Malaysia

Petronas Twin Towers, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

Football in Ipoh, Malaysia, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

Chicken Satay, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

From Singapore I took the train north into Malaysia. My first stop was Kaual Lumpur. The city was huge and bustling with activity. It was not the most pedestrian friendly city and I often found myself dodge motorbikes and cars. The food was quite tasty and the prices keep getting better and better as I go north. I got a chance to go up into the bridge in the twin towers picture above. They are quite impressive and really light up the night sky.

From Kaula Lumpur I took a bus north to the city of Ipoh. I didn't stay long as I realized I didn't really have much reason for visiting. I did get to watch some local amateur Malaysian football at the park.

After Ipoh I went to the island of Penang. The island is right of the coast of Malaysia and I got there easily via the ferry. The island used to serve as an old British fort. The island had narrow streets and tons of food hawkers. The chicken satay was delicious. After a few days in Penang the next stop was north via the train into Thailand.

Singapore

Singapore Flyer, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

I've been in Singapore the last few days. The whole country is one huge city. Its not too cheap either. But I was able to find a cheap hostel in the Little India neighborhood. The public transportation system is impressive though and the city is very clean.

This picture is fun because they had a floating soccer field that you can see in the bottom right. Then on the left they are in the process of constructing a whole new section of the city for living and playing. Luxury places and casinos. Singapore is centered around business and money.

Diving the Great Barrier Reef

Great Barrier Reef, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

SCUBA Joe, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

I've gone from the central Australian desert to the tropical rain forest and coast.

I just finished a five day SCUBA diving course. We spent two days in the classroom/pool learning how to dive. Then we spent three days staying on the dive boat off the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Cairns, Australia.

The reef was amazing. The fish and life down on the reef is bursting with activity. You see hundreds of fish once you peer down into the water. Diving underwater was a completely foreign experience but the entire group was able to dive comfortably after a couple dives. I still need to work on not breathing through my air so fast.

The best was the chance encounters with reef sharks. They were quite passive and we usually scared them away. We saw several sharks, some over a meter in length.

We also did a few special dives. We did a night dive in which we had to jump into the water while we could see sharks swimming around the boat. We did a deep dive of 25 meters and checked for nitrogen narcosis. Then the last dive I did was with an underwater digital camera where I tried to take a few decent shots. Not so easy to focus when the current is bobbing you up and down.

The reef was beautiful. It lives up to the reputation.

The Outback

Driving through the Outback, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

Sunset at Uluru, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

The Road Ahead, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

Well I survived the trip through the outback. The trip started in Adelaide and ended in Alice Springs. We drove well over 2000 kilometers over eight days. Zig-zaging our way north over lonely paved and dirt roads.


Along the way we visited the Flinders Ranges, Uluru, Kata Tjuta, Angorichina, took the Oodnadatta Track along the Old Ghan Railway, saw Lake Eyre, and visited William Creek (population of about 9), stayed underground at the opal mining town of Coober Pedy, Kings Canyon and finally Alice Springs. It was exhausting. There was sweltering heat. Extremely dry. Little to no shade. Thousands of flies swarmed your face relentlessly. It was seriously the most fun I've had in Australia yet. Our fearless group of thirteen was great. If I could of I would of wished the tour to go on for another eight days.


Oh and we saw plenty of kangaroos. They are actually quite tasty.

Melbourne to Adelaide via The Great Ocean Road

Melbourne at Night, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

Tweleve Apostles, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

From Canberra I took an overnight nine hour Greyhound bus ride. The ride was long and cramped.

Melbourne was a great city. The combination of the Victorian architecture and modern architecture gives the city a great look and feel. The Trams worked smartly and blended in with the scene. In the endless argument, Sydney versus Melbourne I have to side with Melbourne. While I was in Melbourne the Australian Open was in full swing. The crowds were impressive and made the city was buzzing with excitement. At night along the South Bank of the Yarra river the city lights were great.

From Melbourne I joined a small bus tour for a three day trip to Adelaide along the Great Ocean Road. The road winded along the southern coast of Australia. The views were amazing and the surf breaks were rough. Along the trip saw some Kangaroos and we camped below the Koala bears. The male mating call of the Koala is quite startling in the morning. The highlight was camping in a secluded little ranch/pub in the Grampians. The stars were the brightest I've ever seen them and you could hear the kangaroos sneaking around the tents in the early morning.

Then I was in Adelaide to celebrate Australian Day. Some friends from the bus tour and I headed down to the beach for a swim then hit the town with our Aussie flags to celebrate. Tomorrow I start a 8 day journey into the center of the continent.

The Capital City: Canberra

Canberra Parliament, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

I've in Canberra now enjoying the sights of Australia's capital. Its a small city. Built only because Sydney and Melbourne both wanted to become the capital and they could not come to an agreement. Hence a city built an inconvenient distance from both was established. There's not to much to the planned city. The streets are wide and sparse. The security of the Parliament building was practically non existent. You could walk in and view the Senate and House of Representatives meeting places in less than five minutes. Unfortunately the Parliament is in summer session but the architecture of the building is pretty impressive.

One of the more impressive sights to see is the water fountain in the lake that shoots water over 100 meters into the air. Needless to say it is time to move on.

Sydney, Australia

Sydney Opera House and Bridge, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

Bondi Beach, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

The flight to Sydney was only about 2 and a half hours. I flew with Emirates an airline based out of Dubai. Flying on their airlines is a real treat. I got a free beer with my roasted duck dinner. Then the headset had hundreds of movies you could view. You could view two different live cameras operating at the front of the plane and the bottom of the plane. It was quite impressive. I'm not sure how I got such a good deal on the flight. Getting through Australian customs was quick and painless. A quick double decker train ride later I was dropped off into the center of Sydney.

Sydney is huge and beautiful. The harbour is amazing and intertwines with the land. The hustle and bustle of the city reminds me of New York city but not nearly as intimidating as the big apple. The beaches are amazing but very crowded. The surf is powerful and wiped me out a few times. The water is clear and the sand is clean.

I have been staying in the city for the last few days and I will head Southwest to see Canberra, Melbourne and Adelaide before heading into the heart of the continent. The outback.

Farewell New Zealand

View from Mount Coronet, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

I'm flying out of New Zealand this evening. New Zealand was simply stunning in the scenery. It has everything. Mountains, lakes, rivers, and beaches. I've spent about two months here and every time you look around you can't help but think to yourself that your current view would make a great photograph. I am sure I will return for another visit someday.

A couple fun things I found out here where that you can go shopping barefoot, you get to drive on the wrong side of the road, there are no frivolous lawsuits, five cents if the lowest currency denomination, you drink spirits instead of liqueur and enjoy crisps instead of fries. There is brekkie, lunch and tea.The beer isn't too bad and I have no idea why they call the letter Z "Zed."

It wasn't all splendid though. The sausages here are terrible and they try to give you assigned seats in the cinema.

Next stop is Sydney, Australia.

The Van Chronicles

Top of Heather Jock Trail, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

Heater Jock Hut, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

The Van, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

Lately I have been traveling via an old beat up Mitsubishi red van. Sascha, my current travel companion from Germany, owns the van and has been traveling New Zealand the last few months. The van works as our wheels and accommodation. We cruise around in the front then usually crash in the back of the van on the side of the road or at some lookout point. The van is a lot of fun despite the fact that it goes a maximum of 80 kilometers per hour but up steep hills and mountains (which New Zealand is full of) it crawls at about 20 kph. Needless to say everybody passes us. The friendly ones honk.

We stopped in Queenstown for New Years Eve and hit the bars hard. It seemed the whole South Island had descended upon the small town for the night. A fun night and a great way to spend my birthday.

Next we headed to Glenorchy to climb the Heater Jock Trail. A two day tramping track. We got to the trail parking lot early and hung around for the night to start the trail in the morning. The lights of the van got left on so when we departed for the day with a dead battery to return too. The trail was entirely uphill to the Heather Jock Hut at the top. The climb wasn't bad but a lot different with all the gear loaded in the backpacks. When we got to the hut we realized why it was a free hut. The door was busted and covered by a blue tarp. The hut had three bunks and a dysfunctional fireplace. We found that out later when we smoked ourselves out at the break of nightfall. In all it was a fun night. We nearly froze to death in the hut with a few hours of sleep. Mostly tossing and turning. I just couldn't get my toes warm. We find out that night why everyone in the log book insisted the hut was haunted. We were eager to get back to the van the next day. After the hike and a quick walk down the road and a jump start from a local group of teenagers that looked like they were up to no good and we are back on the road.

Skydiving over Fox Glacier and Mount Cook

Flying Above Mt Cook, originally uploaded by jokecamp.

I wasn't planning on going Skydiving but after meeting the owner at Lake Kaniere and getting a good deal I couldn't resist. The Fox Glacier is set to be among one of the most scenic skydives in the world.

We jumped out at about 12,000 feet right next to Mount Cook the highest mountain in New Zealand at 12,316 feet. There was a free fall of about 45 seconds. Then about 10 seconds through solid cloud where visibility was zero. We could only hope a chopper didn't come flying through then the parachute gets pulled at about 5,000 feet and we float down to a view of the Fox Glacier and town.

It was my third skydive and I didn't get scared much. The adrenaline rush was ever present and the scenery was the best yet.

Now its back to Queenstown for some New Years celebration.