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Sometimes, you just know it when you see it. Like those who don’t know their Merlots from their Cabernet Sauvignons know that they love the glass of red wine in their hand, or those who aren’t gear heads just know they found the right car as soon as they take it for a test drive. That’s how we feel about design hotels, which we find can be very hit or miss, often times more flashy design than substance.

Difficult to find even with a local cabbie, we finally located the hotel in the backstreets of Singapore’s Little India district. From the minute we walked in to the Wanderlust (til the minute we left) we knew that this hotel was IT!

Emitting a funky, artsy vibe from the start, this hotel is not just a design lover’s hotel. The Wanderlust is truly a traveler’s hotel and though not travel-themed, the first thing I notice is right outside hanging above the entrance. It is a tiled antique lamp on which ‘Tourist Rooms’ is written in blue ink. It inspires a feeling of traveling through Turkey or Greece a century ago, giving away nothing of the sharp, intelligent and modern design just through the sliding glass door.

As we walk in, there is no lobby, per se. The ground floor, designed in pure industrial, recycle-chic is dedicated to French-themed bar and restaurant Cocette. We sit in seats refashioned from antique barber chairs and shopping carts, take photos of the Indian food labels on the wall and flip through a coffee table book with marvelous pictures of, you guessed it, design hotels around the world. But, it is after a few minutes, when our room is ready and we are in the elevator, that I realize that the Wanderlust hotel and the GlobetrotterGirls are kindred spirits.

I am glancing through the ‘Wanderlust Itinerary’ which holds our room key. The booklet looks like a passport, though with the red, white and blue stripes of old time ‘Air Mail’ envelopes. Inside, one page is dedicated to tips on taking local, public transportation (we are within an 8-minute walk from two metro stations and loads of buses), another lists simple, local Indian places to eat in the area, while others have maps, and information about Singapore and the neighborhood. With mid-range to high room rates (starting at $125 a night), it would be easy for this award-winning design hotel to recommend dinner at the Marina Bay Sands or other luxury establishments (of which there are many in Singapore) and offer to call over-priced taxis for guests who wish to remain inside a luxury bubble. Instead, this hotel respects true travelers. People who, while willing to pay more for a hotel that is a true sanctuary, also want to get out and explore the local aspects of the city. People just like us. This simple detail, this ‘Itinerary’ spoke volumes about the ethos of the Wanderlust, and won our respect immediately.

My attention was suddenly ripped from the little booklet as we entered our room – the ‘Princess’, on the Mono (all Black and White) floor. We both absolutely LOVE our room!

Our room is like nothing we have ever stayed in before.

Entirely black and white, the walls are covered in black and white sketches, backlit. Above our bed on the wall is a canopy, perfect in this ‘Princess’ room, and although it is obvious that the staircase and ceiling fan are purely decoration, in my morning daze the next day I do tug on the bedside table drawer to see if I can really open it. I can’t, of course, and I giggle at my silliness. The lighting and sketches create such an other-worldly feel, we have no interest in even opening the curtains. It would just ruin our limited time living inside this cartoon.

Singaporean hotel owner Loh Lik Peng collaborated with four local design agencies to create this 29-room boutique hotel.The result is three distinctly different room types. The Mono rooms like ours, Pantone, where each room one single hue and nine ‘Whimsical’ lofts, which are more like exhibits at an art museum than hotel. Hard to choose a favorite style, we do find that an all-neon green or all-red room might be hard on the eyes after a night or two.

There are a few constants. The incredible beds (which did not fit in my luggage on the way out, unfortunately) flat screen TVs, iPhone/iPod docking stations and the bathrooms, which are made up of two gray tiled stalls – one with a rain shower and the other with the toilet, a complete set of Kiehl’s toiletries, a white pedestal sink and an external closet, complete with a hair dryer, white bathrobes and fuzzy slippers.

Remember the good old days of travel when all your non-alcoholic drinks were complimentary on your flight? Well, this is still alive at well at the Wanderlust. The mini-bar stocks complimentary bottles of water, cans of coke and diet coke, and little tin cups (like the ones that used to come in a packed lunch) of apple, orange and pineapple juices, but it is the Nespresso machine that win our hearts the most. Sipping strong coffee in our fluffy white robes, we relax before heading out to explore Little India. Just as one coffee becomes two (oops…but it’s Nespresso!!) there is a knock at the door. Two smiling employees have come to drop off our afternoon snack. Five delicious cookies arrived, unrequested, which go perfectly with our coffee. How many hotels have offered us bottled water for $4, or beer/gin in a mini-bar at triple the price of a restaurant – and yet here is the Wanderlust, treating us as true guests, making sure we are happy with absolutely no upsell. Though our room wasn’t noisy, we appreciated the earplugs in case of noise from the construction site next door.

After a dip in the rainbow Jacuzzi outside on the second floor that night, we slept like babies, and woke up just in time for breakfast, which ranks as one of the best hotel breakfasts we’ve ever had.

Stand out feature: Breakfast

Realistically, the incredible design of the Wanderlust is impossible to miss, but it is the breakfast that impresses us the most. Included in the room rate, this breakfast not only offers phenomenal value for money, but it is exactly the way we would serve it if we ever ran our own hotel. Just seconds after sitting downstairs, we are served coffee and warm breakfast rolls and croissants to nibble on while choosing a main item (omelets, fruits, pancakes) and then are encouraged to head over to the amazing selection of goodies on the table behind us. Dozens of healthy cereals are available to choose from, along with healthy extras such as wheat germ, almond slices, raisins, fried fruits, sunflower seeds, etc, to make a true power breakfast. There are also two loaves of freshly baked bread, coffee and tea pot refills, fresh orange juice, fresh jams and soft butter. By the time breakfast comes we are already full, but the fluffy omelet and fruit salad are so delicious, we somehow manage to finish it all.

Room for Improvement: The wi-fi

The Wanderlust makes free wi-fi available, but only one password per room. Similar to other couples, we have four internet-ready devices (laptops, smartphone, Kindle) and would expect to be able to use them all at a hotel of this caliber.

Overall

The Wanderlust is a trendy, inspirational hotel that offers excellent service and great value for money in one of Singapore’s most interesting locations. Like just the right glass of wine, or the perfect car, we knew right away that this hotel is just about perfect for travelers.

Location: 2 Dickson Road, Singapore 209494
Price: Starting at $195 per double room
LGBT Friendly: Yes
Digital Nomad Friendly: If wi-fi passwords are provided for all devices, yes.
Amenities: Jacuzzi, free wi-fi, cable TV, Nespresso machine, complimentary (non-alcoholic) mini bar, fridge, iPod docking station, air-conditioning, restaurant, breakfast included in room rate

You can find all our photos of the Wanderlust Hotel on Flickr.

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Haw Par Villa was definitely one of the more bizarre sights we have visited during our travels and is hands down definitely the oddest attraction in Singapore (if not in all of South East Asia!)

Built in 1973 by the millionaire brothers who started the Tiger Balm brand, the ‘villa’ features over 1,000 statues depicting Chinese folklore, history and mythology. These brothers were not afraid to get graphic with it, either!  Opened as Tiger Balm Gardens, this was supposed to teach traditional Chinese values. Back in the day, Tiger Balm Gardens was a popular tourist destination with regular theater plays and puppet shows, but today it’s just a strange, strange shadow of its former self.

If you follow us on Facebook, you might have already seen the weirdest statue we came across there – a grandpa milking on a woman’s breast (apparently her father in law!).  But there were so many more statues that left us confused… rats with their feet cut off and bleeding stumps, a pig in underwear, armed monkeys, turtles riding on the back of ostriches, and then there were the elaborate scenes of the 10 courts of hell.  This showed cruel images of people downing in the pits of hell, sawed in half, and being stoned with big rocks. Familiar with Chinese mythology? Then maybe these scenes make sense. As for us – we left pretty confused, and wondering what the parents were explaining to all the kids we saw there.

Have a look through our Flickr photo album for more of the crazy statues at the Haw Par Villa – and let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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We arrive in a propeller plane under the cover of night and have no idea what to expect. All we know is that after months of heavy travel, we need this beach escape bad! The question is…will Langkawi let us down like so many of South East Asia’s beaches have so far?

Within 30 minutes of touching down on the Malaysian island of Langkawi, the first lesson we learn is that Langkawi is much larger than we thought. After exploring the main beach for a few days, Cenang Beach, we rent a car to get out to what we imagine are the dozens of gorgeous white sand beaches around the island. Our hotel is kind enough to arrange the rental process for us…

An interesting start… 

The next morning, the ‘rental’ car arrives, but this isn’t your ordinary Enterprise or Hertz experience. This very small Malaysian man drops off his very small, personal Malaysian vehicle – complete with KitKat wrappers, Chinese music tapes (yes, actual cassette tapes) and discarded Pistachio nut casings. We honestly don’t notice at first, as we are giddy with the excitement of driving after not having been behind a wheel for so many months. A few minutes ater we have to fill up the tank just a few minutes later (because yes, he delivered it on an empty tank), we realize that this is not the most official rental we’ve ever had.

But why worry! We play the random Chinese tapes until we can’t take it any more. We then opt for silence and watching the sun filter through the jungle canopy and catching glances of crystal blue water in the distance. Suddenly and simultaneously we both shout ‘Monkeys!!’ A family of at least thirty monkeys lines the guard railing on the side of the road, eating, playing and staring right back at us as we gawk out the window on the way past.

A world record awaits 

Our first stop is the famous Langkawi Cable Car, a trip to the top of a mountain – which promises stunning views over the Andaman Sea as far as to the islands in northern Thailand. Once at the top of the mountain, a world record awaits: the world’s longest curve suspension bridge, a 125-meter long Skywalk, swings softly as visitors cross (holding on for dear life).

A little further north from the Cable Car station we find the Telaga Tujuh Waterfalls, which turns out to be an 800m hike up the mountain…a steep mountain. Okay, a VERY steep mountain. Already sweating buckets in our semi air-conditioned car, we unstick ourselves and head out into the crazy Malaysian heat and up the seemingly never-ending stairs. The falls are actually all but dried up – it’s the height of dry season – but there are cool pools of water on top we can’t wait to dip into.

Attack of the Monkeys! 

Except…within two minutes of our arrival, we find ourselves again shouting Monkeys! But this time it’s a warning. A gang of monkeys spits at us and chases us out of their spot. We take refuge in a covered picnic area and watch them tumble, play-fight, and swim. Despite their aggression toward us, watching them is really fun – but we definitely tip-toe out and back down the mountain to avoid their attention before setting off to find white sand beaches.

Unfortunately, it is ages before we find any sign of a comfortable beach…we follow the road around to the northwestern point of Langkawi, but if there are any beautiful beaches, they all belong to the luxury resorts we can not quite see, their landscaped properties hidden between the forest and the sea.

Instead we follow a sign to Langkawi Falls, which ends up being a man-made, papier-mâché rock overpass over the road. From far away, this looks like the road cuts right through bedrock, but up close, we see it is no more real than a Flintstones cartoon. Holes in the ‘rocks’ reveal chicken wire and newspaper stuffing on the inside.

One of those WTF moments? Yes.

A total bust? No, but only because back at the car we meet an adorable monkey trying to get in our car. Thanks to our friendly monkey encounter earlier, we stand on guard until, finally, she hops to the ground and gives us the monkey equivalent of puppy dog eyes. She wants food – but we are starving ourselves and have nothing to share. So we slip into the car (she almost manages to get in with us), and head off in search of food and hopefully, a white sand beach.

So… where’s the beach?

Thirty minutes later, tummies rumbling in full force, we finally arrive at Tanjung Rhu Beach, which is just as stunning as we had hoped: miles of white sand, crystal clear water, and only a handful of tourists, but the restaurants are a bit grungy and can not make vegetarian food (so they say) so we continue to starve for an hour or so while we soak up the sun on the beach.
There are two lagoons that meet to create a tangle of rivers and mangroves, which can be visited in small tour boats, but we are hungry, crabby and a bit crispy, so we drive back to Cenang Beach rather than doing any of the tours in the area.

Food, oh glorious food!

When we finally get there, we realize that, after a semi-successful day around Langkawi, Cenang is the best beach of all.

The sand is even whiter than others we have seen, softer like a light powder and the food options are so varied and delicious. On this night we opt for a fancy Italian meal to reward our starving bellies, but most days we split between an affordable organic restaurant and a super cheapie with rice and eggs for $1 down the road from our hotel at the time, the Mali Perdana hotel at the south end of the beach.

We spend the rest of our time on the island relaxing on Cenang Beach, with the only decisions to make being where to eat for dinner and where to take in the stunning sunsets at night… the perfect vacation – finally!

Tips for traveling on/to Langkawi:

Tip 1: Do not rely on public transportation
This is mostly because there isn’t any public transportation (buses, trains, trams, that sort of thing). Plenty of cabs drive around, and this is a great way to get from one of the beach to the other (it’s a long, hot walk from end to end). But to get from Cenang to the other beaches we visited, taxi rates run between $20-$35 one way.

Tip 2: Rent a car
Instead of adding up all those taxi rides, both short and long, we wanted freedom on Langkawi and decided to rent a car. Sure, it may have felt like we were driving around in someone’s personal car. In fact, that was actually the case. But it was RM70, or $23, for two full days’ rental, plus gas.

Tip 3: There are two ways to get to Langkawi
One option is to take the ferry (3-4 hours) from Penang which costs RM60.00 ($20) one-way or RM115.00 ($38) round trip. There is only one ferry and it leave before 8am each day.

We chose to hop on a 25 minute flight instead. Firefly operates several daily flights from Penang and Subang Jaya (a Kuala Lumpur suburb) and AirAsia flights operate between Langkawi and Kuala Lumpur or even to/from Singapore. We booked just 12 hours in advance on Fireflyz.com and paid $30 each for our quick flight.

Where to stay on Langkawi:

There is a wide range of accommodation on Langkawi, from luxury resorts to backpacker hostels. While the luxe spots are tre chic, we recommend a mid-range or budget spot right on Cenang Beach where all the best food and ‘nightlife’ is centered (party spots are limited on this Muslim island).

Backpacker: D’Bayleaf (Dorms RM25/$8.50)

Mid-range: AB Motel  (between RM80 / $26 and RM200 / $67 per night. The cheaper rooms are across the street from the beach, and the bungalows right on the beach look great.

Melati Tanjung  has rates at RM140 / $43 for beachfront bungalows

Luxury: Casa Del Mar boutique hotel is one of Malaysia’s accommodation darlings

Our pick: Temple Tree is a 5 minute cab ride from Cenang Beach, and one of our top hotel picks ever!

Where to eat on Cenang Beach

Payaworks Organic Restaurant has a great selection of vegan, vegetarian and organic meat dishes.

The Breakfast Station has quick, easy excellent breakfasts, both Malaysian and Western.

Oasis Beach Bar on Tengah Beach, just south of Cenang Beach has a wide selection of Western, Malaysian and Indian dishes and is a great spot for sunset.

Beach Garden is on the north end of Cenang Beach. It is German-run and offers very good antipasti platter, plus Western and Asian dishes

Have you been to Langkawi? Do you have any other recommendations to share for a trip to the island? 

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We imagined our time in Asia to be filled with visits to impressive mega-metropolises, where the future is palpable and the lifestyle, fabulous! But to be honest, not one of the cities we visited blew us away – until we arrived in Singapore. Here, we finally tapped into that buzz we love – great food, walking for miles and miles exploring the vibrant neighborhoods, the eclectic mix of Hindu, Chinese and Malaysian cultures and of course, the stunning architecture.

The city, which has been changing rapidly over the last 30 years, surprised us with creative architecture in many places, and Marina Bay was one of our favorite places. Singapore spent $35 million to revamp the entire waterfront promenade around Marina Bay, which now boasts bars and cafes on One Raffles Quay, green space to relax, the famous Singapore mascot, the Merlion fountain, the creative Helix bridge, the spikey Esplanade Theater, the Art & Science Museum (in front of the towers in the pic above) and the interesting architectural masterpiece Marina Bay Sands – three towers connected by the world’s largest cantilevered platform, which overhangs the north tower by 67 meters.

Inside these buildings, you’ll find a 2,561-room hotel, a 120,000 m² convention-exhibition center, the 74,000 m² The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands mall, a museum, two theaters, seven celebrity chef restaurants, two floating Crystal Pavilions, an ice skating rink, and the world’s largest atrium casino with 500 tables and 1,600 slot machines. The 340m-long SkyPark across the top of the buildings has a capacity of 3,900 people – most of whom can be found lounging at the 150m infinity swimming pool, chilling under one of hundreds of palm trees or having a drink in the Sky Bar – all at 191 meters above the ground. We sped to the top and had a drink here (Dani had the Singapore Sling, of course!) and ended our stay in Singapore a gorgeous sunset.

Check out more of our Singapore photos in our Facebook Photo Of The Day series.

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1. Sunsets over the Mekong River

2. Beer Lao
This is our favorite beer in South East Asia, but maybe that is due in part to the relatively low price tag ($1.25 for a liter).3. The alms giving ceremonies
We mentioned the most famous one in Luang Prabang, but no matter where you are in Laos, if you rise with the sun, you can watch as dozens of Buddhist monks, draped in their bright orange robes and carrying their pots, make their way around town collecting food from the faithful.4. Outdoor cooking
Much of Lao life still takes place outside, including family meals. Sticky rice steams on wicker baskets set over big pots of boiling water, as the family grills meat and eats right outside together around the fire.5. Fresh fruit shakes
Sold on the street for 5,000 kip (roughly 60 cents), these are perfectly fresh and delicious any time of day.

6. The story behind the mysterious Plain of Jars
The jury is out as to which of the theories is 100 per cent correct, but these Stone Age artifacts cover the plateau outside of Phonsavan in Northern Laos, and are considered as significant and mysterious as Stonehenge or the Maoi statues of the Easter Islands.7. Lao Breakfast Cake
This thick sticky rice patty covered in an omelet and served with a side of spicy garlic-chili was enough to get me up and at ‘em early each morning – definitely our favorite Lao breakfast!

8. The scenes of rural village life
Whether glimpsed from a bus window or out hiking or biking through the countryside, it is hard not to fall for the idyllic, peaceful look of what today appears to be a simple rural life in Laos.9. Outdoor aerobics in Vientiane
For all the rural life in Laos, the people of Vientiane live a much more modern lifestyle. Along with the international cuisine and longer working hours comes the need to hit the gym – and the river. Along the Mekong River just after sunset each night over 100 people join an instructor, dance music blaring, to get their hearts pumping together, in their outdoor aerobics class.

10. Pov Pob
Essentially a form of traditional speed dating, we watched this flirtatious ball tossing game when we spent time with the Hmong people during their new year festivities in Phonsavan and the Plain of Jars.11. Muang Ngoi Neua
Well, we loved this sleepy off-the-grid river town in northern Laos, but you probably shouldn’t bother going there…

12. Fresh papaya salads at the night market in Luang Nam Tha
At least half the stands at this Lao night market make papaya salads, and, as this is a fairly local experience, they are hot as fire! Poor Dani couldn’t even make conversation with a couple we made friends with as we ate, her mouth was burning!13. Goats and pigs on long-tail boats
Far be it for us to say how to transport livestock! We loved how these passenger boats just threw the goats up on top out of everyone’s way, and let the fat pigs lay in the only bit of shade outside the cabin.14. Indian restaurants
All across northern Laos there seems to be a chain of distant relatives running Indian restaurants in each of the main tourist pit-stops along the way, and we would find out about the next Indian restaurant in the next town by a tattered, grubby sign on the wall of the brother’s cousin’s father-in-law’s restaurant in the town before.

15. The many ancient temples in Luang Prabang
The cultural gem of Laos, this French colonial city has so many beautiful temples you’ll accidentally discover one on your way to another.16. The views over the Nam Ou River and the mountains in Nong Khiew
There is just something so addictive above staring out at this view each day…

17. The golden mountain stupa in Luang Nam Tha
Although we weren’t too fussed about the town itself, the bike ride up the mountain to the new golden stupa was quite an experience. We had the place entirely to ourselves, aside from a dear sweet local woman who gave us a blessing in exchange for our donation.18. Sticky rice
We love everything about sticky rice – the texture, the smell, the way it is actually steamed in wicker baskets which are set just above the actual pot of boiling water. Perhaps the most fun thing about sticky rice is the way you ball it up in your fingers and eat it with your hands. In Laos you can play with your food – at least a little bit!

19. Cycling through Laos
Daily bike rentals are cheap as chips in Laos ($1.25-$2.50) so not surprisingly we cycled through almost every city we visited (Luang Nam Tha, Nong Khiew, Luang Prabang and Vientiane). Although Laos is very hilly and mountainous terrain, with only semi-paved and majorly patchy roads, we met dozens of people who were cycling across the entire country, often starting in China or Thailand and working their way across South East Asia. Incredible!20. The huge Lao baguettes for $1.25
A delicious left-over from the French colonial period, baguettes in Laos are stuffed full with veggies, (meat if you must) tofu and eggs – or peanut butter, nutella and/or condensed milk.21. The morning market in Luang Prabang
We described the surprises we found in the morning market here.

22. Cheap herbal steam rooms ($1.25 – $1.90)
What a discovery we made – first in Nong Khiew, and again in Luang Prabang. A rustic experience but incredibly refreshing, these steam rooms use fresh herbs, straight from the forest, to open up your pores, get your circulation moving and, in the chilly evenings in the mountains, keeping you warm. You would pay ten or twenty times the price for this back at home, so we suggest taking advantage of this charming luxury while in Laos!

23. Floating down the Nam Ou River
Wild water buffalo, cows and pigs frolicking on the banks of the river, waving kids from  windows of wooden huts, and ancient fisherman poised for their next catch.
24. Meeting kids in the villages around Nong Khiew
There is almost nothing as sweet as hearing kids actually squealing with joy as you ride into a village…except for when they run alongside you as you pedal in, practice their English with you while you’re there and then chase your bike with smiles and laughter and shout ‘Bye Bye Miss!’ as you pedal away.
25. Monks on bicycles
This scene, which we see over and over again, inspires such a simple, peaceful feeling. We just love how it looks.

26. Lao tractors
Essentially engines hooked onto carts, these tractors are easily some of the most common modes of transportation on the road in Laos.27. The sleepy market vendors and tuktuk drivers everywhere
Working at the market must be tough in Laos, since at least half of the vendors can be caught snoozing at one time or another. We’ve tried to wake up plenty to make a purchase, often to no avail….28. Laojitos
This local cocktail puts a spin on the Mojito, substituting the alcohol with Lao rice whiskey. It’s cheaper, and local, but count on a bigger headache the next day!
29. Laundry ladies in the rivers
30. The beautiful scenery of Northern Laos
The way the mountains jut out of an otherwise flat landscape, some surprisingly high, while others look more like little bumps across the scene.
31. Beautiful Lao desserts
What they lack in flavor, they make up for in colorful design, and for $0.60, it’ll quench your sugar cravings.
32. Every single dish on the menu of the Mekara Restaurant in Nong Khiew
This simple open-air restaurant is open for an early breakfast through to late (10pm) cocktails. Here we ate traditional Western food (including a full German breakfast), but more importantly sampled traditional Lao dishes, which were very kindly explained for the ‘Falang’ or foreigners who dine here.

33. Lao sinks that have no drains but just end on the floor
In South East Asia, it’s common to have the shower right above the toilet, so that all the water just runs onto the bathroom floor. But we love in Laos all the effort they go to to build the sink, attach a pipe to the drain, only to let it also just spill right out onto the floor. Why not save all the trouble and let us brush our teeth right over the floor?

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When we travel, we always have a plan. Not that we stick to it, but we always intend to.

It might seem predictable, but the truth is there is a reason why travelers follow a trail, at least roughly. It is because the routes make sense to follow – from north to south or from main hub to main hub, making your stops along the way.

There are the times when I just want to pick up the guidebook, point to a page, and go there. 

One day at lunch in Laos, while eating a baguette in the French colonial city of Luang Prabang, I was flipping mindlessly through the guidebook, and came upon a place called the Plain of Jars. The name already had me hooked, but the description possessed me. What is this plain filled with jars, I wondered?

French archeologist Madeleine Colan (re)discovered the Plain of Jars in 1930 (along with a few bones, teeth and shards of pottery) on a plateau in the north east of Laos. Hundreds of these ancient Stone Age jars reach as high as 3m and weigh between 650kg and one metric ton. Their purpose remains a mystery to archeologists, who have put the site on par with Stonehenge or Easter Island’s Moai statues in terms of mystery and massive size. Now, this is what traveling is all about, I thought.

We had to get to these Jars. 

Despite the extra two days of travel on those nauseating Lao roads, the detour was worth it. The next day, we were off to see these jars in the Xieng Khouang province.

Its dusty capital, Phonsavan, acts as the hub for visitors to the region. Streets here are wide with soviet-style blocks and piles of rubble and bricks on either side. There are only practical businesses, repair shops and a smattering of basic restaurants and hotels. As we arrive in the late afternoon light, the scene is more how we would have imagined a trip to Mongolia. Motorcycle riders with scarves over their faces to block the dust, the cityscape here is barren but you see from the construction that there is prosperity in its future.

We loved Phonsavan right away.

We set our bags down in a sturdy, basic hotel room off the main road, ready to hunt for some dinner, and the sound of festive music started pounding through the window. It just so happened that we were not only going to be learning about ancient cultures here in Phonsavan, but also experiencing the Hmong New Year at the same time.

Originating from Southeastern China, the Hmong ethnic group slowly migrated into the highlands of Thailand, Vietnam and Laos throughout the 18^th century due to unrest, and outside of Phonsavan is one of the largest Hmong communities in the world. Just near our hotel, a huge open gravel lot was spilling over with Hmong people of all ages, all dressed in their colorful festive best. New Year’s celebrations come at the end of the harvest season and involve up to 40 days of food, dancing and a fun fair.

We made a bit of small talk with a trio of Hmong girls eager to practice their English and happily pose for pictures in their beautiful robes for a few minutes. Then it was off to find a guide for the Plain of Jars the next day. Visitors can hire a driver to the main site on their own, but guides are required for sites 2 and 3, not only because of the distance, but also because the area surrounding the two sites is still littered with landmines. We were happy to have an expert with us to keep us safe, but also to tell us more about the history of the jars.

Was this place inhabited by giants?

Lao legend claims that the region was populated by a race of giants thousands of years ago. More rational theories suggest that these jars, which date from to 500BC – 200AD, were used as funerary urns to bury to dead, or to catch rain water, or maybe even to brew and store the (in)famous Lao Lao rice whiskey.

Unfortunately, few jars today remain completely in tact. Locals have used pieces throughout time for building materials while trees have sprung right up out the middle of others. Many fell victim to bombs dropped here during the U.S.-led Secret War. The Laos government has applied for UNESCO World Heritage status for funding to prevent further destruction, but until the thousands of unexploded landmines from that war can be cleared  (a dangerous task costing millions of dollars), it is unlikely they will receive UNESCO’s blessing.
For such a mysterious and ancient site, there are very few visitors here. With a twinkle in his eye, our guide explained that as soon as UNESCO status is granted, tourists will flock to the Plain of Jars the way they do to Luang Prabang or Cambodia’s Angkor Wat.
After all, everything about these jars is fascinating – their size, their mysterious history and also just how much ground these sites cover. There are three sites, spread over a massive amount of land and we start at the further one, site three, which sits 35km from Phonsavan.
The Plain of Jars and a break at a rice whiskey factory

After a gut-jostling ride down a series of makeshift dirt roads, we parked at a gate and proceeded to hike fifteen minutes past muscular farmers mucking knee deep through rice fields to the top of a hill where 150 of the massive clay jars are strewn about – that is, if massive 700kg jars can be considered ‘strewn’. Rapid-fire questions immediately started. How in the world were these jars transported up here? How were they even made? Were they made nearby? No one knows for sure, is all we were told.

Each jar varies in size, some are the size and mass of a small car, while others are smaller, like a heavy-duty backyard barbecue. Picturing the diminutive ancestors lugging these up a hill is difficult, and it is clear why legend has it that giants used to inhabit the area. After a bit of gawking and talking, we hiked back down and were transported to Site 2. Here there are only 90 jars, spread out across two facing hillsides. The views from here spread deep into the Lao countryside, revealing both intimate village scenes and expansive view that made us feel as if we were the only ones here within one hundred miles.

One basic lunch later, the next stop of the tour brought us to a Lao Lao whiskey ‘factory’. This was no more than a house with ten barrels of fermenting booze, a few lazy dogs out front and a charming, older lady who explained through pointing and smiles how this fire water is produced.

Hi-tech kids playing a traditional game of flirtation

With our insides still on fire from the ‘whiskey’, we hopped into the shuttle to finally arrive at the main site, Site 1, where 250 jars were waiting. It was officially New Year’s Day, and so we arrived on a most colorful scene as hundreds of Hmong people crowded here at the region’s most significant site to celebrate. Most of us hung back, just observing, until a group of teenagers invited us to join them in what was essentially a hill tribe version of speed dating!

The game is called Pov Pob, the Hmong Game of Love. All in intricately designed traditional outfits, girls line up on one side across from the boys. Tossing a tennis ball back and forth, they throw the ball to someone they like. If caught, that person returns the flirtation. If they let the ball drop, then they do not see their ‘suitor’ as marriage material.

The teen boys especially took to Dani’s blond hair and invited her to play, and the girls politely giggled at them for trying. This is the first step of their entire marriage process, so, of course Dani declined and settled for becoming the subject of dozens of cell phone pictures. After all, as traditional as these festivities are, even here in the middle of rural Laos, where there are teenagers, there is a high-tech situation. With mp3 players shoved in the pockets of their traditional outfits, some played Pov Pob one handed while texting, while others recorded the experience on their devices.

As for the jars at the main site, they were truly massive and, even after a long day of touring, inspired such wonder as to how in the world, and why in the world, they have been here, since the Stone Age.

The Details: The Plain of Jars 

The tour can be booked anywhere – shop around a bit if you care, prices vary by a few dollars, but they all feed into the same minivans. There are a variety of tours which focus more on the Secret War, the Hmong people, and other aspects of life in Laos. Check out this informative Xieng Khouang website for more.

What to do in Phonsavan
There isn’t much in the way of diversion in Phonsavan, but anyone looking to see the Plain of Jars must overnight here at least once as it is too far from anywhere else.

Bomb Harvest: Once here, you might as well at least pop in to watch this documentary. The MAG (Mines Advisory Group) is the organization controlling the clearance of the Unexploded Ordnances (UXO) around Phonsavan. Their office in town offers a daily screening of Bomb Harvest, about the consequences of the heavy bombings and UXO and the efforts to clean up the nearly 200,000 that remain.

Phonsavan Daily Market: The daily market the town center of Phonsavan is one of the most interesting markets in Laos, featuring the many unusual culinary specialties of the Xieng Khouang province. You will see fried bats, colorful birds, squirrels, porcupines and other big rodents ready for cooking. This is nothing for sensitive animal lovers but fascinating for everyone who is interested in getting an insight into local culture.

Where to stay in Phonsavan
Despite the long journey required from other major hubs in Laos, there are plenty of hotels in Phonsavan. Guesthouses in town offer double rooms for around 100,000 kip ($12.50) and a good selection have (sometimes patchy) Wi-Fi. The Plain of Jars tends to attract a more studied (older) tourist, and therefore there are quite a few mid-range hotels as well.

Where to eat in Phonsavan
We ate breakfast, lunch and dinner at Nisha – a family-run hole in the wall Indian restaurant with plenty of western food on the menu. The food is delicious and cheap, and we ran into plenty of other travelers here two and three times.

The Craters Bar & Restaurant offers several Western dishes and has free wi-fi, and the Kong Keo Restaurant is rumored to have good local Lao food.

How to get to Phonsavan
Phonsavan makes a great stop on the way to the Vietnam border and can be reached by direct bus from Luang Prabang or Vientiane. Times seem to vary by seasons and weekdays/ends, but we find the Wikitravel entry for Phonsavan very useful.

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We returned to Malaysia for a few days last week, and finally visited Melaka. We expected a quaint little town with Chinese temples, relics of the colonization by the Dutch, Portuguese and the British, a few beautiful shophouses and tricycle rickshaws similar to the ones we loved in one of our favorite parts of Malaysia – Georgetown, Penang.

What we did not expect in this UNESCO World Heritage City were four (!) huge golden and bronze statues of a bodybuilder, who turned out to be the most famous person Melaka has produced: Datuk Wira Dr. Gan Boon Leong. Born in 1937, he is Malaysia’s the most successful bodybuilder – having won countless bodybuilding prizes, including Mr. Asia and even Mr. Universe. Also known as the ‘Father of Bodybuilding in Malaysia’,85 year old Datuk Wira is now, decades after finishing his career as a bodybuilder, a local politician, runs a gym in Melaka, and is President of the Malaysian Bodybuilding Federation. To honor everything the prominent athlete did for Melaka, the city erected several golden statues of him, which are now just as much photographed as Melaka’s more traditional tourist sights.

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When this ‘trip’ began on April 30, 2010, there was no set finish date. Still, it is amazing to think we have been able to continue to maintain this lifestyle for 730 days now – in a row!

This has truly become a lifestyle and a mindset.

We’d like to share with you some numbers about beds, borders, and the answer to the most common question – what’s our budget?

How many borders have we crossed?

The second year of travel began in Italy, and although the original plan had been to travel through South America, in the end, our desire to explore Asia was stronger. So it was off to Bangkok instead of Buenos Aires after our month-long US road trip last summer. The full list of border crossings have looked like this:

• Italy – Austria (by car)
• Austria – Germany (by car)
• Germany – Spain (by plane)
• Spain – France (by ship)
• France – Italy (by ship)
• Italy – Spain (by ship)
• Spain – Portugal (by plane)
• Portugal – Canada (by plane)
• Canada – USA (by car)
• USA – Thailand (by plane)
• Thailand – Laos (by bus)
• Thailand – Malaysia (by plane)
• Thailand – Cambodia (by bus)
• Cambodia – Singapore (by plane)
• Malaysia – India (by plane)

We visited 13 countries last year – which is the exact same number of countries we visited in our first year. The truth is, we had fully intended to also visit Indonesia, Vietnam and Myanmar while in Asia, but we have just run out of time – this time. Balancing travel and work means moving more slowly – but we will get there eventually!

Travel by Numbers – Year Two

How many beds have we slept in over the last 365 days?
We have slept in 90 beds! That, plus 4 nights spent on overnight buses and one night in the car,  comes out to an average of one new bed every 4 days. Even though we had several long-term stays – either with housesitting gigs or apartment rentals, we managed to have an incredibly high ‘bed count’. Road tripping meant a new bed almost nightly in Canada and the U.S., but we are also just picky about where we stay. If  we book a hotel online in advance and upon arrival are disappointed, we have no problem with walking around town and moving hotels until we find one that makes us happy. After all – every hotel is technically our home, so if we don’t love it, we move on.

Types of Transportation

• 25 Buses
• 13 Boats (including one cruise ship)
• 3 Mini-vans (shuttles/colectivos)
• 15 Planes
• 6 Rental Cars
• 6 Trains
• Countless Tuk tuks
• Dozens of songthaws (covered pick-up trucks) – 2 of them for a long trip (3.5 hours and 2.5 hours)
• Dozens of taxis

Other modes of transport worth a mention were:

• A Segway used to explore Chicago
• An amphibus (duck tour) which took us around Ottawa and on the St Lawrence River
• A yellow Gocar used to whizz around Lisbon

Last year through Mexico and Central America, travel was almost entirely by local bus. This year, however, we took advantage of Air Asia’s excellent budget flights, and in Germany/Italy we discovered the ease of car-sharing services. On various websites, drivers advertise their journey and for a fair share of the cost of gas, passengers can hop in and share the ride at a fraction of the cost of bus or train travel. Perfect!

Somehow, we also end up on a lot of boats, despise not liking them much. We took tiny wooden ones out to remote islands and our biggest boat ever – the Adventure of the Seas cruise ship we went on in June.

More statistics from our 2nd year of travel

# of New Years: 4 (Hindu, Western, Khmer & Hmong)
That’s right, in the last six months alone, we have gone through four sets of New Years! The Hmong celebrations in Phonsanvan, Laos were fascinating to take part in. In Thailand, we celebrated Western New Years along with the Thai version – the only difference being that in Thailand, the year is now 2555!

#of fights we’ve had: 4
This is the count for the long, drawn-out dramatic ones that last more than a few minutes. For two drama queens together nearly 24/7, we’re actually proud of that!

# of cities visited: 34
It has been a whirlwind, but having visited so many of the world’s global cities has been an amazing experience this past year, including Singapore, Bangkok, Madrid, New York, Montreal, Boston, Washington D.C., Atlanta, Chicago and Kuala Lumpur.

# of bicycles rented: 16
We love cycling and we discovered that the best way to explore a city is by renting a bike. We were able to rent bikes for the day in Ottawa, Montreal, Washington D.C., almost every city we visited in Laos, in Cambodia and we had bikes for a month in Chiang Mai.

# of beaches visited: 16
I can hardly believe it, but before life as a nomad, I considered myself pretty much anti-beach. I just thought I didn’t like the whole going to the beach experience, much to Dani’s disappointment. Well, now I’m as keen a beach-goer as any – and we go as often as possible. We had assumed that Thailand’s beaches would be the best, but in the end, Otres Beach in Cambodia and Langkawi in Malaysia won us over.

# of towers climbed: 7
Some days it seems that every town, big or small, has a tower to be scaled. Sometimes, it’s an easy set of stairs or even a lift, but we’ve also trudged up hundreds of steps for views of the city skyline below. Most memorable were the views over Tuscany from a tower in San Gimignano, from the Top of the Rock in New York City, from both the Willis and the Hancock Tower in Chicago, and the sunset from Marina Bay Sands in Singapore (pictured below).

# of islands visited: 9
This number is much lower than we thought, considering how much time we spent in South East Asia!

# of pizzas eaten: 29
Much like a five-year old, if you ask us our favorite food, we’ll pretty much always say pizza. And while we love a rich, grown-up pizza with goats cheese and spinach or rocket and Parmesan, plain old fast food pizza is our go-to comfort meal. If we are in a city we don’t like or have had one of those nothing-goes-right days, you can bet we’re either sitting down or even ordering a pizza, right to our hotel room.

# of hospital visits: 5
Ah, well, you gotta do what you gotta do, no matter where you are! In a country comparison, Thailand’s hospitals, doctors and dentists offer just about the best value for money of anywhere in the world!

# of mosquito bites: Um, infinity?
There was no dengue this year (like last year in Belize/Guatemala) and so far we have stayed Malaria free, but that doesn’t mean we haven’t still served as a mosquito buffet throughout the year. The most intense mosquitoes of all this year were probably not where you might think – unless you are thinking Ottawa, Canada. These guys were huge and aggressive, and traveled in some serious packs!

# major bodies of water crossed: 3
Just a drop in the bucket, but it’s a start! We crossed the Pacific, the Atlantic and just recently flew over the Andaman Sea from Malaysia to India.

# of photos taken: 15,437
Last year Dani snapped 9,867 pictures, so this year is miles beyond that by comparison!

# of posts written and published: 178 posts 
We really hit our stride in the second year of running GlobetrotterGirls.com, with an average of 15 posts every month! Plus more pictures, tweets, Facebook Photos of the Day and everyone’s latest favorite – Pinterest. We hope you’ve been enjoying the ride and encourage you to get in touch with us with any travel related questions you might have or just to cheer us on!

******Our annual budget – Year Two********

Our expenses this year were considerably higher than in our first year of travel. While we had spent only $14,241.77 (£9,090.75) per person between April 2010 and April 2011, this year our annual budget had to stretch to include over six months traveling through the United States, Canada, Europe and Singapore. We balanced this out with six months in South East Asia, but extra costs of two new laptops, a new Canon DSLR camera, a few little hospital bills, flights, long-term car rentals and other business expenses definitely added up.

The total: $38,152 (£24,228), which comes up to $19,076 (£12,164) per person.

 **********The Best of the Best**********

Every 100 days we reflect on our travels and pick our favorite & least favorite places, top travel moments and best foods we’ve tried – so we will keep it simple with a quick round up of our absolute travel tops this past year:

Our top 5 places of the last year

1. Lisbon, Portugal
We fell in love with this city in June 2011, and it still leaves a lasting impression with us through today. Some people leave their heart in San Francisco, but we left ours in San Fran’s twin city.

2. Penang, Malaysia
Little India, Chinatown, the sea, the sun, and the growing arts scene on Penang won us over.

3. New Orleans, USA
New Orleans was all about the music, exploring the different neighborhoods and discovering the rich traditions that blend in just the right way to make this city one of the most authentic places in America.

4. Cambodia
Thailand might be nicknamed the Land of Smiles, but neighboring Cambodia is truly the friendliest place in South East Asia. The kids waving, smiling, even running after tuk tuks as we drive by won our hearts at the same time that discovering more about the history of the Khmer Rouge broke them to pieces, plus our trip to the eighth Wonder of the World, Angkor Wat, was truly awe-inspiring.

5. Singapore
One of the world’s great cities, Singapore felt to us like the London of the East with its many different neighborhoods, cosmopolitan mix of global cultures, cheap and delicious street food and we even went up on the Singapore Flyer – similar to the London Eye. The city’s nearby beaches, nearly uninhabited islands, stunning city skyline, massive shipping port and incredibly modern public transportation system, mighty Singapore truly wowed us!

Our top 5 food moments

1. Indian food
It’s official. Indian food seems to have nudged out Mexican food as our absolute favorite cuisine. For now… We had excellent Indian food anywhere we went, but especially loved the banana leaf meals we had in Kuala Lumpur, the countless Tosais we ate in Little India in Penang, Malaysia and the Indian food in Singapore – and we’re ending Year 2 eating real Indian food right here in Southern India!

2. Native Foods Cafe, Chicago
So healthy…so good – our favorite vegan restaurant in Chicago!

3. Coconuts in South East Asia
How will we live without these everyday, we wonder…

4. Lao Breakfasts
We pretty much covered our love of these here.

5. Vegetarian restaurants in Chiang Mai, Thailand
There are over 30 restaurants dedicated to us vegetarian folk and we made it our mission to sample as many as possible!

Looking back on our one-year travel anniversary post, our passion for travel has not waned in the least. In that post, we wrote: “On 30 April 2010 we boarded a plane from London to Las Vegas, where we started our round-the-world adventure. We might still be far from getting around the entire globe, but we have traveled quite a bit in the last 12 months as digital nomads and have no plan to stop any time soon.” 

Sounds perfect for the end of year two as well!

This post was made possible in part by Aqua Resorts, the premier boutique Hawaii hotel chain that provides a wide range of Waikiki hotels and Hawaii resorts for all types of budgets.

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As we leave South East Asia today, we are thinking about what we will miss: the delicious food of course, our daily coconuts, seeing entire families passing us on a motorbike, cheap beer and cocktails, the glorious sunsets over the ocean and the rivers, the buzzing night markets, life-threatening tuktuk rides, the smiles of the children, being surrounded by rice paddies, the beautiful golden Buddha statues and last but not least, the friendly Buddhist monks. We have seen them in Laos, in Thailand, and in Cambodia, and they have made several appearances on this site – the sight of a monk in a bright saffron robe always put a smile on our faces. Many times they would strike up a conversation with us, eager to practice their English or just show us around their temple.

In many places we visited we witnessed the alms-giving ceremony which occurs every morning in all Buddhist countries. The monks make their rounds through town, asking for alms at shops, restaurants and private homes. Buddhists believe that it brings good luck to pay respect to the monks by giving them food and put rice, fruit or vegetables in the alms bowls that the monks carry with them. In return, the monks chant a prayer and blesses the people who give the alms.

]]> http://globetrottergirls.com/2012/04/polaroid-monks-receiving-their-morning-alms-in-battambang-cambodia/feed/ 6 http://globetrottergirls.com/2012/04/photo-essay-laos-markets/ http://globetrottergirls.com/2012/04/photo-essay-laos-markets/#comments Tue, 24 Apr 2012 23:17:51 +0000 Dany http://globetrottergirls.com/?p=7719

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Piles of bright green seaweed and giant fish fresh from the nearby Mekong river, mounds of small, bright oranges, live toads and fried rats on the BBQ…the markets of Laos were some of the most exciting and colorful we’ve seen in South East Asia.

Although we had heard of fried rats in Thailand, it wasn’t until Luang Prabang’s morning market, geared towards local shoppers, where we saw a couple of stands though that offered these little rodents.

We saw living toads, which I am sure were not sold to be enjoyed as pets…

The markets are filled with local vegetables and spices that are used to make the delicious Lao dishes, like curries or rice dishes.

When ordering food, we would often inquire about the herbs or veggies in a dish only to be told that they were ‘from the forest, only grow in Laos’. The markets are where people from the interior would come to sell these mysterious forest vegetables.

What a spectacle, and we loved every minute of it! Many soups and stews are cooked with a branch of wood from a tree inside – apparently it adds a lot of flavor to the dishes, but of course it’s taken out of the pot before the dish is served.

Many restaurants offer dishes with fresh seaweed from the Mekong River, and this is what that looks like:

Fish is the main source of protein in the Laotian diet, and it is devoured in every imaginable form: fresh…

Dried…

And the head is supposed to be extremely scrumptious…

Anybody hungry?

The flowers from banana trees are edible, and are cut up into little pieces and added to rice dishes or used for the famous banana flower salads, which are delicious.

Some of the main ingredients of Lao cuisine: round eggplant, lemongrass (both used for Lao curry) and green papayas – which are a vegetable and used mainly for the fresh Papaya Salads that are served everywhere.

Spicy papaya salads are made by pounding the spices (chili, garlic, tomatoes, salt) in a mortar, shaved papaya is added, and finally the whole thing is topped with peanuts and lime sauce. Delish! If you are a vegetarian, just ask not to have fish/oyster sauce added, but soy sauce instead.

Another very important ingredient of Lao cooking: spicy chilis.

And nothing goes without rice – there are usually three different kinds of rice in the markets: steamed rice, sticky rice, and dark sticky rice.

These baskets are used to steam the sticky rice above the pot of boiling water.

Fresh out of the Mekong River: Crabs, ready to be cooked and easy to transport.

Some fresh chicken…

These pretty little parcels (made from banana leaves) hold minced pork inside.

Desserts are usually grilled bananas or taros…

…or (not only loved by Westerners) donuts!

…We also sampled some pretty cake from one of the bakery stands:

Lao coffee, often served in little glass cups, tends to have at least an inch of condensed milk at the bottom unless you specifically request to have it black. With a shortage of Starbucks or other coffee shops, Lao coffee is everywhere and whether you love it or hate it, throughout most the country it is the only option. Obviously, then, we have had loads of these coffees…

The biggest part of the night market in Luang Prabang is dedicated to handicrafts – woven cloths and blankets, silk scarves, plus silver jewelry, handmade masks, paintings and umbrellas.

At the end of the main road in Luang Prabang, there are several stands that sell fresh fruit smoothies for 5,000 kip ($0.63) and the typical big Lao baguettes, freshly made to your order, for 10,000 kip ($1.25). They usually have them with cheese, omelet or boiled eggs, turkey, chicken or tofu.

For truly budget eating, head down a little alley towards the south end of the market (before the baguette stands). It is a tight squeeze, but dozens of food stands line this covered walkway, fitting in tables for diners who scoop up these deals. The buffets, which cost $1.25 for all you can fit on your plate, are all vegetarian, with meat (especially freshly grilled fish) added on top.

We piled our plates high with several versions of fried noodles, rice, tofu and vegetables, along with salad and fruit at the stand we found to be the best. The dishes vary slightly from stand to stand, so it’s worth having a look around before deciding which stall to buy from – so don’t be intimidated when the first stands shove a plate in your hand right away. Just take your time for the cheapest buffet of your life!

If you are more adventurous, you can try some fried bugs which are available in most of the night markets…