Postcard
Hey sup’ all my friends, I know that you are all Asian lovers. So if you could help me keep my website freshand interesting by sending me quick reports with: your stories, your pictures, your funny facts, your reviews or simply anything you wanna share about South East Asia with me, your close friends, your family and all our readers. Any contribution from you will be appreciated.
Send us a postcard from wherever in Asia you are/were/hope-to-be! I will add them to the site with due credit. You can send us reports as many times as you want from anywhere in Asia.Be creative and surprise our readers!
In the near future anticipated with success, you will, with our support, receive a little
token in exchange for your work. You could use it for your next trip in Asia!
Sent all to this address: info@getlostinasia.com “);?>
Sangkhlaburi Thailand, yoga refugee and volunteer
Sangkhlaburi is located along the Thai-Myanmar border. The region is home to immense beauty but a community without a country. This area is home to many refugees fleeing war, forced labor and poverty in Burma.
One of the many foundations here is Baan Unrak (House of Joy). The foundation of Baan Unrak is the Neo-Humanist philosophy of universal love. There are over 140 children and a number of single mothers staying in this home. There are volunteers from all over the world sharing their time, talent, and love to these beautiful souls and in return learns more about themselves and Life in general, as I did. Visit www.baanunrak.org to know the many ways on how to help.
Cheers mate!
Carlo
Phuket Experience Charitable – 2 jours / 1 Nuit
Location: Sangkhlaburi, Thailand
Sangkhlaburi, is well worth visiting. Watch out for the dogs (pick up a stone and it should scare them off). Alcohol is not welcome is not permit to be drunk in public and doing would be disrespectful. The villagers speak Mon as their first language, so don’t be surprised if they cannot understand your Thai.
Sangkhlaburi is strange place but is well worth visiting. Is off the tourist trail and his a great place to see the real Thailand (at least one of is many flavor). The place is well known to Thais who come here for relaxing weekends away, or alternatively parties on the floating houses. But violence is not unknown here and the market area in the centre of town is probably best not explored after it closes.
Buses go direct from Mo Chit station in Bangkok to Sangkhlaburi. The first ones leave at around five o clock and pass through Kanchanaburi on the way. The trip takes around 5-6 hours and can be up to 7-8 from Bangkok.
-Visit Three Pagodas Pass and the border market (and, if the border’s open, cross over to Payathonzu, on the Myanmar side of the border). The road out to Three Pagodas Pass passes a side-road to a waterfall.
-Stroll around town, go for a swim in the lake, relax, enjoy the sunrises and sunsets.
-Join an organised trek into the surrounding jungle
-Visit www.baanunrak.orgChildren’s Home for their Wednesday night dinner and yoga show. Make a generous donation. Volunteer opportunities may be available.
Indonesian taxi drivers and the kindness of strangers
I grabbed a flight from Kota Kinabulu in Borneo to Jakarta and arrived in Jakarta at about 1.30 in the morning . On the flight over I had read in the Lonely Planet that the only taxi company to trust was Bluebird and that I should book them from the arrivals terminal as soon as I arrived because the rest of the companies are a bit dodgy. I did just that and went to Bluebird. They wanted $20 to take me into the city, and being the tight backpacker that I am, I decided that it was too expensive and decided to bargain with a taxi driver outside.
So off I went and bargained down the fare of the ride to $9 which I thought was a pretty good deal. Even though I thought he looked a bit dodgy! But I had my head screwed on. It was a mini-van so I checked the trunk to see if there was anyone was hiding in there who would jump out during the journey and rob me. Perfect no one there! Next the driver told me to put my bag in the trunk I said no and kept it with me in the back seat along with my day pack with all my valuables like passport, laptop and my third camera of the trip!!
The guy wanted me to pay upfront but I told him, “Not until you get me to where I want to go then I will pay!! “ So off we went. I did have a feeling that something was going to happen. I thought about it and reckoned he was a small guy; maybe 5ft two at the most. With this, I thought if he tried anything I could take him unless he had a gun of course.
So off we went on our merry way on our 40- min journey as he told me it would take that long to get to the city centre. First things first I asked him if I could smoke; this was my cunning plan to attract attention if anything happened as I had to keep the window open!.
So we are cruising along the freeway into the city and the driver was acting kind of shifty by asking me loads of questions about my job at home, how much money I earned, what was my budget etc. Of course I told him a bunch of lies saying that I was really a poor backpacker and all that. While we were talking I decided it would be a good idea to start hiding some of my possessions like my credit card and passport ( It is really hard for Irish to replace passports in Indonesia as the nearest embassy consulate is in Vietnam)Hence there was no way I was going to give that up without a fight. The only place I knew he wouldn’t look would be in my boxers so down they went next to the family jewels.
It was at about 2.30am when he pulled over to the side of the freeway pretending that there was something wrong with the car. He got out and opened the hood. In my head, I was thinking, “Here we go , if something is going to happen it’s going to happen now!!” At this moment, he came to the window and asked me to hold a torch for him. I agreed and went out leaving the passenger door open while slinging my day pack with all my valuables over one shoulder . As I was holding the torch for this taxi driver on the side of the motorway (which was very quiet by the way) , he suddenly turned around holding a knife with maybe a 15cm blade and said , “I’m very sorry mister but I need your wallet, all your cash and your passport.” Now, to say I was in shock was an understatement. I started rambling trying to buy some time to think (even though I was expecting this). I told him that there was no need for this and I could pay him extra. He was not bought over and told me to stop wasting his time. As he said this he stepped closer to me, I panicked and swung my bag from my shoulder and knocked him right into the side of his head. He fell to the ground and the knife flew into the grass verge. I kicked the knife away and started kicking the car and shouting at him ,telling him to stay where he was or I would kick him again (I went a bit crazy!!!! But I felt it was warranted!)
I was shouting at him to stay put and at the same time I grabbed my rucksack from the passenger seat. Simultaneously, he stood up and got back into the car shouting at me telling me he was going to have ME arrested!! Some cheek! Then he took off driving!
So there I was on the side of the freeway at 2.45am with no taxi. And guess what happened? It started to rain! With a sigh, I thought to myself “Welcome to Indonesia”.
Eventually after trying to flag down cars and taxis this really nice Indonesian guy stopped and asked me what I was doing on the side of the freeway at this hour of the morning. I recounted my story to him and he immediately offered to take me into the city (such a nice guy). Along the journey he asked me where I was staying and me being a backpacker, I didn’t have anywhere booked. I was just going to rock up to Jl Jaksa in the backpacker area and find somewhere to stay. He told me I was crazy. So we got to JL. Jaksa and he told me to wait in the car while he went to find me somewhere to stay. He went from door to door and came back about ten minutes later saying he had found me somewhere but it was expensive, it cost 15 dollars a night !!!! After my ordeal I said that it was an excellent deal. The place turned out to be fantastic; my own big double room, TV, wireless internet, big bath and a balcony.
After I checked in and had a beer , I wanted to check my emails and tell my friends my story , so I plugged in the laptop tried turning it on but … nothing happened – I broke my new laptop on the head of an Indonesian taxi driver!!!!!
Next morning I booked a flight to Bali and got the hell out of dodge and vowed never to return to Jakarta again!!!!!! Well that’s my story about Indonesian taxi drivers and the moral of the story is always and I mean always use Blue bird taxis in Jakarta unless u have a backpack with a laptop in it to use as a weapon!!!!!!
http://www.expat.or.id/info/taxisafety.html
Localisation: Jakata, Indonesia
Jakarta is one of the busiest cities in the world. it is the capital and largest city of Indonesia, located on the northwest of the island of Java. Jakarta is a huge city with several districts containing sightseeing, restaurant, nightlife and accommodation.
The Indonesian national are United in their Diversity that remains one of the greatest attractions of Indonesia. There are some 300 ethnic groups, a result of both the country’s unique geography and history. Many Indonesians may see themselves first by their ethnic and cultural group and secondly as Indonesians. Balinese the national language and Pancasila are the glue and the national philosophy. The doctrine of unity and universal justice for all Indonesians try to take the lead.
The majority of Indonesians are of Malay extraction. Lot of them are “pribumi” (natives) or Melanesian (in Papua-Irian Jaya and the eastern islands). There are ethnic Chinese, Indians and Arabs concentrated mostly in urban areas throughout the archipelago. Major Ethnic groups: Javanese – 45%, Sundanese – 14%, Madurese – 7.5%, Coastal Malays – 7.5%, and others – 26%.
228,248,538 million (2008-World Bank). Indonesia is the fourth most populous nation in the world after China, India and the United States. Over two thirds of the population reside in Java, the centre of the country’s economic and political power. There were 39 million people living below the national poverty line in 2006. This number increases to 116 Million if the poverty line is set at US$2 day.
Population problems centre mostly around the issue of density. Together with the adjoining smaller islands of Madura and Bali, Java accounts for just over 7% of the Indonesia land area, but these islands are populated by some 119 million inhabitants which comprises 59.5% of the total Indonesian population. By contrast, Papua (formerly Irian Jaya) represents 22% of the total land mass, yet has only 1% of the population. So vast areas of Indonesia have very low population levels … while the majority of the people live in the island of Java and Bali.
About 88% of the population is Muslim. Roughly 10% is Christian (Protestant and Roman Catholic)c and approximately 2% is Hindu and Buddhist.
Jakarta’s nickname among expats is the Big Durian, and like its fruit namesake it’s a shock at first sight (and smell): a sweltering, steaming, heaving mass of some 10 million people packed into a vast urban sprawl. The contrast between the obscene wealth of Indonesia’s elite and the appalling poverty of the urban poor is incredible, with tinted-window BMWs turning left at the supermall with its Gucci shop, into muddy lanes full of begging street urchins and corrugated iron shacks. The city’s traffic is in perpetual gridlock, and its polluted air is matched only by the smells of burning garbage and open sewers, and safety is a concern especially at night. There are few sights to speak of and most visitors transit through Jakarta as quickly as possible.
Cinema: Movie theatres are a more affordable escape at around Rp50,000 for a plush seat in any of the capital’s shopping malls. Beware of the heavy hand of the Indonesian censor though. The price of popcorn, drinks are exorbitant.
Golf: Golf is the number one pastime of the upper classes and, as so many other things here, relatively cheap by Western standards. Green fees can go as low as Rp60,000 on weekdays
Bowling: Most alleys are found in shopping malls. The fee for a game is US$ 2.00 to US$ 3.00. Guest can rent bowling shoes etc.
Football: It is not advisable to watch any live football match in Jakarta, because the Jakmania, Persija Jakarta’s ultras often turn into riot.
To find more things to do visit [www.whatsnewjakarta.com].
Karaoke: One of the main entertainment programs in Asia. With the most popular chains spread throughout Jakarta. Expect to pay as low as Rp60.000 per hour plus tax for 6-person room.
Jakarta may be the capital of the world’s largest Islamic country, but it has underground life of its own. If you’re the clubbing type, its nightlife is arguably among the best in Asia. From the upscale X-Lounge to the seediest discos like Stadium, Jakarta caters to all kinds of clubbers, but bring a friend if you decide to brave the seedier joints (though they tend to have the best DJs). Fans of live music, on the other hand, are largely out of luck if they go to budget bars, at least unless they’re into Indonesian pop.
When out and about, note that Jakarta has a fairly high number of prostitutes, known in local parlance as ayam (lit. “chicken”), so much so that much of the female clientele of some respectable bars (operated by five-star hotels, etc) is on the take.
For more information [www.whatsnewjakarta.com].
Nepal peak of contrast
Oh my god i like Singapore, i got lot of stuff to show you in the next week till this time i propose you this:
Our sympathic polish couple continue their fantastic trip around the world and send us some news from their visit of india and Nepal. Always cool to have some news from you guys!
here the’re postcard :
Hindu people all over Nepal are celebrating Krishna Janmashtami today 1 september 2010 to mark the birth of Lord Krishna.
can not imagine how much Asia is shameless, hy hy. Genitals, which hides shyly in western, in Nepal are exposed as a sign of authority and power of Shiva– Hindi god.
Here are some pictures,
linga= phallus
yoni= vagina
Localisation: Kathmandu, Nepal
Nepal is a landlocked country in Southern Asia, between the Tibet Autonomous Region of China and India. It contains eight of the world’s 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest – the world’s tallest. Nepal recently was declared a republic and has abolished the monarchy.With an area of 147,181 square kilometres (56,827 sq mi) and a population of approximately 30 million, Kathmandu is the nation’s capital and the country’s largest metropolitan city.
Nepal is commonly divided into three areas: the Mountain, Siwalik region and Terai Regions. These ecological belts run east-west and are vertically intersected by Nepal’s major, north to south flowing river systems. The fertile and humid south is heavily urbanized. Nepal is a country of highly diverse and rich geography, culture, and religions. By some measures, Hinduism is practised by a larger majority of people in Nepal than in any other nation. Buddhism, though a minority faith in the country, is linked historically with Nepal as the birthplace of the Buddha. The blending of both these religious philosophies provides a message of peace and harmony to all visitors. About half of the population live below the international poverty line of US$1.25 a day.
This outstanding Best of Nepal trip appeases the appetite of every adventure lovers, it combined three diverse adventure activities : trekking, rafting and jungle safari in one trip. Although, Nepal is a tiny country offers bountiful of beauty and impressive tourist attractions.
The sixty one ethnic groups living within the Kingdom exhibit their own individual language and culture. Many species of endangered animals are protected in some of the world’s oldest established National Parks enticing thousands of visitors annually. There is so much more to experience and explore, so why not step into this unique country and enjoy the hospitality of the most friendly people world wide.
Visas for citizens of most countries are available on arrival at the land borders and at the airport in Kathmandu at a cost of US$25 for 15 days, US$40 for 30 days and US$100 for 90 days multiple entry visa. Tourist visa can be granted for a maximum of 150 days in a visa year. You can pay this in Nepali Rupees, US dollars or Indian rupees.
The ceasefire signed by the Maoists has seen the opening up of routes with new airlines inthe country. There are direct flights from Kathmandu to Bangkok, Singapore, Hong Kong with Dragon Air/Cathay Pacific.
Main hightlights are :
- Trekking
- Ethno tourism
- Rafting
- Mountain bike
- Motorcycling
- Jungle safari – The Royal Chitwan National Park,
- Yoga
- Massage
- Trance Parties – “The Last Resort”, near the Tibetan border, has frequent Full Moon Trance Parties, lasting 2-3 days. Watch for posters and check music shop
Nepal overview
Nepal overview 2
David was a happy volunteer in cambodia
This postcard is sent by my friend David a softspoken Irish, but who knows when it’s time to have some fun. I met him during my last visit to Laos when he made a brief stop on his journey across South East Asia. Here is a small part of what happened to him during his great adventure ….
This picture was taken at a sports day at Support Self Help Community Center(SHCC) Kro bei Cambodia riel.The Sports Day turned into a giant water fight, where we drained the well dry! and was probably the best day I’ve had in Asia. I voluntereed in this school for a few weeks as an English teacher. The kids and the local villagers are the most amazing ,creative and genuine people I have met on my travels. It was a sad day when I had to leave.
Editor’s note: It reminds me of my adventure in koh chang and Children’s Day Kids School
Location: Siem Reap, Cambodia
Siem Reap is the capital of Cambodia, near the mystical Angkor Khmer temple located about 314 km north-northwest of the capital Phnom Penh. Siem Reap has colonial-style architecture with Chinese influences due to its important role during Indochina French colonial campaign. The city offers many cultural events: Aspara dance festival, craft shops, silkworm farm, ricefields, fishing villages and bird sanctuary near the Tonle Sap lake.
The boom of the city economy is powered by its new international tourism industry. Most tourists want to immerse themselves in the temples of Angkor since the end of many wars have stopped the isolation of the country from the rest of the world. Tourism has sharply increased since the 2000s. Many vacation spots have been built and others are under construction due to the contribution of foreign capital. Many establishments are concentrated around the Old Market, while the most expensive hotels are located between the airport and the city of Siem Reap along National Highway 6.
It’s a fun place, but it’s sill a city ; with heavy traffic, multiple motorcycle taxis, scooters, traffic lights and the omnipresence of advertising. Just a few miles away the RICE still grow.
References and other interesting links
Self Help Community Centre (SHCC) Is a registered Non Government Organization That Provides Educational and Vocational Opportunities “as well as activities to over 400 récréatif Disadvantaged Rural Children and young adults in Puok District, Siem Reap, Cambodia.
http://www.shcccambodia.org/
facebook group of school SHCC
Postcard from Kunming China zoo
Here’s the second postcard which is sent by a Polish retired couple that I met in Luang Prabang backpacker hostel. This extraordinary and friendly pair quickly shared their joy with me. Together since primary school, this lovely duo of perpetual travellers discover the world like children in a candy store.
I sat at their table enjoying a beer while chatting. I said with satisfaction that I had been travelling for 6 months in this region of Asia ..” Ha! You have been travelling for six months?!” he said, laughing heartily. We have had 28 months of travelling around the world and we do not yet intend to return home. Wow 28 months! I feel inferior now with my short six months … hehehe!
We continued our discussion and he taught me lots of little tricks to save and extend the trip on the same budget. They are as passionate about travelling as I do.
They sent us pictures of the Kunming Zoo, China which was one of their many destinations. They promised to send more comments and observations in the future … No problem my friends, your news reports are always welcomed.
Location: Kunming, China
Getting to Kunming from Luang Prabang in Laos, buses are a popular mode of transport. For about $ 43 U.S., you can buy a ticket to go there directly. Ask your local hôtels and agencies for the right departure station which offers long distance transport to China or Laos. Expect a long journey of 28 hours ride on bumpy roads. Be careful with your valuables because robberies of bags ,which were placed right next to the passengers, have been reported.
Kunming is located on a plateau of eastern Yunnan. The altitude of the center city is 1894 m. Surrounded by mountains on three sides and overlooking Lake Dian from the south, the city enjoys a temperate climate all year long.
Emerald Lake garden in the heart of the city and the park overlooking the lake Daguanlou Dian southwest of the city are the most popular attractions.
Other attractions are:
- The Provincial Museum of Yunnan and Kunming Municipal Museum for its collection of bronzes, Buddhist sculptures, etc..
- Temple of Yuantong, Temple Hills West, the Golden Temple, the Temple of Bamboo
- Museum and Park of Yunnan minorities
- City Zoo
- Bird market (old quarter still preserved)
Article unusual link:
A park where visitors can see coming widget people. They live in houses in mushrooms shape
Postcard from amazing koh Phi Phi
Kho Phi Phi
When I was thinking about improving our website, I was thinking about adding something colourful, noisy and with more bells and whistle than content. Visiting my website like a perfect stranger reminds me why I started this project. Share my love of travelling Asia and all this great discoveries that was to change my mind forever. Let’s share together….
The first postcard his from Pearlyn i met in Luang Prabang hostel in Laos. She was travelling alone in South East Asia for one month of holiday. She comes from Singapore and she sent me the first postcard of our new website section.
Location: Phi Phi Island, between Phuket Island and mainland Thailand. Lots of people visit this place to scuba diving in its natural beauty.
This idyllic island is a perfect getaway from the noise and clutter of the city.
The emerald green waters and soft powdery sand simple takes your breath away.
Peace and tranquillity are epitomized by the fact that there are no roads!! So no cars blaring their horns at you all day long, no touting of taxis and no scooters coming at you at every direction. The only form of transportation is by long tail boats which bring you from coast to coast.
