I’ve been pretty lucky over the last few years. I’ve been to many incredible places and done and seen some pretty amazing things. But there’s some experiences that do stand out above the rest. It’s hard to narrow it down to just ten but since I have to do so (well I don’t have to, but I’m making myself do it) then I’d say that it would probably be these, so in no particular order: Continue reading “My Top 10 Travel Experiences”
25-28 June 2010
The Gap Year Buddy and I awoke late (again) to find that the family had gone out for Friday prayers. When they returned, we went out for some more Penang Fried Kway Teow before heading back to pack for Johor Bahru. The family had invited us along to their nephew’s wedding. I had never been to an Islamic wedding before and I was excited to watch the ceremony. We all climbed into the car at around 5pm and four hours, and one Baskin Robbins ice cream stop, later we arrived and settled down to a dinner of seafood fried rice and lime juice with the extended family, in front of more World Cup fun.
22-24 June 2010
Our bus pulled into Kuala Lumpur an hour earlier than expected. That meant we had to wait for our ride. Thankfully, we were dropped next to Sunway Pyramid Mall, so we had a chance to stock up on Body Shop treats and some dresses to combat the heat. Finally, we met our friend and went for a carbonara and tiramisu dinner at Italiannies. Afterwards, it was the footie (this was in the midst of the World Cup 2010) and bed.
Continue reading “Malaysia Part Three: KL (Petronas Towers and i-City) and a trip to Melaka”
20-22 June 2010
After a lie-in followed by some noodle soup, I set off from Kuala Lumpur to Penang with the Gap Year Buddy. Our host family had relatives in Penang and their nephew was taking us back there with him, after his visit to KL. Four hours and one ice cream stop later, we arrived, only to receive the unwelcome news that the hotel we hoped to check in to was full. Thankfully, and very kindly, our new friends said we could stay with them and promptly took us out for a tour of George Town.
18-19th June 2010
The Gap Year Buddy and I caught the bus from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur after a McDonald’s breakfast (somethings are just the same in any country). Our Aeroline coach wasn’t what I had expected. Instead of your average coach seats, this one had big seats with lots of leg room and even some pretty good in-coach food. The in-coach movie was a bad quality copy of 2012, which was quickly replaced by The Blind Side, which mostly had no sound. Even so, this was still a step up from a lot of the buses I have frequented. Continue reading “Malaysia Part One: shopping in Kuala Lumpur”
After doing my list of the Seven Wonders of the World, I wondered how many UNESCO World Heritage sites I’d seen without knowing it and how many I had left to do. It turns out, that out of the 1,121 (as updated) preserved cultural and natural landmarks, I have been to 58. Only 1,063 to go then – I may complete my Seven Wonders list first: Continue reading “My UNESCO World Heritage Checklist”
Eating unusual foods in Asia is as much of a tourist activity as any. You cannot leave without having sampled a local delicacy and experiencing a different food culture. Here is my guide to some of the tasty treats I tried when I was in the area.
Continue reading “15 Weird and Debatably Wonderful Foods and Drinks to Try in Asia”
Ellis’ Bucket List: see the seven wonders of the world.
I think the seven wonders are probably a regular feature on bucket lists everywhere: Christ the Redeemer, Petra, the Great Wall of China, Chichen Itza, the Taj Mahal, Machu Picchu and the Colosseum – with the Pyramids of Giza taking an honorary position as the last remaining wonder of the ancient world.
Continue reading “My Seven Wonders of the World (and Back-Ups)”
Ellis Goes On Holiday 