Traveling Asia/Australia

[nate989]

Just curious if anyone here has traveled through Asia or Australia. I'm leaving in a month mainly going to South korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Burma down to Singapore then all through Australia. Now any of that can change when im over there depend on what people recommend and what i want to do. If you have any info on good hostel to stay at or places to go/not to go as well?, things to do?Prices? what to expect? even places to eat would be greatly appreciated. Any info would be just fabulous as i'm extremly excited for this adventure.

Thanks,
Nate

[Tron_fdc]

Get yourself a copy of a Lonely Planet first and foremost for whatever country you decide to go to. They're a friggin bible when it comes to extended holidays.

I've been all over Korea, spent a few days in Singapore, and then 11 months getting drunk in Australia. If you are travelling on a budget I would spend as little time as possible in Korea or Singapore (it's REALLY expensive) and hit places in Malaysia or Vietnam. I've heard Vietnam is really cheap and is a pretty cool place to see, so I'd head there if possible.

Australia is a little easier...where do you fly in? If you fly into Sydney spend a day or two in places like Bondi Beach, but don't get stuck there too long. It's pricey and you'll spend all your money pretty fast.

I lived in Byron Bay for 3 months, and it was pretty killer. I'd check it out, it's about 4hrs north of Sydney. Right on the a stretch of hundreds of miles of continuous beaches, loads of hostels, good restaurants, and home to "Bay Kababs", the best Kabab you will eat. In the world. Guaranteed. Check out Nimbin when you're there, as well as the Jazz and Blues festival over Easter, some of the best in the world play it. I met Ben Harper at a bus stop one of the days it was going on.....

Further up the coast is Noosa Heads, which is alright. Similar to Byron, but a little smaller. There used to be a burger joint (can't remember the name) that sold 3 burgers for $5 if you are short on funds. They also book tours into Fraser Island from there IIRC. I did a great impression of the drunkest man alive while on a 4 wheel drive tour of Fraser island, launched our 4X4 through a river, saw some of the clearest lakes in the world, and had my shoes stolen by a dingo all in 3 days. Good fun.

North of Noosa is Brisbane, which is a good place to see as well. No surf or anything, but I really liked the city. Monday nights were "Monday night boat races" at the Story Bridge Hotel, which is a cheap and quick way to get drunk. The Harey Krishna's (sp?) are pretty prevalent in Brisbane as well, and you can eat at their temples (it's vegetarian) for $3 a meal. Some are free, but you have to listen to a sermon.

Further North are the Whitsundays, which are good. There are some decent sailing trips going out of them. Kinda pricey, but fun. North Queensland is also home to most of the Fruit picking in Oz, which is a job I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. Avoid it at all costs, and if you do it spend as little amount of time as possible there and save your money to get out. I saw a lot of people spend 6 months of their "holiday" in some backwater town picking cucumbers. Stay away from a town called Bowen!!! Go to Bundaberg for the rum, and not for work!!! ALL the hostel owners are scumbags in those towns.

Check out West Oz if you can, it's really really good. Margaret River especially.

Hope some of that helps......my advice as someone who has done what you're doing is to spend as much time as humanly possible seeing the world, and don't come back until you absolutely have to. I spent $6500 in 1 1/2 months, and almost came home, which would have been one of the biggest mistakes in my life. The best thing I ever did is get a job and scrape by living like a hermit on as little money as possible.

Oh yeah, watch out for Fruity Lexia....it used to $4 for 4 litres, and while the idea sounds great, trust me it ain't.

[RougeUnderoos]

I know I know it's frowned upon to correct spelling on a message board but I think for your own good you should know it's "hostel" and not "hostile". I'd hate for you to end up in some foreign land searching, and even worse finding, a place that is "hostile" instead of a "hostel". That could ruin your trip right good!

Anyhow, second hand information from a buddy of mine that has lived the traveller's life all over that part of the world for about 6 years, he has no problem with the fruit and vegetable picking. Did it here and there and for a few months at a time, lived on the real cheap, wine women and song and all that, and he's stretched it out forever. He literally has no problem at all living in a garden shed with a bird's nest and rats though so I don't know if you can stomach that kind of life. I know I couldn't.

[nate989]

wow sounds like you had a blast in Australia Tron!! Thanks for the info guys, and yes i do have the lonely planet books for Australia and Thailand, however its always better to here from someone that has done it before.

Nate

[Wookie]

Good info Tron!!

Any chance you, or someone else could go into some more detail re: Singapore.

I'm heading to Singapore mid-feb.
Will hang out there for 7-10 days, and visit hong-kong for 2 days on route home.

Obviously it'd be easier to spread out with more time, but I don't have any of that.

Thanks

[Daradon]

You got to go to Byron Bay Tron?! I'm jealous. I had that planned with my gf down there, but we never were able to get the funds to go had abeach vacation closer to Melbourne instead. She was always talking about Queensland though, (forget if Byron is in Queensland or New South Wales, but she was talking about Brisbane too, she knew some people there) I saw some of the pics, very beautiful.

The only thing I can say about Australia is that the cost of living is a bit more than it is here in Canada, so be prepared for that. Tron is right, the Krisnas are very prevalent in the cities (at least Mel and Syd) and it's good eats for small amounts of cash if you don't mind it being meat free. The one I went to a few times, you didn't have to listen to the sermon. There are also hostels just outside the main city areas (or downtown) that are usually much cheaper than the ones right IN the city. Try to find one near a train or tram station and then you can get around easily.

As far as things to do, if it's your first visit you'll want to see some of the local wildlife and flora I imagine, so check out some reserves and tours. It really depends on where in Australia you go, down at Phillip Island they have the penguin parade which is very cool. There is the great barrier reef if you like to snorkel, and many whale watching or great white shark expiditions. Croc tours too inland and outback tours. It's probably one of those things were your going to have to pick a few things you HAVE to do, then research the bast ways to do them on the web or in a tour book because there is SOOO much to do. I have been there three times now, once for four months, and there is lots I still haven't seen.

Oh and remember to look left right left when crossing the street instead of right left right. I have stepped out into traffic a few times, and the motorists down there are a tad more aggressive when it comes to pedestrians (walkers seem to have less rights down there for some reason) More tourists get killed as pedestrians then actually driving down there. When you're driving your constantly thinking and aware that things are backwards. When your walking, it's easy to forget.

[Incinerator]

Originally posted by nate989@Jan 26 2005, 03:24 AM
Just curious if anyone here has traveled through Asia or Australia. I'm leaving in a month mainly going to South korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Burma down to Singapore then all through Australia. Now any of that can change when im over there depend on what people recommend and what i want to do. If you have any info on good hostel to stay at or places to go/not to go as well?, things to do?Prices? what to expect? even places to eat would be greatly appreciated. Any info would be just fabulous as i'm extremly excited for this adventure.

Thanks,
Nate

You've asked in the right place I've been to most of Asia except Mongolia, India and Laos.

First of all I would stay away from Vietnam, Thailand, and Burma. Take it from an Asian, you do not want to go to these places, their customs officers aren't exactly the nicest people and their food & water isn't exactly the most hygenic either. Also stay away from Malaysia and the Philipines, not as bad as the aforementioned but they aren't very "tourist friendly" either.

Australia: Sydney Opera house, Sea World, Warner Bros Studio, Brisbane, the reefs outside of Queensland...are all nice places to go to. Nothing much to see in Melbourne, the government buildings in Canberra are nice. Get some Kangaroo jerky, they're tasty. And don't bother with New Zealand unless you want a good meal of Lambchop, with only 3 million people and over 6 million sheeps there is really nothing much to do there except to buy some sheepskin rugs and fur coats .

South Korea: Everything is so cheap, do some shopping in Seoul for electronics, don't get ripped off in Tokyo's electronics village instead, the food isn't for everyone's taste though. Ginseng is a national produce if you're a fan, they're very cheap in South Korea.

Goto Japan, Osaka is a nice place to visit, so is Kyoto if you like that ancient atmosphere, go skiing in the north, it's worth a visit, and of course Mt. Fuji. Nagoya is a nice small town to tour around for a few days. Take the bullet train in Tokyo and visit Disneyland if you're going with kids, otherwise don't bother, everything's a ripoff in Tokyo, including McDonald's that sells iced green tea with teriyaki Big Macs. If you walk into any Japanese restaurant, make sure you try the beef sashimi, you won't regret it.

Shanghai, China has a new Hooters if Chinese beer and petite women strikes your fancy, trust me it's not the same as you would expect back home lol...

If you want all the latest Hollywood blockbusters you would find at home selling for $26.99 at FutureShop go to Hong Kong, $18Cdn would net you 3 movies in knockoff all-region DVDs

Taiwan has really good milk tea if you like that stuff, the people talk really loud though so bring earplugs haha...

Singapore: Do not litter, and make sure you flush after going to the public washrooms, they have cameras in there and if you get caught it's a very hefty fine.

Oh and if you haven't bought plane tickets yet, take a look at the Cathay Pacific All Asia Pass, ask you travel agent to book it for you. You'll save a good chunk of coin on airfare.

[nate989]

geeze with all this info i might have to take 2 years off to do everything, thank you Daradon and Incinerator that info helps me out alot!!
Nate

[TheCommodoreAfro]

Here's my rundown. I live in Japan now and also did so back in the mid nineties, and have had a chance to pop all over the place.

A lot depends on your timing. If you're backpacking, Seoul is friggin cold right now, so you'll need winter stuff which you may not want to drag along. (Japan isn't as cold as Korea but you still need a jacket). Summers are disgustingly hot across the region no matter where you go, so if you plan your trip for late March/April/May you'll do doing yourself a favour.

Here's a rundown.

Hong Kong - hub for flights in SE Asia, and a blast to visit. Expensive, but with good sanitation and trustworthy restaurants & drinking water its nice to come back to. Some of the best eateries in the world.

Philippines - Nice scuba diving. Transportation and getting around is an absolute gong show. We tried to travel around but buses and boats were so haphazzard, we wound up sticking in one lovely spot, drinking and diving for two weeks (which was a blast). Manilla is a horrible town, but has a casino that I won $300 at.

Vietnam - Wicked place, though I imagine it's changed in the 10 years. Cheap, reasonable transportation (not too hard to get top to bottom) good food and lots to see in the south. Hanoi was a little stoic and cold but if you can visit Hue, Nha Trang and the Mekong delta.

Laos - Drug capital of Asia - so much dope and opium it will spin your head. Impossible place to get around in, and one of the poorest places in the world so, like the Philippines - pick a spot and stay there. Nice, nice, nice people.

Burma - I don't support the junta so I cancelled my trip there.

Thailand - Very good food, decent transport, nice beaches and lots of things to do. Avoid the West Side of the Country right now (for obvious reasons) and stick to the islands in the east and Chang Mai, etc, in the north.

Malaysia - Go to Tioman Island. The most beautiful place I've been to on earth, I think. It's where they shot the movie South Pacific. Easy to get around in, good food and KL is a fun city.

Singapore - I liked having Singapore Slings at Raffles hotel (I had a 10 hour layover so my buddies and I just went into town for a drink). Other than that it was a good place to cool my heels while waiting for my friends before we went to Indonesia. Saw movies and ate Indian.

Indonesia - I loved Indonesia back in 1994. Lord knows, there has been a number of things that might have changed the situation there (increased Muslim hostility to outsiders, terror, etc) but Jojyakarta and the surrounding ruins, Ceylon, Bali, Lombok and the islands were pretty good and pretty fun. Lots of Aussies in Bali, too (sorta like there are lots of Canadians in Mexico) so it's almost like being in Australia. This would be a good way to get to Austraila, though. Watch the water, though - my buddy got super ill in Indonesia when he bought some "bottled" water that was from a tap (once it cooled down we noticed the smell and the illness countdown begun).

I haven't been to Korea or mainland China outside of Shanghai (and I was only there for a day) so I can't comment but like Fotze said - Lonely Planet is your bible for this kind of trip. Hostels are cheap, but the quality varies widely depending on the country. If you can, book a night or two at a hotel (Holiday Inn or something) until your body shakes off the jetlag at your first destination in SE Asia.

Oh, and if you're planning on coming to Japan, bring lots of money. What's your daily budget, anyhow?

[nieuwy-89]

Singapore is a very clean, modern, and well-kept City. The Singapore Zoo is world famous. They have monkeys and other animals that just roam freely in certain areas of the zoo, it was really cool. But if there's one thing you check out at the zoo check out the Night Safari - a chance to see all the big nocturnal predators at their most active. The rapit transit system - MRT - is absolutely first rate. If you're into history and architecture, there are great walking tours of the downtown area that highlight many of the British colonial buildings. On the downside, we found Singapore to be quite expensive, and weren't impressed with the food. We were there for four days, and felt we had "seen it all" by then and didn't need to spend any more time there. Singaporeans are friendly and polite, but quite shy. Kind of like Canadians except Asian.

For Thailand, I would suggest you spend as little time as possible in Bangkok and get out to the countryside. We spent some time in Phuket which was beautiful but very crowded. I would be wary of travelling there so soon after the tsunami as I'm sure they are still cleaning up. The food was excellent in Thailand and prices are cheap if you plan your trip properly. The Thai people lived up to their reputation as friendly, outgoing, and helpful, but beware the more aggressive hawkers. Some will follow you for blocks to convince you to visit their store. Just ignore them and they will eventually give up.

[TheCommodoreAfro]

I actually agree with you about the Night Safari, Nieuwy - that was the highlight of the trip, as well as the food. And Singapore Slings at Raffles.

It's also nice to be in SE asia and not worry about keep your money in 6 places on your body, too.

Plus you can get a plane from Singapore to Tioman Island - much better than the boat with the Sea World logo painted over that takes you there.

But two or three days is enough for those travelling through.

(And in a side story, if you're ever injured and require surgery - have them send you to Singapore....)

[Rubber Ducky]

Interesting to read all these great opinions... guess I should throw in my 2 cents.

Like Commodore, I currently live in Japan - Tokyo to be precise. As was mentioned, Japan can be expensive to travel around - but it's not as bad as everyone seems to think. If you're living out of hotels and taxis, your money will disappear quickly. But spend some time here and you learn when the half price pizza days are...

A quick synopsis of places I've been to -

Vietnam was very interesting. When I went a few years back, it hadn't been totally touristized (is that a word?). I was able to walk the streets without everyone and their stray dog yelling at me, trying to sell me something. I would definitely recommend going now before this happens. It's still relatively cheap. Make sure you visit the Viet Cong tunnels (forgot the name) just outside of Ho Chi Minh. Creepy to crawl through one.

I did Singapore in a day, and don't feel like I missed too much. The Night Zoo was definitely worth it. Lots of shopping and modernization, but that doesn't impress me much.

I really enjoyed Malaysia. I spent about 10 days there with my sister. Kuala Lumpur has a beautiful new airport, and while I was there, it was really undergoing a facelift in an effort to turn it into a major tourist destination. The Petronas Towers (until recently the tallest buildings in the world) were damn cool. We also spent time in a jungle camp - be sure to do the night jungle walk. And we went to Penang, an island near the Thai border. Not overly impressed. But overall, I enjoyed Malaysia. On an aside, you can do Singapore easily from Malaysia - flights, trains, cars.

I spent 7 days in Bangkok, and that taught me one thing - 7 days in Bangkok is far too much time. 3 or 4 days will do it. If you're a jungle person, head north to Chang Mai or Chang Rai. If you're an island person, head south. And watch out for the tuk-tuk scams - they can spot a newby from a mile away!

The Phillipines just scared me. Sadly, unlike Commodore, I didn't get to do any diving there, but like Commodore, I don't recommend Manila. There were armed guards at the shopping malls searching bags - and this was pre 9/11. Creepy.

I don't know if you're going into mainland China, but if you do, be sure to check out Xian, known for the Terracotta Warrior Army. Fascinating stuff. And of course the Great Wall. Simply the coolest thing I've ever done - better than the pyramids. And you can visit different sections of the Great Wall - stay away from the touristy section (called Badaling I think) where the wall has been rebuilt, complete with handrails. We went to a section that started with 'S' and it was far less touristy. But very cool. By the way, we took the tour from Beijing. Negotiate a driver for the day - you can keep your own schedule that way.

I enjoyed Korea, but to me, Seoul was another big Asian city. Good food though.

As for Australia, I spent 3 months there backpacking around - started in Sydney, worked my way up to Cairns, flew into Alice Springs to climb Ayers Rock, took a train to Melbourne and headed back up to Sydney. But you have a great, detailed post about Australia already, so I'll just say that the coolest things I did were - spending a day on Bondi Beach, diving the Great Barrier Reef (do a live-aboard - 10 dives in 3 days. Unbelievable diving.), relaxing in Brisbane (go see Steve Irwin's Zoo - my sister really dug that), climbing Ayers Rock, driving the Great Ocean Road (out of Melbourne). Oh yeah - it's touristy, but climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge is a very cool experience. Great views of the Opera House and Sydney Harbour.

I just spent two weeks over Christmas in New Zealand, and it's an amazing country. If you happen to get that far, rent a car - it's the only way to see the countryside at your leisure. And pretty reasonable as well.

Anyhow, you're definitely in for a trip of a lifetime! Be open-minded and flexible, and you'll make memories to last a lifetime!

[nate989]

Originally posted by TheCommodoreAfro@Jan 26 2005, 08:39 PM
Oh, and if you're planning on coming to Japan, bring lots of money. What's your daily budget, anyhow?

Well....i dont think ill be heading to Japan, i first land in South Korea, spend about a week there then off to Thailand. From there i go where ever i feel the need to, im trying to do as little planning as possible because i know once im in the Country ill probably change my mind 100 times before i figure out where i really want to go. There's a good chance end up staying 6 months in Asia and 6 months in Australia but who knows..... i have a open end tickets so i can change the dates of departure. Now as for a daily budget i have about $20000 saved and i'm planning to work a bit in Australia as well as Asia, i'm also taking a TESOL course (English teaching) before i leave which will help me find work in Asia.
Thanks for your comments,
Nate