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My mum, the pilot

Once upon a time, a little girl was told that women shouldn’t fly airplanes … I grew up knowing ‘mum…

Featured, female pilots, Indian women pilots, women aviators, women pilots

Just one of those days when the travel stuff goes wrong

The day had started so well, but the travel mishaps came one after another. It was a bad travel day.

Gili Trewangan, The house in Eat Pray Love, the Lost Phone dance, travel blogger, travel mishaps, ubud

The F*** word, the trickiest word in the English language

F word is perhaps the most varying and interchangeable word in the English language. Mesmersing, confusing, even bamboozling, sometimes cool in the right company and nearly always crude and vulgar.

“So, where are you REALLY from?”

This week the headlines in London were about a royal aide who continuously asked a British woman of colour where…

#whereareyoufrom #identity #race #india #british #britishindian

How the cenotes of Mexico cured my deepest fear

We all have fears right? Some fear the dark, some fear flying, small spaces or spiders. For me though, ever…

No cash, no gas, 40 kms from home

A spot of bother running out of gas in Mexico

getting in trouble, Travel, travel tips

Similar objects of Assam and Myanmar: some travel notes

A couple of years ago I visited Assam, a state in north east India, and Myanmar on the same trip and noticed several similar objects.

Assam and Myanmar, How to pronounce Assam, Travel, Xorai

The awkward incident of the cat in the afternoon

The lengths I go to to protect my cat. Honestly. It was so embarrassing I haven’t seen my next door…

cats, humour

Bird talk: how an innocent childhood hobby got the whole class laughing

Preface: in the 1980s the word bird was used as British slang to mean a girl or a woman. It…

Experiences

Flying in the time of Covid

It’s not all bad news. The airport queues are short, bookshops are a breeze and even wearing a face mask…

COVID 19, Flying, Travel, travel blog

A hike in the Himalayan snow

We left the glimmering lake at Dodital to climb another thousand metres, ascending pine forests, crossing streams and meadows to…

Featured, heyloons, hiking, India, Mountains, Travel, treks

Spending half a day at the bank

It wasn’t quite how I imagined the start of my Himalayan adventure. This is the second part of the blog…

hiking, India, preparing for a hike, the Himalayas, Travel, travel blogger, trekking

A Merry Assamese Christmas (repost)

Man, those Assamese really know how to party. Here’s something I’m reposting from a couple of years ago, fond memories…

#christmas, Do the Assamese celebrate Christmas?, How Christmas is celebrated in the UK by Assamese, India

Crossing a special sea between Bali and the Gili Islands

It was a day that started serene, went chaotic and became serene again. A chaos sandwich, if you will This…

Bali to Lombok, crossing the Lombok Strait

A funny incident in the men’s loo

Men’s bathroom protocol | What goes on in the men’s loos? | What is a loo? | A funny incident|…

heyloons, rules of the men’s restroom

To Bali and Beyond…

The final week of our amazing 90 days backpacking in southeast Asia arrived far too soon. In search of some…

Bali, Travel, ubud, what is the religion in Bali

Thoughts on returning home after backpacking around Southeast Asia for 90 days

Or … why you can never really ‘do’ a country We’ve been back now for six weeks after our 90…

best length of time for visiting a country, returning home after a period of travel, Travel

Photography: Sunset over the Sulu Sea

Selingan Island | Sabah Province | Malaysia

Malaysia, Photography, Selingan Island, sunset, Travel

Things that can go wrong when travel-blogging

How to blog on the go when you’re in a relationship | when your thumb decides to blog without you…

blogging, how to blog when travelling, Travel, travel blog

Photography: Landscapes of Bagan

Last month we were in Bagan, a dusty plain in Myanmar, where there are over 2,000 temples and pagodas, some…

a view of Bagan, Photography, Travel

Turtle island, Selingan Island, Borneo

The islands between Malaysia and the Philippines must be some of the loveliest islands in the world. During the day…

are the islands in the Sulu sea safe for tourists, Malaysia, nature, Sabah, Selingan Island, Where to see turtles in Borneo, wildlife

How to see orangutans in Borneo

We arrived in Sepilok in Borneo, the world’s third largest island, famed for its wildlife. We saw orangutans at play…

backpacking in Borneo, Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan to Sepilok, two days in Sepilok, where to see the orangutans in Borneo

Finding the perfect perfume in Singapore

We’d landed in Singapore, our 6th country and 28th place on our 90 day travels around southeast Asia We immediately…

backpacking, origins of the singapore sling, perfumers, perfumes, Travel, two days in Singapore

Things to see on Lake Inle in Myanmar

After a one hour flight from Bagan, a 45 minute taxi and a 50 minute boat ride, we were in…

In dein Monastery, Lake Inle, Myanmar, Nyaung Shwe, Travel, what to do in Lake Inle

What to see in Bagan, Myanmar

Imagine over 2,000 ancient stone temples, the fruits of devotion that have lasted almost a millennium. Some grandiose, topped in…

Bagan, main temples in Bagan, Myanmar, Travel

What to do in Mandalay

The lay of the land can be a great tell about a people just like a first view of Myanmar…

backpacking, Burma, Mandalay jade market, Mandalay U bein bridge, Myanmar, Travel

Landing in the sea at Halong Bay, Vietnam

We arrived via seaplane, landing in a sea filled with spectacular limestone cliffs rising out of the water. Hanoi to…

airplanes, aviation, Flying, Halong Bay, seaplane, Travel, Vietnam

What to see in Vietnam: Hoi An, Hué and Hanoi

We visited the ancient trading port of Hoi An and the old royal capital Hué, and then on to Vietnam’s…

Backpacking in Vietnam, Hanoi, Hoi An, Hué, Southeast Asia, Travel, Vietnam

Getting over a fever in central Vietnam

We’re now half-way through our 90 days backpacking in south east Asia and we had just arrived in central Vietnam…

backpacking, getting ill while travelling, heyloons, Travel, travel blogger, Vietnam

Visit the Saigon Opera House

Ho Chi Minh City | Vietnam There are many tourist activities to do in Ho Chi Minh City but we…

backpacking, Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon opera house, South East Asia, Travel

Goodbye Laos, you beauty

In the south of Laos, we climbed a World Heritage Site called Wat Phu and relaxed on river islands in…

backpacking, Don Det, Don Khong, how to apply for world heritage site listing, Laos, Travel, Vat Phou, Wat Phu

On our way down south in Laos

A beery game of boules, realising the growing pains of middle-aged backpacking and a flight to the deep south of…

backpacking, heyloons, playing boules in Laos, Savannakhet, Travel

Caves, a jungle trek and the mysterious turquoise lake

We arrive in central Laos; take a jungle hike; visit caves and a mysterious lake; enjoy a Mekong sunset Thakek…

backpacking south Laos, biodiversity areas in Laos, hiking, khoun khong leng, Phou Hin Boun, Savannakhet, Thakek, travel blogger, trekking

In the laid-back city of Vientiane

We arrived in what must be the world’s most laid-back capital city; temples; national monuments; a moving rehabilitation centre, and…

backpacking in Laos, heyloons, how to pronounce Vientiane, Laos, Patuxai Vientiane, Pha That Luanng, Travel, what to see in Vientiane

A slow and unintended minibus to Vang Vieng

We made our way on a tricky bus journey to Vang Vieng, a town in a lush setting of towering…

heyloons, travel blog, travelling in Laos, vang Vieng

Luang Prabang in Laos: the jewel on the Mekong River

We arrived at a picturesque town of French colonial architecture, swam in clear blue waterfalls, ate local food in night…

backpacking, flight chiang Mai to Luang Prabang, mount Phousi, Tad Kuang Si waterfall, Travel, what to see in Luang Prabang

Replanning our route, re-routing our plan

A Street cafe breakfast of omelettes and rice | Chiang Mai | Northern Thailand This post is part of the…

backpacking, planning a route, Travel

Chiang Mai, pretty little temple town

After 20 hours of travelling from the Himalayas we got to the laid-back town in north Thailand, Chiang Mai; we…

Backpacking in South East Asia, Chiang Mai, heyloons, Thailand, Travel, Wat Chedi Luang

Kalimpong and a Magical Himalayan Wedding

We woke early to see the world’s third highest peak and there she was, Kanchenjunga, at dawn, ready to witness…

Backpacking in South East Asia, Buddhism, Indian wedding, Kalimpong, Travel, wedding

A tale of a dry day in India (it must be election time)

Departure Lounge Bar| Kolkata Airport | India We’re just about to leave India and go to Thailand on our 90…

dry day in India, heyloons, India, Indian elections alcohol ban, Travel

A time of unbridled joy: the Assamese bihu

Man, those Assamese know how to celebrate. It’s the spring festival of Rongali Bihu and when we arrived in the…

backpacking south east Asia, Bihu in Assam, Guwahati, heyloons, Rongali Bihu

Where the Rhinos Roam

We’re in Kaziranga National Park in Assam, a UNESCO world heritage site which has two thirds of the world’s one-horned…

Assam, conservation, kaziranga, one horned rhino, rhino poaching, travel blog, vets

Helpful hints on how to climb a 17 foot elephant on your wedding day

From Jorhat we travelled west for one and a half hours till we got to Kohora, a small village on…

how to climb up an elephant, India, things to do in Assam, Travel, weddings

An unexpected treat on the River Brahmaputra

We got lucky. By an unexpected act of kindness we were spending the night aboard a luxury boat all to…

Brahmaputra River Cruise, heyloons, RV Charaidew, travel blog

Things to see in Majuli, the world’s largest river island

We sailed to the world’s largest river island, Majuli, in the mighty river Brahmaputra and cycled in stunning Assamese countryside…

Assam, how to get to Majuli, India, Travel, what to do in Majuli

To Sivasagar: home of the Assamese kings

We’ve made our way to the ancient capital of Assam, full of monuments of the Ahoms. Digboi to Sivasagar |…

Ahom historical sites, Charaideo, Kareng ghar, Ranghar, Sivadol, Talatal ghar, Travel, what to see in Sivasagar

Digboi, the oil town in the rainforest

We’ve made our way to the easternmost corner of Assam, to a sleepy town by a rainforest called Digboi. It’s…

Assam, heyloons, how Digboi got its name, how oil was discovered in Digboi, things to do in Digboi, Travel

On the lazy man’s road: the story of Dhodar Ali

We’re travelling further east in Assam, towards Digboi on an old road that has a curious tale about it. Dhodar…

ahoms, Assam, Dhodar Ali, Gadadhar Singha, Joymati, Travel

A storm in an Assamese tea cup

We’ve arrived in Upper Assam at the start of the tea plucking season; the tea-pluckers are out in full force,…

Assam, India, tea estates, Travel

How to sleep on a flight (Aches on a plane).

Overnight flight from London to Delhi. 9 sleepless hours Sleeping vertically has never been a human trait unless you’re Spider-Man;…

how to sleep on a flight, In search of vertical sleeping position, sleeping on a flight

I’m backpacking around South East Asia for 90 Days

When a rare opportunity for extended travel arrives, you just have to grab it with both hands I’m going backpacking…

backpacking, Backpacking in South East Asia, Burma, hiking, hosteling, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, South East Asia, Thailand, Travel, Vietnam

Another new word from India

Today I was walking down a road in India and I saw this road sign. It turns out after a…

The cat café of Borneo

Meow Meow Cat Café | Kuching | Sarawak | Borneo | Malaysia On our second day in Borneo, Life-boss said…

animals, cafe, cats, Travel

First impressions of a second time in Borneo

When you think of Borneo, what do you think of?  Rainforests, mountain mists and orangutans? We saw all of these…

things to do in Kuching

A Rainy Friday Night in Singapore

Enroute to Borneo | Sitting next to a very nervous flyer It was great to be back in Singapore, I’ve…

Singapore, two days in Singapore

Words of comfort in a time of war: my father’s Polish family

Soon after my father arrived in London from India, his homeland was invaded. Solace and comfort came from an unexpected…

The rose bush that didn’t give roses

See that rose bush above? Beautiful isn’t it? It is ever so deceptive and if you enlarge the picture you…

flowers, gardening, roses

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