Next was the journey to Malaysia, another long and tiring one. We got a bus to Hat Yai where we arrived at 2.30am. After a long boring wait we finally got on the bus to Kuala Lumpur at 9am. We arrived late that night and after a quick stop off for a McDonald’s happy meal we found a hotel and went straight to bed. The next day was spent exploring Kuala Lumpur. We went to Batu Caves. It is a enormous gold Buddha statue next to a really long set of steps which lead into big caves. We walked up the steps and didn’t know what would be at the top. I was very surprised to see lots of monkeys just running around loose. We held some food in our hands for them and they carefully grabbed handfuls of it, except one big monkey who bit into the bag and tried to pull it away from me. Jack loved the monkeys, they really made him giggle. The next stop was Menara Tower. As we walked towards it Stuart managed to convince Mum to let me bungee jump off it, but when we got there we found out there were no jumps that day, to my Mums relief. Instead I went on a big zip line at the tower which was super fun. I had two goes and held my arms out all the way. The final stop, before the mall of course, was the Petronas Towers. They are gigantic and looked amazing. Unfortunately we couldn’t go up the towers because all the tickets for the day had gone, but it was still fantastic to see the world's 3rd tallest buildings close up.
The journey to Phuket was long and tiring. We first got an overnight train to Surat Thani. We had beds which each had curtains to make them private, but also made them very hot. I slept on a top bunk and Jack slept with Mum on a bottom bunk. In the morning we got the bus the rest of the way to Phuket. I was so excited because I knew we would mostly be spending our days there on the beach. The beaches were gorgeous and we had so much fun even though most of the time we could only paddle in the sea because the current was so strong. One of the days we hired a body board which was great. Jack had a go too; he rode the little waves at the water’s edge and loved it. I think Mum liked it even more than us kids though. Stuart hired a moped and we all had a go on it with him. When it was my turn we went right to the south coast of Phuket and I absolutely loved it. Another day we went to see the big Buddha on it, which is at the top of one of the highest mountains. The best part of Phuket though was going on an elephant ride. I got to sit on the elephant’s neck as it walked through a jungle trail and it was amazing, the best day of my life. Jack didn’t want to go on the ride so he walked along side and he thought it was hilarious when the elephant let out an almighty poop.
Towards the end of our time in Phuket Jack got a piece of wood stuck in his foot which had got infected so he had to go to the doctors to have it cut out. It was very sore but he was a big brave boy. He had to have medicine and stay in his buggy or be carried for the next few days which he didn’t like, but he’s ok now.
Bangkok is a very busy place and looked nothing like Mum or I expected. On the bus to the hotel the highways looked similar to those in America, and there is even an Outback Steakhouse there. We only had one night here before travelling to Phuket the following night on the 7.30pm train, so we spent our day in Bangkok visiting as many temples and places of interest as we could. We travelled between them mostly by boat which we loved. Mum made us shut our mouths and face inwards whenever we were on the boats because the water is so dirty it can make people very ill. One of the places we walked round was Wat Pho, which is lots of temples with detailed carvings covering them. They looked beautiful. Also at Wat Pho is the Reclining Buddha which is a massive Buddha that is laid down. It is gold and measures 46 meters long and 15 meters high. Across the river there was another temple and we got to climb this one. The steps were very steep and the heat made climbing them difficult, but the view from the top was well worth the effort. With only a couple of hours until the train we made our way to a big mall where I got a gorgeous Thai dress which I can’t wait to wear.
We got the train to London, then flew to Bangkok from Heathrow with Kingfisher, connecting in Mumbai. The first flight took about 9 hours and my tv screen only worked for about the first hour and jacks was fuzzy throughout the whole flight so we weren’t at all impressed. The flight to Bangkok seemed to take forever, but we eventually arrived and soon were on our way to the hotel. I'm so happy to be here :)
Backpacking is a whole new experience for Mum as well as for me and Jack so we don’t really know what to expect. Mum is very nervous but I'm just really really excited. I love my new pink backpack, which is all packed and ready to go and I can’t wait to get it on and set off on our adventure.
