S E Asia part of our Round the World Trip
 

Want to thank all who gave such great help planning our trip and share the results . As I have said, I have some mobility issues (walk with the aid if canes) and we are in our early seventies. This is proving to be a bigger problem on this trip than in the past. Not sure if it is just age or a combination of things....but we are moving more slowly and more affected by the humidity than in the past. This is our fifth trip to this part of the world in the last 11 years.

We started with a cruise on QE from SF to SYD (cheaper and more fun than the long haul flight) then flew on to Tasmania and drove around for a week. Back to Melbourne for a couple of nights on the GOR, then on to SEAsia.

We are currently in Bangkok, the first of two stays book ending our trip to Burma. We got to Bangkok yesterday evening after our four days in Bali. We are in the KW of the Shangri-La. I got a great deal including all transfers, club features and laundry and dry cleaning almost a year ago. It sure was nice to be met at the air port and driven to the hotel in a new Mercedes Benz...beautiful car. The room is very nice and big and the food..breakfast, tea and cocktails in the river Lounge has been excellent and plentiful variety so far. This is our fifth time in the city..we are using it as a place to rest more than ant thing. But I do have a couple of places we want to visit when we come back for the second stay.

In Bali, we took advantage of the Alila's Two Faces of Bali package for that part of our trip and it was perfect for a taste. The resorts are beautiful and we thought very reasonable for what we got. Also really liked the Manggis area. It is beautiful and much calmer than other parts of the island as far as we are concerned and we found there was lots to do that interest us. Wish we could have stayed there longer. The food was excellent at both hotels. Both chefs went out of their way to make adjustments to the traditional Balinese food that interest me, so I could enjoy it. (I am allergic to all Soy products!)

We used Putu for a full day of touring on the transfer day between Manggis and Ubud, He is as good as Bob says. otherwise we used the hotel car and driver or the shuttles. Shuttles were free and the car and driver were $18/hr and the driver acted as our guide also. More than Putu, but for short impromptu trips...a good deal...new comfortable cars...so much easier for me to get in and out.

We leave for our week in Burma on the 21st.

As we have done before, we are doing a daily Blog with pictures. If you are interested in what we are doing click on the link..it is in order starting with the latest post...there is an archive at the bottom by date and place.

www.rtw50thanniversary.blogspot.com

Thanks for sharing your fabulous trip with us! I look forward to spending more time reading your blog -- looks like you created a great anniversary gift to yourselves!

I look forward to reading more.

Paule

It sounds like a fabulous trip. After my last long-haul flight, I wondered about the practicality f taking a cruise on one of the long legs.

Enjoying your report!

Amazing blog and congrats on the occasion!

I'm also enjoying your report, good to see things working out so well.
Loved the Tassie section, and congrats on your milestone anniversary !

>>>We are in the KW of the Shangri-La.<<<


Warm Friday morning greetings to you, cwn, from Hong Kong -- and congratulations on your rather special journey. You have a fine art of travel; well done.

You chose well with the Krungthep Wing at the Shangri-La. It's been awhile since I've stayed at the SL for Bangkok meetings (of late, it's been primarily the Four Seasons, now rebranded as the Anantara Siam); will always consider the SL to be a special Bangkok business travel haven. Back in the day when I was a happy corporate lodger in the KW, the wing offered a most efficient and appreciated butler service. Two lovely butlers, Khun Orawan and Sophie, were particularly gracious and memorable. Glad all appears to be working well for you.

Time permitting before your Shangri-La departure, consider partaking of the KW's fine lap pool and adjacent plunge pool. Also, the hotel does offer a most rejuvenating Chi Spa. My recent comment about Bangkok spas on my profile page neglected the SL's spa. Enjoy.

Thanks again for your impressions and photos. As always, should future travel find you in our fine home of Singapore, honoured to offer suggestions. Flying back home to SIN from HKG today, so smooth travels (and flights) to you and all,

macintosh (robert)


... Singapore Airlines, You're a Great Way to Fly ...

Thanks for reading and the kind words. We enjoy sharring our travels. Having a great time so far even if we do get a little tired some days.

Tomorrow we head to Myanmar so there made be a lapse in up dating, but we will post when we can. We will be back in Bangkok on the 27th and will catch up for sure then.

Carolyn

for me this could not come at a more appropriate time as I consider a similar trip for our 50th..

reading along..

I give Cunard a D minus....

we love Celebrity and have had nothing but positive experiences. we leave next month on our 3rd transatlantic crossing with them and plan to book a forth while on board.

Hi Guys,

We are spending our last night in Rangoon at the Strand. Love the hotel! The room is very comfortable and huge.

We have had the best and my husband will say the worst experiences of all our travels so far. I will describe our days in detail and post some pictures when we get back to Bangkok tomorrow.

It has been an incredible time, we have seen interesting things, met delightful people and learned a lot, but we had to work around my mobility issues often. We saw everything I really wanted to and the people have been so kind.

I wish I had a video of me the boat load of Myanmar tourist loading up next to us, our boat driver and DH trying to help me get down the 4 foot drop from the dock to the lake boat!!! or maybe NOT! We did have to skip some places I was hoping to see. More on that in the Blog over the next few days.

We started in Mandalay cruised to Bagan and loved that part...the riverboat was neat modern and old fashion that the same time, would do that again. Glad we started in Mandalay..it would have left a sour note to end there.

Bagan was great for me...OK for DH, but he is not into pagodas or cathedrals for that matter. One day was more than enough for us, but you definitely must see it to believe it.

Inle Lake was an after thought in my planning, but am so glad we went there, that and the river cruise were the best part of the trip. DH like it very much as did I.

I could like Rangoon, I found the city a very interesting mix of old and new but the traffic has been horrible and is a real turn off to sit in a traffic jam for 15 minutes to go a block. Again more later.

Bob, We found the QE OK, much the same as Celebrity for us. We have sailed on most of the mass market lines. We sail what ever is going our way, because we find the mass market cruise lines very similar...the QE had better food and day time entertainment to our taste than HAL, Princess and Celebrity. Everyone has their favorite...Ours are the new builds of Seabourn ...450 passenger ships that are wonderful, super cabins, service and food and not that much more per day than the mass market lines.

I'm looking forward to the full report of your Burma time!

Did you take one of the Pandaw boats from Mandalay to Bagan cruise?

anxious to read more..

we liked Rangoon too-- we did not go up north

Glad you are back to good wifi. Enjoying the blog.

Are you continuing your blog on another forum?

Yes looking forward to details ref Burma as we go in November ( I went to Yangon/Bagan a few years ago but am sure it's changed a lot)

There are several new entries to the blog, just clink on the link provided in the OP.

CWN, your photos are fantastic and bring back so many happy memories.
Thanks for sharing.

I can't believe the traffic in Rangoon now. when we were there there were few cars

Ok Guys, Thanks for reading and making the nice comments. We have all the blog loaded now. We have had several days of fast internet and enforced inactivity for me. I have keep my feet in ice packs and raided the medicine pack big time. Walking is much easier and less painful now thank heavens.

Yes I will continue to post a daily report as we have internet until we are finally back home. We are half way trough our trip...I can't believe it.

www.rtw50thanniversary.blogspot.com

We leave for South Africa tomorrow afternoon. We rent a car in Jo'burg and will drive the East coast and the Garden Route with stops for self drive safaris in Kruger and Addo. We are both really looking forward to this section.

We are in love with Mauritius and are already working on trip ideas to return. If fact both the Seychelles and Mauritius are really nice.

I guess you figured out that my DH did not care for Burma. He says he is glad I made him go, but.... I on the other hand loved it and am so glad we went. I have trooped through 100's of Battlefields with him all over the world, so a little turn about is good for the soul or something...anyway we are still married and may actually make it to the actual anniversary date!

My favorite part was the cruise..I would go back just to do a longer cruise. I loved the time we spent in the little village..it was different than the rest. Plus life on the river was so interesting to see.

What was it your DH didn't like about Burma?

Which boat did you take down the Irrawaddy?

I think it's a shame he didn't want to take his shoes off and actually go "in" some of the temples,you missed out on some of the best bits... You are a better person than me, I would have left him in the car! ;)

Hi Kathie,

He pretty much didn't like the whole thing. He is not into temples, didn't like going barefoot (he doesn't at home either) and was turned off by the tons of trash around the temples in Bagan. I must admit that was really bad and we watched people (local tourist on the big old buses from other parts of the country)buy food and drink from the venders and then just throw what ever they didn't eat or want on the ground. I took a picture late in the evening as the wind kicked up and it looked like there was a flock of birds flying around there was so much trash. That part was really sad.

We both did enjoy the history and the architecture in Bagan. Inle Lake was much better and he did enjoy that day. Yangon had more to offer that appealed to him, but the traffic was so bad and by then I really could hardly walk so we didn't do all I planned.

We were on the Paukan 1947. It is a 1947 riverboat that has been completely restored. Small, 16 cabins and and excellent crew and cook. They do a combination of different itineraries both long and short and i would do that again in a minute. Actually I think Dick would do a river cruise again also, but no temple touring. But there are many other things...just everyday life that are immensely interesting to us. We were the only Americans on the boat...it was a very international group, a very well traveled group and we had a lot of fun just visiting.

Smeagol

I told him to stay in the car, but he was afraid I would fall so he went too. I did go into the ones that really appealed to me based on my reading and enjoyed them. If I were more mobile I would have done more, but as it was what i did do cost me dearly. Not complaining as I loved ever minute...it was just hard. Wish I were 20 years younger! That part of the trip was a dream come true foe me though and DH knew it.

I love that it was a dream come true for you :). . Sorry you were not able to be more mobile but sounds like you enjoyed non the less.... 4 months celebrating doesn't sound like such a bad deal. Enjoy the next leg of your trip :)
I'm sad to hear about the rubbish at Bagan, I don't recall any when I went a few years ago and the traffic was fine in Yangon too... I guess I am going to notice a lot of changes....,,,

Oh, no, there is trash around the Bagan temples? Every day I am grateful that we got to Burma before the masses.

I'm glad you were able to visit and enjoy it. I had dreamed of visit the plains of Bagan since I was a child... just being there was exhilarating for me.

Looking forward to hearing about your next leg of your tr

That should be trip

So remember our trip thru Kreuger. Great animal viewing.

great pics of the animals

you have already seen more than we did

ttt

great animal sightings...

I'm now thinking about a return to kreuger

You all got the same vibe we got in South Africa. There is an unrest or lack of trust between whites and blacks that is there simmering just under the surface. it is a nice country with beautiful areas. The animals are,amazing, but the humans are unsettled still after all these years.

Glad you guys are still reading! Thanks! We love South Africa warts and all.

We are in Cape Town now at the Mt Nelson where we were up-graded from a basic room to the huge three room suite with views from every room of Table Mt, a bottle of nice wine and two dozen long stemmed white roses in honor of our 50th Anniversary!!! It is beautiful...had room service for dinner tonight served in our dinning room!

I hopefully will get the rest of South Africa up over the next couple of days. Between no internet and the two hour block where there is no power up to 3 times a day at peak times due the power shedding program...current solution to the lack of enough electricity for the whole country...it has been hard to post. Well and we have been having a great time too!

I will say that we have been in more remote areas than we were 6 years ago and we have been much more comfortable than last time. The black have interacted with us much more than before and have asked us lots of questions about what we think about their country....there is still a big divide and many we have talked with say it will take another twenty years...two generations removed before they get to the rainbow nation they want. But the power situation is much worse than 6 years ago when they were saying 10 years to fix....if that isn't solved sooner than later it will be really hurt the country's progress, the tourist industry and other areas, I sure.

Both Kruger and Addo were wonderful, we will come back to both!

Glad you got this far. We leave the world of wi fi. For our cruise tomorrow. I will miss my daily read of your blog with my morning coffee. Safe trip home and will catch up with the blog when. We get to Europe

kmkrnn hope you have a great cruise. We are on the Queen Mary now...in the Queens Grill which is wonderful...the best food and service we have had at sea. It is as good as a fine restaurant at home.

For anyone still reading I will post Walvis Bay Namibia tomorrow...it was most interesting. Posting will be slow for the next week or so until we get to England on May 3. We will spend 24 days touring Scotland and Wales before boarding the QMII again for NY City and home in June.

I hope those of you traveling to Bali and to Myanmar can get some useful information from our Blog. They are both countries with a lot to offer.

Thanks for reading.
Carolyn

Wow, cwn, what a trip! Happy 50th (awesome!) and thank so much for sharing your experiences and wonderful pics!

I've only delved into your time in Bali, and must admit that had I come to that hotel in Ubud and found it as you did, I would have cried! Loudly, tearfully, and with wracking sobs. My commendations to the two of you for finding a way to put up with it! I'm glad they found a different room for you, even if belatedly. I hope that more of your experiences were of the latter sort, and fewer of the former.

Thanks again!

I wonder whats going on? Hope all is well. No updates for 2 mos.

I was wondering about an update as well. The most recent blog post was June 3rd from NY.