Author archive
8 August 2016
I moved from the Louis Tavern lounge at Bangkok Airport to my departure gate about an hour prior to my flight to Vilnius. The gate didn’t seem that crowded but once everyone was on board the old 767, it was packed. Ukraine International Airlines puts 8 seats across instead of the usual 7 seats; it […]
7 August 2016
Above:Â Hehehe! A bit of Thai-Malay history I had booked a private transfer from Patong to Phuket airport that was cheaper than most. The driver took the coastal road north before cutting inland closer to the airport. It was slow but still gave me plenty of time at the airport. That gave me some […]
6 August 2016
Today we finished our last day at Absolute Bangla Suites. The week went quickly. Just as a recap, this was our fabulous deal of NZD99 for 2 pax for 7 nights in a 3.5 star hotel including daily breakfast and nightly 4 course dinner. Yep, all up – not per person and not per night. […]
30 July 2016
Today I fly to Phuket for over a week of hopefully doing very little. Â It all started with an online promo for a 4-star hotel going at NZD99 for 2 pax, 1 week including breakfast and dinners. Â The catch is that we need to attend a timeshare presentation for 90 minutes (and it is low/wet […]
29 July 2016
Above At the airport. Are they actually people who buy air tickets so they can go airside (eg. to see friends off of catch celebrities)? And then come back out and apply for a refund? Today I flew to Singapore (which I jokingly call the breakaway republic for historical reasons).  It was a cheap way […]
25 July 2016
Above: Scenery of Mount Kinabaulu on the drive from Kudat to Kota Kinabalu. Driving to Kota Kinabalu I woke early again and set off around 0730 after breakfast. I have big day in front of me getting from Kudat to Kuching by road and flight. First up was the drive from the Tip to Kota […]
24 July 2016
I woke around 0600 to an overcast morning. The sun does rise early here being in the far east of the time zone but it wasn’t so apparent. I had breakfast after 0700 which was way before the official start time of 0800. The tide seemed quite right for swimming but I didn’t want to […]
23 July 2016
Above:Â The 30 min flight is a good alternative to the 2h speedboat to Nunukan, then a 2h speed boat from Nunukan to Tawau. Flying to Tawau This was my latest wake-up since leaving Auckland over three weeks ago. I woke at 0700 after retiring after midnight. Quite a change from the 2030 bedtime and […]
22 July 2016
A sampling of the local fare in Indonesian Borneo on trips through the years. Posted by Alex Chan on Tuesday, January 8, 2013
22 July 2016
Above:Â Today, I fly from Berau to my last stop in Kalimantan, the island and town of Tarakan. The 25 minute flight replaces 2h30 by bus to Tanjung Selor followed by 1h30 by speed boat to Tarakan. I woke relatively late today at 0600 and had breakfast at 0630. It was a good spread […]