travel
Will Faught
May 2013
My 2011–2012 Asia Backpacking Trip
Here are all the pictures of my 2011–2012 Asia backpacking trip: South Korea Japan Hong Kong Singapore Vietnam Taiwan Thailand Laos Cambodia Caution: A few pictures are not safe for work. Read the first post I made on the trip and browse from there.
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April 2012
I stayed at the Chocolate Box Backpackers hostel for five more days. I was so tired and burned out that I kept mostly to myself and stayed inside. The weather was still wet and dreary, so I wasn’t missing out on much outside. I read the web, watched some movies, and otherwise relaxed. On Friday, March 2, I flew from Taipei to Seoul, and then a couple hours later I flew to Seattle, Washington.
grass valley sacramento seattle seoul south korea taipei taiwan travel usa
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February 2012
Let myself sleep in until 1:30 PM. Went for lunch at Modern Toilet with the others in my dorm room at about 4:30 PM. Returned to my hostel to do laundry. Ate a late dinner at McDonald’s again. Played on my computer.
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Rode a tuk tuk from my hostel to the airport. Flew to Taipei with a layover in Kuala Lumpur. Rode a bus to Taipei Main Station. Rode the MRT to Guting station. Walked to my hostel and arrived around 9:30 PM. Ate dinner at a nearby McDonald’s (sorry, Tess). Met the others in my dorm room, English teachers from south of Taipei visiting for a long weekend. Played on my computer, then went to bed.
cambodia phnom penh taipei taiwan travel
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Called Tess to plan my flight to Seattle. Ate lunch at my hostel. Walked to a nearby ATM. Rode a motorbike taxi to the S-21 museum where thousands were detained and tortured for confessions by the Khmer Rouge. Afterward, rode a motorbike taxi to the killing fields just outside of town where thousands were murdered. It was so very sad. Rode a motorbike taxi back to my hostel. Bought a flight ticket to Taipei for the next day and booked a hostel I’d stayed at before, Chocolate Box.
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Checked out of my hostel. Wanted to call Tess, but my ride to the bus terminal was early. Rode a bus to Phnom Penh for six hours. Rode a tuk tuk to my hostel and checked in. Walked around the neighborhood a little, but there was little to see. Ate dinner at my hostel.
cambodia phnom penh siem reap travel
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Jake drove me to some of the smaller temples. I can’t recall which ones, but aside from small features, they were very similar. After seeing temples for two days under a blistering sun, they all started to look alike and I grew weary of it. Returned to the hostel and arranged for a six-hour bus ride to Phnom Penh the next morning.
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Ate breakfast at the hostel. Jake drove me in a tuk tuk to Angkor Wat, Banteay Kdei, Ta Prohm, The Bayon in Angkor Thom, and Phnom Bakheng, to the top of which I hiked for a sunset view. Needless to say, the temples there are exquisite and exciting to explore. My favorite was Angkor Wat, but The Bayon was a close second. I ate dinner at the same street place as the day before.
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Woke up at 4:30 AM. Flew to Siem Reap, Cambodia. Jake, from my hostel, picked me up at the airport. Checked in, showered, and ate lunch. Arranged a private tuk tuk for seeing the ruins the next day with Jake as my driver. Spent the rest of the day napping and relaxing. Ate dinner with another guy from my dorm named Robin (from Germany). Went to bed early to get up early the next day.
cambodia laos siem reap travel vientiane
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Saturday & Sunday, February 18–19, 2012
Didn’t do much. Again, I felt tired, and mostly remained inside and ate at nearby restaurants. One evening I walked to the Mekong River’s edge to see the night market there and watch the local people. Ran into a few more people from the group I was with at the river near Vang Vieng. Met a girl in my hostel that I’d met before at my hostel in Luang Prabang. Feeling the bandaid on my face was a constant reminder of the river, and I think it put me in a bad mood.
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Rode a bus to Vientiane at 10 AM. Walked around with a couple looking for a guesthouse or hostel. Checked into a hostel called Asian World. Ate a croissant for a late lunch and drank a couple Cokes to cool down. Read my guidebook about the city. Ate dinner at a pizza place and ran into a couple from the group I had hung out with at the river at Vang Vieng.
laos travel vang vieng vientiane
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Ate lunch at a Friends restaurant. Went to the inner tube shop, then rode a tuk tuk with a group of others, including two girls I’d met at my hostel in Chiang Mai, to the river. Hung out with that group there for an hour or so, drinking a beer. I’d heard stories about how dangerous it was inner tubing there, how people had died falling on rocks while riding zip lines over the river, or how inner tube riders had been hit by bottles attached to ropes that locals working at riverside bars throw at them to reel them in.
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Still felt tired, so I stayed inside mostly and kept to myself. Ate lunch and dinner at restaurants that played Friends. I’d forgotten how funny Friends is.
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Moved my things to a private room at the Chilllaos hostel about a block away. Ate lunch at one of the restaurants playing the TV show Friends. Felt very tired, so I stayed in my room all day by myself. Ate dinner at the same place.
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The tour started at 11 AM. All four of us rode a private minibus to the three Plain of Jars sites. “Plain” is an exaggeration; “fields” is perhaps more fitting. The first site (called Site 3) was a five minute hike from a parking lot through some dry rice fields and rolling hills. Fortunately, the area had been cleared of land mines. I’d seen all I wanted to see after about five minutes.
laos phonsavan travel vang vieng
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Rode a minibus to Phonsavan for six hours. Stopped at a small town on the way for lunch and ate with another guy from the minibus named Vincent. Shared a tuk tuk with Vincent and two girls from the Phonsavan bus terminal to the center of town where all the guesthouses are. Vincent and I shared a room with two twin beds. It was cheap, but the wifi sucked. We looked around at a couple of tourist agencies and all four of us finally booked a tour of the three Plain of Jars sites for the next day.
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Woke up earlier than I expected, at about 8:30 AM. Read my Laos guidebook about the northern area to plan where to go next. Decided to go to the Plain of Jars next, and then to the wild debauchery of Vang Vieng. Walked around town with my guidebook and saw all the temples that I had missed the day before. Met a couple novice monks, Joy and Sing, and talked with them for about an hour.
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My birthday! Let myself sleep in. Tried to call my parents, but the wifi wasn’t working. Walked into downtown and rented a bicycle for 10,000 kip. Rode around town looking at some temples. Stopped at a cafe for a Coke to cool off and use their wifi to call my parents and Tess. Continued riding around town and saw a a couple more temples. Returned the bicycle and ran into Matteo.
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Rode a minibus with Aimee, Glenn, Nic, Sara, Dan, Sylvia, Michelle, and Ingo to the gorgeous Kuang Si waterfalls. Took lots of pictures, swam, swung on a rope and jumped off a small cliff into the icy blue water. Hiked up to all the different pools and falls. Got lost coming down the other side of the falls and ended up taking the long way back to the bottom of the falls.
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Ate another American breakfast and got a sandwich to go for lunch on the slow boat. Boarded at 8:30 AM and sat and waited for the stragglers to arrive. Departed around 9:30 AM. Sat with Aimee (from Austin, Texas) and we chatted for a while. I also read and listened to a couple podcasts and some music. The scenery was again very beautiful. This time my seat was much more cramped, but still the time passed quickly enough.
laos luang prabang pakbeng travel
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No hot water for my shower, and there was a breeze from a fan when I turned on the shower light, so I skipped the shower except for a light rinse. Ate an American breakfast at the hotel’s restaurant. Shared a tuk tuk to the river boat pier at 9:30 AM. Boarded around 10 AM and sat waiting to depart for an hour or two as others trickled on board. Listened to podcasts the whole time and watched the beautiful landscape roll by.
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Awoke still sick with a bad back. Ate a cheap lunch at a local restaurant. Rode the bus to Chiang Khong at the Thailand–Laos border. Shared a tuk tuk with a guy to the Mekong river shore and exited Thailand. Bought passage across the river and landed on the Laos shore. Paid the fee and entered the town of Huay Xai in Laos. Walked up the hill and looked at a few places and chose to stay at a nice hotel with wifi and air con.
chiang rai huay xai laos thailand travel
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Woke up still feeling sick, and also felt like I had thrown my back out (the “mattresses” were really stiff). Showered, ate lunch, stayed in all day watching BSG, bought a bus ticket to Chiang Khong at the Thailand–Laos border, went out again for dinner, then returned to the hostel.
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Still sick and miserable. Slept in, showered, ate lunch, returned to my hostel and stayed inside all day, lying on my back watching Battlestar Galactica with my head angled up to reduce the running of my nose. Ate an expensive dinner at a pizza place nearby to try to cheer myself up.
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Awoke feeling sick again. Returned the scooter I had rented the day before. Checked out and rode a taxi truck to the Arcade bus terminal. Rode the bus to Chiang Rai for a few hours and listened to podcasts. Arrived and wandered around for ten minutes looking for my hostel. Checked in, ate lunch, then returned to my hostel and stayed inside on my bed the rest of the day feeling too sick to do anything.
chiang mai chiang rai thailand travel
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Rented a scooter and rode it to Doi Suthep. On my way back, I came across a scooter accident that had just happened. The driver was a man from Nebraska named Paul. He was in really bad shape. All the skin on his right knee cap had been scraped off and he was bleeding heavily from his right arm. He took an antibacterial wipe and a clotting pad from my first aid kit and some toilet paper I had to soak up the blood from his arm.
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Went to the Elephant Nature Park and fed and washed elephants all day. I didn’t realize the way elephants are trained to be ridden and do tricks is so brutal and inhumane. Returned to the hostel and planned my next few days. Craved McDonalds, so I ate dinner there. Watched some Battlestar Galactica.
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Rented a bicycle and headed for the interior of the old quarter. Stopped to east some street food for lunch. Saw several temples. Rode to a neighborhood outside the old quarter that supposedly was a nice place to shop, but was sorely disappointed. Returned to the hostel for a couple hours. Ate dinner nearby. Rode my bicycle to the night market a few blocks away and browsed the stalls there for an hour or so.
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Ate an American breakfast at a restaurant across the street. Rode the minibus to the Ko Phuket airport and arrived at 1:30 PM. Ate lunch at Burger King and then had four or so hours to kill. Drank some beers in a bar to use their free wifi. Flew to Chiang Mai at about 7:30 PM and arrived at about 9:30 PM. Rode a taxi to my hostel, A Little Bird Guesthouse, in the old quarter of the city.
chiang mai ko phuket krabi thailand travel
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Bought some lunch to go and put it in my day pack. Rode a long tail boat from Krabi to Railay East. Climbed to the vista point overlooking the Railay area. Ate my lunch while admiring the view. Tried to hike to a nearby lagoon, but it was too muddy. Walked to Railay West and went for a quick dip in the ocean and then laid on the sand and read for an hour or so.
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Rode the ferry in the morning to Krabi. Met a girl my age from England named Louisa who had been teaching English in South Korea. We were both going to the same hostel. Checked in. Planned what to do the next day. Walked to see a nearby temple. Walked from the temple to a nearby night street market for a delicious dinner of street food. Returned to the hostel for some quality computer time.
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Got up early and had the showers to myself. Walked to the travel agency where I’d booked the boat tour and bought some bananas on the way. Was led to the boat tour company office, then to the pier, then to the boat itself and boarded. The tour wasn’t organized as well as the Angthong Marine Park one, so we didn’t really know where the next stop was, or how they would signal us that the boat was leaving when everyone was snorkeling.
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Rode a minibus to a nearby pier and boarded a ferry bound for Ko Phi Phi. Was a little worried about my pack — as I usually am — after I stowed it on the deck like everyone else, but it was soon buried under a bunch of packs. Safety in numbers. Got off the boat without trouble a couple hours later. Wandered the streets of Tonsai Village for over an hour in the burning sun, sweat running down to my chin and in my eyes, looking for a dorm bed somewhere.
ko phi phi ko phuket thailand travel
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January 2012
Arrived in Hanoi by sleeper bus feeling disheveled, greasy, and tired. The weather was gray and a tiny bit rainy. Wasn’t sure where to go or what to do. A motorbike taxi driver offered to take me to the Old Quarter, so I went with him. He took me to a travel agency there. Spoke with the agent inside and decided to go to Ha Long Bay first to ensure I had enough time to see it.
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After Hoi An, I went to Hue. At this point, I was worried about running out of time, since I could only stay in Vietnam for thirty days. I stayed in Hue for two days. It was lightly raining the entire time, so I wore my poncho and gritted my teeth. The first day, after I checked into my hotel, I walked to the Imperial Citadel and spent all afternoon exploring the ruins (bombed by the Americans) and the buildings still standing.
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After Dalat and the six-day Easy Rider motorbike ride with Hien, I went to Hoi An. Hien dropped me off at one side of Hoi An and we parted ways. Stayed in a cheap hotel for $9 per night for several days. Browsed several shops and bought five paper lanterns in assorted colors, a dirty metal gong, a couple dirty coins, a few small paintings on scraps of paper, a marble tea box, and a marble candle box.
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The fireworks I saw at Taipei 101 in Taipei, Taiwan, for New Year’s Eve. (It’s not my video.)
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Decided to stay in Ko Phuket one more day to see a beach or two and get a feel for the place. Got up at 9 AM, ate toast for breakfast, got ready, and was out the door by 11 AM. Walked twenty minutes to the bus spot in Phuket Town and rode a bus to Hat Kata. Got off and followed a woman to the beach. Beheld the beach, took some snaps, then walked along the surf for a little ways.
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Woke up and felt much better. Went on a boat and kayak tour of the Phang Nga islands to the north of Ko Phuket. A minibus picked me up around 8 AM and took me to Ao Por Pier in the northern part of the island. The boat was large and had two stories. There were about forty to fifty customers on board. Visited the famous island that was in the James Bond movie The Man with the Golden Gun.
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When I travel to places that remind me of movies that I’ve seen, I feel an urge to watch them again, like George Costanza was with food. So far, I’ve only watched Lost in Translation. But being in the south of Thailand among the tropical islands, I now plan to also watch again The Beach and The Man with the Golden Gun. Watch along with me!
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Woke up still sick. Went downstairs for a breakfast of cereal and toast. Took a while getting ready. Called Tess. Wanted to talk to the hostel staff about getting a map of Ko Phuket, where to get lunch, and where to rent a scooter, but I couldn’t find anyone. It was already past 1 PM, so I left on my own. Found a small place for lunch and had pork fried rice.
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Woke up still sick. Decided to skip the dive class so I wouldn’t miss the west coast. Packed my gear and bought a ticket for Phuket. Quickly reserved a bed at a hostel before I left the hostel. Walked to the ferry pier and bought some snacks at the 7-11 along the way. Arrived at the boat just in time, sweat pouring down my face. Fortunately, the boat had air con.
ko samui phuket surat thani thailand travel
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Woke up still sick. Had planned to take a dive class on the nearby island Ko Tao, but didn’t want to do it while sick. Decided to wait here an extra day to see if I felt better the next day. Took a while getting ready. Ate a delicious lunch again at the small restaurant nearby. Chose a spicy and delicious green curry to open my sinuses. Returned my beloved scooter.
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Woke up sick with a cold. No sore throat, but my nose was really runny. Took a long time getting ready. Rented a scooter from a nearby shop and rode to the 7-11 to buy lots of water and orange juice. Ate lunch at the same small restaurant nearby. Rode to a pharmacy to buy some medicine to alleviate my symptoms and bought a nose spray. Feeling more composed, I set out to see Ko Ma at the northwest corner of the island and some other beaches on the west coast.
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Rode a minibus early in the morning to the Big Buddha pier on the north side of Ko Samui. Rode a ferry to the island Ko Phangan for about forty-five minutes. Rode a songthaew taxi truck for 100 baht to Baan Tai beach. There was some confusion about where to find my hostel, and I walked around in the searing heat for twenty minutes before slogging into the place to check in.
ko phangan ko samui thailand travel
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Woke up at 7 AM. Got ready for the Angthong Marine Park island tour. The bus was late picking me up, but I got to the dock in time to eat the tiny breakfast and hot chocolate they served me. We started a little late, but they made up for it later. About forty people plus five or so staff. Lots of cold Cokes to go around throughout the day to slake our thirst.
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