> Bangkok, Thailand FEB 4th
Bangkok --> Sidney, Australia APR 4th
Brisbane, Aus --> Christchurch, New Zealand APR 25th
Auckland, NZ --> Nadi, Fiji MAY 11th
Fiji --> London MAY 20th
London --> Bermuda End of May/Beg of June

*with so many more destinations in between!

Only 4 weeks to go.....!

ElleTee & The Flamingos

2009-11-02T09:44:00.002-04:00

Flock of Flamingos

2009-10-29T16:55:00.002-03:00

A flock of good looking flamingos is going to raid Fright Night this weekend!! Watch out!

Jab me please!

2009-10-27T16:27:00.006-03:00

Just spent about 2 1/2hrs in the clinic getting shots - fun, fun. You'd think it would be a horrible experience but it actually turned out to be pretty entertaining! Not only did I learn that you can die from rabies, but India has the highest number (~20,000) of rabies cases in the world a year, with the next highest being China (~6,000). I also found out that if an ejaculation of sperm were to fill an Olympic size pool, each sperm would be about the same size as a goldfish... ummmmm.... OK!

It was recommended that we get the following shots for wanting to trek through the dirtiest part of the world:
Meningitis
Rabies
Polio
Hepatitis A & B
Malaria Pills
Flu / H1N1
Typhoid

So, 3 shots today, 5 or 6 more to go, plus remembering to fend off those mozzy's, not drink the water or eat the salads and we are free from all sickness for the whole 5 months! ....right?

Flights Booked!

2009-10-21T10:47:00.001-03:00

OUR FLIGHTS ARE BOOKED!!

London - Mumbai, Dehli - Bangkok, Bangkok - Sidney, Brisbane - Christchurch, Auckland - Fiji, Fiji - London, and depending on $$ a few stops in Europe!

And all that for the price of $2045.00... Thank you STA Travel!

Now for the packing... this may be the hardest part of the trip. Luckily I have a pack big enough for Rachel to fit in. I'm hoping this means I'll be able to fit all 3 pairs of my favorite jeans... and maybe a few pairs of heels... a girl can dream right? :p

Local Designer Spotlight

2009-10-21T09:43:00.000-03:00

Check out Style Bermuda's new Designer Spotlight....

ElleTee is the very first to be featured!! Eeeek!

http://www.stylebermuda.com/article.php?aid=6100

LOVIT Boutique Shopping Night

2009-10-08T10:31:00.000-03:00

Looking forward to some shopping with a glass of wine in hand.... :)

ElleTee will be there for anyone wanting to try on some pieces!

ElleTee ♥'s Style Bermuda!

2009-09-28T17:01:00.000-03:00

Thank you Style Bermuda for choosing me to be the first local designer to be featured on your site for your monthly designer spotlight. ☺ I had a fabulous time shooting at the abandoned house on Sunday... can't wait to see the pics!