World Tour
2003
- Trip 2: Jan 03 — from Hobart, Tasmania, Australia by sailboat to Recherche Bay
...this was the first leg of the trip aboard Yoko from Hobart to Melbourne.
- Jan 05 — by sailboat (overnight) to Port Davey
- Jan 07 — by sailboat (overnight) to Melbourne
- Jan 09 — by car to Moorabbin
...stayed at the home of Robin and Val, the owners of Yoko.
- Jan 18 — by tour-bus along the Great Ocean road; and back to Moorabbin
...with stops to see the Twelve Apostles and London Bridge.
- Jan 19 — by tour-bus back to Moorabbin
- Jan 22 — by train to Melbourne
...finally bid farewell to Robin and Val and moved into the city to be closer to the sights and night-life.
- Jan 30 — by plane to Sydney
...where I met up with old friends (from other parts of the world), made new friends, and had lots of fun in the sun (and rain!).
- Feb 13 — day-trip (by ferry) to Bondi Beach and back
...this was one of the best days of all the many wonderful days I had during my time in Australia.
- Mar 02 — by plane to Christchurch, New Zealand
...on the last day of my visa, I was booked on a flight to New Zealand; but when I got to the airport, I realized my wallet had gone missing; probably stolen the night before while I was watching the Gay Mardi Gras parade in downtown Sydney; so I had to stay and wait for replacement credit cards to be sent from the U.S.
- Mar 24 — by plane to Bangkok, Thailand
...in order to put off the inevitable job search for as long as possible, I decided to go back to a country where I could live cheaper and stay longer; though still without my replacement cards; thanks to UPS, they were enjoying their own tour of the world - going everywhere, it seemed, except where I was.
...using points from my AmEx card, I booked four free flights - Sydney => Bangkok => Tokyo => Manila => Sydney (via Singapore). - Apr 06 — by bus to Ban Phe; by ferry to Koh Samet
...a quick trip to relax on the beach.
- Apr 07 — by ferry to Ban Phe; by bus to Bangkok
- Apr 14 — by bus to Pattaya; by ferry to Koh Larn
...another quick trip to a nearby island (not as nice as Koh Samet).
- Apr 15 — by ferry to Pattaya; by bus to Bangkok
- Apr 20 — by plane to Tokyo, Japan
...to meet up with a potential business partner, an American man I met in Beijing; and to see a couple of ex-girlfriends. ;-)
- May 03 — by plane to Osaka
...to connect with my free flight to the Philippines.
- May 04 — by plane to Manila, Philippines
...the third free flight of my extended itinerary.
- May 13 — by plane to Cebu City
- May 17 — by van to Panagsama
...fun in the sun.
- May 21 — by van to Cebu City
- Jun 01 — by van/bus/ferry to Malapascua
...maybe my favorite island in the Philippines - no cars, no noise, no pollution.
- Jun 07 — by ferry/bus/van to Cebu City; by high-speed ferry to Dumaguete
...my first venture to the island of Negros.
- Jun 09 — by jeepney to El Dorado Beach Resort
...decided to try the beach resort at El Dorado south of Dumaguete.
- Jun 10 — day-trip (by dive-boat) to Siquijor (see-kee-hor)
...where that old black magic is still alive and well.
- Jun 11 — by bus to Dumaguete; by high-speed ferry to Tagbilaran; by van to Alona Beach
...my second favorite beach destination.
- Jun 14 — by van to Tagbilaran; by high-speed ferry to Cebu City
...as I said before, you can't go anywhere around Cebu Island without going thru Cebu City.
- Jun 20 — by high-speed ferry to Tagbilaran; by van to Alona Beach
...didn't get enough of it the first time.
- Jun 24 — by van to Tagbilaran; by high-speed ferry to Dumaguete
...didn't get enough of this place the first time either.
- Jun 27 — by plane to Manila
...waited until the last minute to go back for my flight out of the country; okay, not quite, I still had a few days to spare.
- Jul 02 — by plane to Singapore
...the last of my free flights; and they almost didn't let me do what I wanted; my flight was actually from Manila to Sydney with a change of planes in Singapore; when I said I wanted to get off in Singapore, they said they could only check my bag thru to Sydney; but, in the end, they let me go only as far as Singapore.
- Jul 08 — by night-train to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
...it didn't grab me any more this time than it did during my first visit in March of 2001; only stayed one night.
- Jul 10 — by night-train to Surat Thani, Thailand; by bus to Ao Nang
...I was actually trying to get to Railay Beach, but the only access is by boat, even though it is attached to the mainland, and I arrived too late in the evening to make the crossing.
- Jul 12 — by boat to Railay Beach
...arrived just in time for rainy weather. :(
- Jul 14 — by boat to Ao Nang; by bus to Phuket
...this is one of the two most visited islands in Thailand, yet it wasn't until my fourth trip to the country that I first visited this island.
- Jul 18 — by van to Don Sak; by ferry to Koh Samui
...the other popular island.
- Jul 21 — by boat to Don Sak; by bus to Surat Thani; by night-train to Bangkok
...considered getting certified to teach English at this time, then decided against it.
- Jul 31 — by night-train to Chiang Mai
...met up with Minja, a friend from South Korea whom I met in Australia; during her summer break from teaching, she decided to visit Thailand and wanted me to be her guide.
- Aug 06 — by night-train to Bangkok
...sightseeing, for Minja's sake, in Bangkok.
- Aug 13 — by night-train to Surat Thani; by bus to Ao Nang; by boat to Railay Beach
...performing dutifully as guide for Minja, visiting the places I've been before and liked.
- Aug 17 — by boat to Ao Nang; by ferry to Phi Phi
...on a *very* windy day, providing for a *very* rough crossing. :{
- Aug 23 — by boat/bus to Phuket
...now not pressed for time (to meet my friend), decided to go back and stay a while longer.
- Aug 29 — by van to Surat Thani; by train to Bangkok; by bus to Ban Phe; by boat to Koh Samet
...bypassed Bangkok this time and went straight to another of my favorite islands.
- Aug 31 — by boat to Ban Phe; by bus to Pattaya
...it was raining at Koh Samet (the least-rainy of the rainy-season islands); went to Pattaya to visit yet another Hard Rock Cafe - no really, I swear, I wasn't there for the go-go bars. ;-)
- Sep 02 — by bus to Bangkok
...almost time to leave; things to do before I go.
- Sep 08 — by plane to Manila, Philippines
...back again for the third time; this time, the main reason was to evaluate an internet cafe on the island of Bohol that I was thinking about buying.
- Sep 15 — by plane to Cebu City
- Sep 16 — by high-speed ferry to Tagbilaran; by van to Alona Beach
...where I met with the owner of the internet cafe I was thinking of buying.
- Sep 17 — by van to Tagbilaran
...where the internet cafe was located, so I could spend a few days hanging around the place, checking it out thoroughly; in the end though, I declined.
- Sep 20 — by high-speed ferry to Dumaguete
...it was raining in Dumaguete and I couldn't connect with my friends, so I left after only one day.
- Sep 21 — by high-speed ferry to Cebu City
- Sep 26 — by van/bus/boat to Malapascua
...back again to my favorite island.
- Oct 02 — by boat/bus/van to Cebu City
- Oct 06 — by bus to Panagsama
...another great place to relax.
- Oct 11 — by bus/boat/bus to Dumaguete
...finally connected with my friends; went back to see them.
- Oct 20 — by ferry to Siquijor
...for a few days away with one of my friends from Dumaguete; but our timing was off, we went during a typhoon, so it rained the entire time we were there.
- Oct 24 — by ferry to Dumaguete
...spent so much time here, I really got to like it; decided to stay a while longer.
- Oct 30 — by plane to Manila
...back to prepare to leave the Philippines.
- Oct 31 — by bus to Angeles City
...decided I didn't want to stay in Manila for my final week, so I went to nearby Angeles for some rest and relaxation. ;-)
- Nov 06 — by bus to Manila; by plane to Bangkok, Thailand
- Nov 09 — by bus to Ban Phe; by ferry to Koh Samet
...with my new-found friends Tom (from Germany), and his girlfriend Nam (from Bangkok), whom I had met on the plane from the Philippines to Thailand.
- Nov 12 — by ferry to Ban Phe; by bus to Bangkok
...more fun-filled nights out with Tom and Nam before heading off to Phuket to start school.
- Nov 14 — by night-train to Surat Thani; by bus to Phuket
...this is where I spent four weeks in school to get certified to teach English; it was a lot of hard work, but along with the many new friends I made at school, I managed to have a lot of fun as well.
- Nov 30 — day-trip (by ferry) to Phi Phi and back
...along with a group of my fellow-teachers, we spent the day enjoying the sun and surf in Phi Phi island.
- Dec 13 — by plane to Bangkok
...met up with three other fellow-teachers and enjoyed the night-life of Bangkok.
- Dec 15 — by plane to Manila, Philippines
...flew with Tina, another fellow-teacher who is Filipina-American; she was returning to the Philippines to spend the holidays with family.
- Dec 19 — by plane to Cebu City
- Dec 23 — by high-speed ferry to Dumaguete
...to spend the holidays with friends there; New Year's Day was pretty wild - and quite loud as well.