Author archive
29 July 2010
From Kuala Lumpur to Melbourne, I managed to get 3 seats because some passengers moved. So each seat cost me about NZD10 only! For 8 hours!! I’ve always noticed that the Airbus A330 (which operated the flight) is eerily quiet, especially if you sit near the engine (ironical). Many a time I have hopped off […]
28 July 2010
I departed Banda Aceh for Kuala Lumpur at 1245. On the way to Banda Aceh airport I noticed a woman with a very short skirt on her motorbike. I queried the taxi driver if she would get in trouble … he replied to the negative, as she was Chinese and not a Muslim. While the extreme […]
27 July 2010
The Tsunami of 26 December 2004 This morning I took the ferry from Pulau Weh to the mainland and checked into a hotel for the night. I chose to take in some of the reminders of the tsunami which killed 170000 people in Aceh but, not the mass graves which are available for visits. The tsunami […]
26 July 2010
My Two Dives I did two dives today with Lumba Lumba Dive Resort, as planned … but not quite. The manager suggested that I do a refresher dive as I wasn’t highly experienced (15 dives) and it had been about 9 months since my last dive. Of course I suspected this was at an extra cost […]
26 July 2010
My Two Dives I did two dives today with Lumba Lumba Dive Resort, as planned … but not quite. The manager suggested that I do a refresher dive as I wasn’t highly experienced (15 dives) and it had been about 9 months since my last dive. Of course I suspected this was at an extra cost […]
25 July 2010
Fashion Crisis Takes a New Meaning I checked out from the airport Tune Hotel and walked to the nearby terminal for my 1155 departure from Kuala Lumpur to Banda Aceh, I had time for a leisurely curry breakfast (rendang, tempeh, cucumber and pineapples) after dropping off my bag at the baggage drop, then taking the […]
24 July 2010
I left a family dinner a little early to catch my flight to KL departing at 2150. I was very fortunate to have been able to see my brother-in-law visiting from the UK. Walking through the tarmac at KL Airport (LCC or Budget Terminal) at midnight offered a different insight as nearly all AirAsia’s red […]
19 July 2010
It was an early start at 0430 to catch the 0815 flight to Kuala Lumpur. Landing there at 1415, I had a 4h25 self-connect, at my own risk, to hometown Kuching where I landed at 2025. My favourite airline does not offer connections (to minimise liability and to keep fares low). One has to allow […]
18 July 2010
I landed at Dubai at 0100 for a short 1h45 transit to Colombo at 0245. I arrived into Colombo airport at 0845 and after clearing the immigration queue from hell, I took a taxi to Mt Lavinia on the other side of the city where the Tropic Inn was located. The ride was expensive but […]
17 July 2010
Grotto Excursion and More This is my last day in Beirut before I fly out at 2045 tonight to Dubai then Colombo. There’s a whole day to fill. I invited Claire (also staying at the hostel) to join me in going to the Jeita Grottoes. We made a brief stop at Nahr al-Kalb (Dog River […]