Pub crawling around the world:An introduction

"Most of my twenties and thirties I spent investing in bars." so said my uncle, Tony when I bemoaned the fact a few years ago that I didn't own a house yet. What he meant, of course, is that he partied hard and he told me he had no regrets about any of it, that it was really "Investing in memories." Although it took me a few more years to stop chasing the dirham (or dollar) it rings true with me now as I try to travel as much as possible. However, it's widely known that I'm a party girl and whilst visiting my friend Becky recently in Bangkok and discussing my travels she mentioned that really I'm just "Pub-crawling around the world," and she may have a point.

A new idea has been born, my posts will continue about various places but I'm going to intersperse them with my tales from bars in each place I visit, they aren't going to be straightforward reviews as it will be my, completely biased, take on each establishment and my night out there but I will include info on prices, location etc should you wish to find one of these places on your own trip. I would appreciate suggestions particularly for the following locations:
Perth, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Christchurch, Auckland, anywhere in Malaysia and possibly Bali.
I will add more locations soon. Feedback is also important as I want to make this as interactive as possible, please tell me your experiences too!

I will include some of my old favourites, places you may or may not have known about and hopefully have a bit of fun with it. Of course I could create a whole other blog on this but I've enough on my plate and I think it's roots lie firmly within lilirishtravels so here we go. So there will be posts on bars from my fair isle of Ireland, Dubai, Thailand, Sri Lanka etc.

Apologies on the delayed blog posting, Christmas and New Year were spent travelling, often without the time spent to compose a blog post but there are a few in the pipeline.  So, please send your suggestions and stories, particularly of far-flung places that I haven't seen yet. I know there are some well-oiled travellers amongst you!

FIND ME ELSEWHERE - for travel tips and my reviews....

I don't post my reviews, daily thoughts etc on here... so if you'd like to find them, or know more about me, my life and the places I visit you can find me in the following places:

On TripAdvisor I'm rather unexcitingly known as TrionaM_12
http://www.tripadvisor.com/members/TrionaM_12

My handle on Twitter - for daily banter
@TRIDXB

I'm also tridxb on instagram. Most photos on my instagram are not on my blog and I also am more regular at posting there.
http://instagram.com/tridxb

I look forward to connecting with you!

An introduction to Sri Lanka

The first thing I want to say about Sri Lanka is: Be careful; you will fall in love with this place and you may never leave. Arriving at 4am on a Sunday morning may not immediately make you think this but believe me, after the first 24 hours it will already have surrounded you and made you feel a little better about things. The sunshine, the sea... even if you've managed to get as far as the mountains - there is something special about the place that I was rapt with from early on. 

People have a huge impact - those you're travelling with or those you meet. For me, the first conversation I had was with Indrani, the hostess at the hostel I was staying at - Beach Monkey in Negombo

http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Beach-Monkey-Negombo/Negombo/78544?dateFrom=2013-12-10&dateTo=2013-12-13&sc_sau=avdc&sc_pos=2

It was certainly no frills, but Indrani's attitude and friendliness (even at 5am) more than made up for any lack of facilities. She is just a really warm person. I was barely coherent (see - me & airplanes etc) but she quickly sorted out my bed, deposit etc so I could get to sleep. She also said she'd make breakfast whenever I liked. Over a couple of days and a mix of Sinhalese and broken English I discovered she was from Pereniya, near Kandy and her family worked in tea plantations. Her daughter was getting married in December and she would travel back for the wedding. when she discovered that I wasn't as flush with cash as other travellers she got her son to show me to the bus station and we both took the bus to Kandy. She even made me lunch, free of charge, whilst she was making a portion for him. It was just a wonderful welcome by someone - especially since I was travelling alone.

In the hostel you'll get your bed, a mossie net and a good location. The bathroom is outside (but there are lights) and your shower probably won't be too hot but it's an absolute bargain. I stayed out of season and it cost me about 3 euro's a night! 

Most people aren't incredibly impressed by Negombo but for me it was a nice taster for the rest of Sri Lanka, the children all wanted to high-five me, residents all wanted to speak with me for a few minutes - even those who had nothing to sell. There are lots of shops with pretty high quality leather goods for a fraction of what you would pay in Europe. Cows roam the beaches - which is a new one for an Irish lass

It isn't the tidiest of places but there are stretches of quiet seaside, and little cafe's/bars line it so in the afternoon you can have your own slice of unspoiled sea-views with probably no people around. I liked it. I also had lunch at http://www.icebearhotel.com which all the guidebooks recommend. Everywhere is reasonably priced but it is helpful to know that you're getting quality, as places can vary wildly. I had a lovely fluffy omelette and the staff were very nice. I also had my first taste of Sri Lankan tea. I didn't notice a huge difference but I guess knowing it was picked nearby was pretty cool.

In the evening I headed to Lord's, which is worth a visit just to read the owner, Martin's, story. Fascinating.

http://www.lordsrestaurant.net

The food and drinks were tasty too. Here I had my first arrack cocktail - the local spirit, coconut based and pretty tasty (although even two knocked me a little off-balance!). You can have a fish pedicure and look at some art. I particularly appreciated the sax player providing some bluesy numbers whilst I dined.

So don't rush past Negombo; it's a nice introduction to this beautiful island. 

Sunrise Temple Tour

Rising at 4.15am is not something I do regularly; in fact I usually get into bed around that time. I am a complete night owl and I really like my sleep (when I can get some sleep - but that's another story). However I was excited to go back to Angkor Wat for sunrise as I'd heard it was really spectacular. April, Laura and I were fairly quiet as we got ready and got out, climbing into the tuk-tuk by 4.35am. Travelling through Siem Reap in the dark and cold, we were anticipating a beautiful sunrise.

As I mentioned in another post, we got ripped off for tea and sandwiches (USD6); the first stall open opposite Angkor Wat does a great trade but if you are there early it's probably best to bring your own food or wait til all the stalls are open. We did try to haggle but they were having none of it. When the others opened we could have gotten tea at a third of the price.

Tourists filed in through the gate in the dark and most seemed to take up a place on the right near the lake. We soon saw why this was - Beautiful pink flowers open in the dawn light. I have a photo but it really doesn't show you how amazing watching the petals unfurl is.

I think it may have been the wrong time of the year for sunrise (as it moves around the temple) and honestly I found sunset alot more rewarding. I'm not Hindu but there is an enormous sense of peace about this place, hard to believe in a war-torn land. If nothing else, you have to appreciate the architecture of the place, the craftsmanship  - sure we can build airplanes and fancy buildings, but without machinery - these temples were built. A testament to the men of that time (and women? Who knows?)

Afterwards most people headed back into town; we had booked our tuk-tuk to continue onto the other temples whilst they were quiet. You can walk it, but some are many kilometres apart so you won't get as many covered in a day so even for the fittest hikers I would recommend using a tuk-tuk or bicycle. We had also bought our ticket the evening before for sunset which included the following day (USD20) - and was enough to do the short tour circuit - (our hostel gave us a map - but this is also good)
http://www.canbypublications.com/siemreap/srtemples.htm

Guide books tell you to buy your ticket after 5pm but the office closes at 5pm so be there about 4.30!
So we continued forward to Bayon (the gates are extraordinary, I took my time looking at all the different faces, wondering what they were communicating!) We were approached by a little boy in Bayon who offered to show us around. He told us he was five, but he must have been more like ten. I asked why he wasn't at school but he didn't answer me. April indulged him and let him be her guide and of course afterwards he asked for money. He did have alot of facts and he was a darling but this really isn't encouraged - and he asked for more money after she gave him USD5. I'd imagine earning this money encourages them not to be at school so it isn't ideal. Families do live inside the grounds and have to make a living but this isn't the right way.

Some of the temples are more demanding than others  - since restoration work has been completed you can now climb to the top of Baphuon, but be careful and ensure you have excellent footwear - the steps are slippy and narrow (we went in rainy season) and people have been injured (apparently one died!) after falling off them. The only thing to break your fall is more rock - a little disconcerting!

There are other interesting sites within the walls of the city of Angkor Thom, such as the terrace of elephants, which I loved and the Wall of lepers. Also just before these there was a cafe area where we stopped for some pancakes and coconut milk. It was a little more expensive than town but really not too bad relative to Western pricing. The service was great - always with a smile! You can also buy big bottles of water along the way for USD2 (excessive price but handy when you're walking mid-morning in the sun).

There are alot of people selling their wares within Angkor Thom and around the site. Some are extraordinary. I had to travel light but one guy was painting large tile images outside Bayon and his work really was beautiful. He was charging something like USD15 for a piece. We went onward to Ta Keo and Ta Phrom, famous for portrayal in the first Tomb raider movie. It would be interesting to know if the Hollywood bigwigs contributed any money to the restoration of the temples? Much work is ongoing and most is credited to foreign investment, particularly from Japan. It is fascinating to see how the trees have uprooted rocks or grown around them - it brings another quality to the place and I hope they don't remove all of them.

We finished our tour around 12.45 (after arriving around 5am). You could get more done in the day, but it gets pretty hot around midday and we were rather fatigued (and temple-d) out. I'm really glad I did it, and I'll never forget either sunrise or sunset at Angkor Wat. I think sunrise wasn't quite so spectacular for me as I'd seen sunset first, but maybe different times of year bring different effects.

It's definitely worth reading up on the history beforehand, and also the layout so you have an idea of where you're going and what you're doing. It's also definitely worth continuing on after sunrise to beat the crowds, who seem to start arriving around 9am.

Airport Inertia

Airports are not indicative of the nature of a place and it's probably a good thing, given that I usually arrive in them woozy from lack of, or emerging from sleep, sedatives or a couple of glasses of champagne. In fact, the more I land at, the more they seem to blur into one another. This is one part of globalisation I don't like - I understand that logistics may dictate a certain amount in the design of an airport but I really think more flavour can be added to the interior design at least.

Sometimes we're treated to the stunning visual map of a city at night whilst the plane descends into land - I will never forget my arrival into Dubai in 2004 - it felt like landing on the Vegas strip. I had never seen so much neon or so many skyscrapers. Nowadays the plane always seems to come in across the desert so we don't receive the same visual impact. The airport itself is nondescript. White, more white and acres of space. Passport control is generally a nightmare - regardless of the fact that there's about 60 desks in both Terminal's 1 & 3, they are either partly unmanned or just so busy. One of my favourite life-aids comes into use here - E-gate card, which I am lucky enough to own as I have residency in the

U.A.E.

Malaga airport at least tries to brighten the mood amongst arrivals - on the way to passport control you pass a number of photographs displaying the wonders that can be reached from the airport - the Andalucian countryside in all it's glory - Cordoba, Seville, Granada and of course Malaga itself (any photos of the Rock of Gibraltar are conspicuously absent!). It's many treasures both architectural and objets d'art are covered in the exhibition. Everytime I enter I smile, because I know I'm already in Spain.

Cordoba





This year, Dublin airport - or the airport I should say closest to home (but I don't even know what home is anymore) - put on an exhibition of it's own - of Ireland's faces. Some are famous and some aren't. I appreciate what they are trying to do and given that we were an almost completely indigenous island until very recently there are certain celtic traits which are clearly visible and perhaps do suggest to one that you've landed in Ireland - but it doesn't inspire any passion in me for being home. The good thing is that if you land in Dublin on a clear day - you have already been treated to some striking scenery flying in from the Irish sea across Howth head, along Portmarnock and can even spy Croke Park Stadium in the distance.

Artwork trumps ad-work every time and for those stuck in endless terminals something to enlighten oneself on a travellator is a nice distraction - and perhaps for some an education.

I'm sure many of you have visited Heathrow, London and JFK, New York so I don't need to mention how soulless they are. I'm not a Heathrow hater though - I've been through it so many times now that I find it easy to manage and I certainly think it has improved in recent years. Security is a nightmare though, which has become a given in any international city (funnily enough I flew from Sharjah International Airport in U.A.E other day - and I didn't even have to remove my laptop or liquids from my case - perhaps not funny at all? Are Budget airlines not a threat?).

What shocks me is that in the increasingly fashion-obsessed world we're living in is that designers haven't gotten their pricey paws on this huge market? I can certainly see a Dior-Dubai Terminal or Burberry-Beirut. What bigger boost to an ego than a Terminal named after your brand? Even the First class lounges are basic, wouldn't they benefit from a Cavalli-esque makeover? Perhaps the wheels are already in motion, it really wouldn't surprise me.

What is less surprising is that aesthetics are being considered in the new airport designs. Renowned architect, Zaha Hadid is onboard to modernise and visualise a new Heathrow Airport after her deisgns for Zagreb airport in Croatia proved winning.
http://www.wired.com/design/2013/02/airport-architecture/
For me - there's still a lack of substance to these new-gen designs - as they don't reflect the surrounding countryside or culture of each place whatsoever. The design for the new Incheon airport in South Korea looks more like an elaborate flyover rather than saying anything about this wonderfully cultural country.

However I am no architect or engineer and perhaps looking for aesthetics in these functional places is superfluous. All I know is that I ensure my visa is complete before entering any of these airports (this includes filling out those blasted pre-landing cards before arrival), that my passport is handy (not buried in hand luggage), that I have shoes I can slip off, comfortable clothing, a bottle of water and a good book on my Kindle for reading on the queue for passport control. But note to those creatures of vision - we spend more time inside these buildings than outside so some attention to form would be appreciated by those who are terminally in terminals.

Temple-ing it up in Siem Riep.

After a long rest in Siem Reap Rooms, I got up to a hearty breakfast and some chats with fellow travellers (the couple beside me were from Northern Ireland - you can't go anywhere, seriously!) I explored Siem Riep on foot for a bit whilst April slept on. It is a seriously lovely town; very different in style to Phnom Penh - there are traces of French colonialism everywhere.

Me on the streets of Siem RiepAfter April had arisen, Phil (the hostel owner) gave us tips on exploring Siem Riep and the surrounding areas. He asked us what we liked and recommended some itineraries for us. We also had a tuk-tuk driver, Charl, on standby to take us wherever we pleased.

Laura arrived just in time for us to set off for sunset at Angkor Wat. If you've ever been, I don't need to explain how absolutely breathtaking the first sight of Angkor Wat is. The trip in the tuk-tuk was fun, watching all the little street stalls set up opposite the lake and the temples themselves. There were crowds streaming towards the entrance (and it wasn't even high season!) which we followed and we walked up to the main temple to watch the sunset. We watched the monks hurry across the pathways for prayer, resplendent in robes of gold/orange. Over the noise of the birds we could hear their chanting carried on the wind. It was very calming and there is something amazingly spiritual about the place. I can't explain it, to be honest so I'll just post some photos.....

People say it's more spectacular when the sun sets over Angkor Wat itself (The sun moves around at different times of year) but I've never seen anything quite so spectacular.

We were all fairly quiet as we toured around, taking in the magnificence of the temple. It's remarkable how much detail is in the carvings from thousands of years ago. I sometimes wonder if we're getting it wrong  - all the new gadgets and fandangled inventions - these people carved epic scenes in stone! It really is a wonder of the world. 

We visited the famous Red Piano for dinner, a popular day and night spot with great views over the bustling market and streets. We didn't sample the Tomb Raider cocktail there (every tenth one sold is free! Alarm bells were going off every second with people winning free drinks) as we were also doing sunrise at Angkor Wat so had a 4am start. The food was tasty, but nothing really beats street noodle soup in Cambodia. 

So after a fulfilling day we crept back to our fabulously comfy beds for dreams of temples and days gone by.

On sleeping and a rough ride to Siem Reap

Sleep, or lack of, is very important to me, particularly when travelling. I always want to have the energy to do everything on the itinerary but I'm not 20 anymore so I can't go days without sleep. So some notes.....

Never, ever take a sleeping pill to grab 40 winks. You may find out you wake 4 and a half hours later and have missed something great. This happened to me in Phnom Penh, but more on that later. There are lots of corollary's to this however....
Don't ever take a sleeping pill or herbal sleeping aid before a night out, as you will likely be a little dazed and confused throughout the night and alcohol will not help.
Sleeping pills ARE actually super for napping on buses, trains, boats etc...just ensure your baggage is safe.
I also found them good for when you really do need to get some sleep (i.e physically demanding trek next day)
Valerian root is a good herbal alternative. Two of these and you'll be gonzo after about twenty mins... for at least 4 hours, even if you're a dreadful sleeper like me.

A well-travelled friend once told me how herself and friends used to lie perpendicular with their legs against a wall, the blood rushes to the head making it great for a quick nap. Whenever I think about her I can never get this image out of my head (4 girls in a hostel in India, asleep with their legs in the air).

When we left Koh-Rong we wanted to get to Siem Reap in the easiest manner possible. After our usual hour or two sleep, we got up and out of our hut (7am!), had breakfast a little further along the beach and then boarded our boat back to Sihanoukville, a little sorry to be leaving the paradise of the island. From there it was a minibus to town and we thought we might catch a bus to Siem Reap directly. We were wrong, even though it was only noon, it had already left. So hot, bothered and tired we decided to get a taxi. I may have mentioned this before but SERIOUSLY - Agree taxi fares in advance, say you will pay half first and half WHEN YOU REACH YOUR DESTINATION. April and I got nicely ripped off whilst on our way from Sihanoukville to Siem Reap. We said we would pay for a taxi the whole way {thinking it would save time and be more comfortable...ah the naivety of the little travelled}. We paid USD 130. This IS a rip-off. When your tired and realise you have probably about 7 hours of travel ahead, it seems a small price to pay. Our first taxi driver was on the phone constantly, he also didn't speak a single word of English. The A/C didn't work, as such I had guzzled 2 litres of water an hour into the trip and we were both soaked with sweat. Opening the window was infinitely worse as most Cambodian roads are dusty, and it was pretty humid outside too. We were unceremoniously dumped on the side of the road in Phnom Penh where another gent picked us up. He was very friendly but he was an absolutely chaotic driver and when it got dark we genuinely weren't sure if we would make it out of that car alive. There are no street lights on these roads, no railings and many places were flooded due to recent rains. We had two seriously near misses where he actually screamed, we landed (Yes, we had been slightly air-bound momentarily!) on the road and he laughed maniacally, telling us that had been close. April and I were actually holding hands at this stage. He also claimed many times that he hadn't been paid but I point blank refused to pay another cent. We had already paid 130USD for one taxi which had turned into two!! Also, rather than just get to Siem Reap we had to stop at a roadside restaurant for he and his friend to eat (oh yes, he also picked up a random friend on the way! Two girls with two men in a taxi in a foreign country at night, we were imagining the headlines). I just wanted to get there. I couldn't eat, couldn't sleep due to the wild driving and also I badly needed the toilet. In Siem Reap he wanted to bring us to another hostel, a usual ploy of taxi and tuk-tuk drivers, but again I stood fast on the place we had booked. I am sure the man thought I was an awful bitch but I hadn't slept properly for 3 nights, hadn't had a proper shower in the same amount of time and we had been travelling from 8am that morning (We reached Siem Reap around 11.15pm). I cannot express our manic delight when we checked into Siem Reap Rooms.
http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Siem-Reap-Rooms/Siem-Reap/31747
 It was gorgeous. Set down a quiet street, it was pristinely clean, there were sandwiches available even though we had checked in late and the gruff owner Phil was so helpful to us.
I will never forget how April and I were nearly delirious with glee to discover that hot water came out of the fully functioning shower in our lovely, clean, spacious room. We were actually giggling as we washed our feet together and then clambered into huge comfy single beds for hours of interrupted sleep.