Between Worlds
I am coming to the end of my time here in the Philippines...today is Saturday, and next Tuesday I will be in Thailand. Thailand...a new country with new experiences, and I have only just got used to the Philippines. I am between worlds, part way between two countries that I am familar with...part way between two countries that feel like home. When I left Korea, I never expected to miss the place, but I do. Perhaps I will do one more year in Korea afterall...maybe I will visit Japan (I changed my mind about that), and most definately want to see China. If I can find a travel buddy, maybe I can travel on the trains that run from China through to Europe. I have so many ideas bouncing around in my head.
I have spend most of the past week or so resting, preparing myself for the 3 week adventure through Thailand. Every day in Thailand will be action-packed, moving one place to another, on trains, planes, buses and even elephants. I have been visiting the town market, and cycling around the small villages, to get a feel for how the people live out in the beach-countryside. It seems that the people are much happier in the country than they are in the city...and it is certainly a lot safer. I visited some waterfalls with a couple of new friends, where I drank coconut milk straight from the coconut, and met some Korean students who were on an adventure tour there. I get just as excited when I hear the Korean language being spoken as hearing a British accent. In between I have been reading my books, satisfying a years-worth of hunger for English literature.
But of course, yesterday I could not resist a taste of adventure. I paid 36 pounds for an all day Action experience. I got up at 6.30am to arrive at the starting point at 11am. We spent an hour walking through rivers and up the hills through the palm tree forest to reach the cave. After that we journeyed through the cave, climbing over rocks covered in bat droppings with bats screaching overhead. At one point I was swimming through a low-rooved river, having to swim under the water to avoid banging my head. Once we got to the end, we turned around and did the whole thing back again. After leaving the cave, instead of taking the path leading back down, we took a more interesting route, abseilling straight down a vertical (and I mean VERTICAL) cliff. After the cliffs (plural) there was still a 30 min walk back to the action truck, where a barbecue awaited. We arrived back at the resort at 8pm, but at that point I was more than ready for a shower (my hair was so dirty and matted that it stuck out at 90 degrees from my head) and a good nights sleep. I did not bring my camera as I did not want it to get damaged. Tonight is there is an "Action Disco", and there is no way I will be missing that.
I have spend most of the past week or so resting, preparing myself for the 3 week adventure through Thailand. Every day in Thailand will be action-packed, moving one place to another, on trains, planes, buses and even elephants. I have been visiting the town market, and cycling around the small villages, to get a feel for how the people live out in the beach-countryside. It seems that the people are much happier in the country than they are in the city...and it is certainly a lot safer. I visited some waterfalls with a couple of new friends, where I drank coconut milk straight from the coconut, and met some Korean students who were on an adventure tour there. I get just as excited when I hear the Korean language being spoken as hearing a British accent. In between I have been reading my books, satisfying a years-worth of hunger for English literature.
But of course, yesterday I could not resist a taste of adventure. I paid 36 pounds for an all day Action experience. I got up at 6.30am to arrive at the starting point at 11am. We spent an hour walking through rivers and up the hills through the palm tree forest to reach the cave. After that we journeyed through the cave, climbing over rocks covered in bat droppings with bats screaching overhead. At one point I was swimming through a low-rooved river, having to swim under the water to avoid banging my head. Once we got to the end, we turned around and did the whole thing back again. After leaving the cave, instead of taking the path leading back down, we took a more interesting route, abseilling straight down a vertical (and I mean VERTICAL) cliff. After the cliffs (plural) there was still a 30 min walk back to the action truck, where a barbecue awaited. We arrived back at the resort at 8pm, but at that point I was more than ready for a shower (my hair was so dirty and matted that it stuck out at 90 degrees from my head) and a good nights sleep. I did not bring my camera as I did not want it to get damaged. Tonight is there is an "Action Disco", and there is no way I will be missing that.
posted by Louise | 5:46 pm
1 Comments:
Well, internet is so slow here...I don't have the time, money or patience to sit and wait while my writing and photos etc load up.
Don't worry...I'm still alive!
Post a Comment
<< Home