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Departing 29 September 2019.

Crash Landing

So, that's it then. One year, fifteen countries. We've been back about ten days. We almost didn't get on the 'plane home.

Turning up for check-in, we found Qantas hadn't notified Emirates that they'd rescheduled our return dates (in September!). Although Emirates knew there was a 'plane on the runway with our seats on it, they wouldn't let us board until Qantas' call centre 'woke up' and pressed the button to send our confirmation.

Cue meltdown.

Anyway, it was all okay in the end, with about ten minutes before the gates closed, or we might still be there.

Bit of a boring story really, if you weren't there.

Koh Phangan was our last stop before hitting Bangkok again, ready for our flight home.

You all know the islands of Thailand.

This one was a very nice place for the sun to set on our foreign expedition and we watched it sink slowly, helped by a few bottles of cheap rum and cokes.

Where did our year go? It's still hard to reflect. We don't even move back into E17 until Thursday, as we've been staying at Sharon & Eric's southern sanctuary and back up North for a few days at the folks' retreat.

I'm not sure how to finish this blog (it has been a bit patchy lately, so I guess you've not been anticipating a big finish).

When I think back over the past twelve months to all the places we've seen, things we've done and people we've met, my head reels and my mind blurs. It's still making me well up. (I think I've already written this bit after the South American leg). Blame the jet lag.

Our passports look great though, almost full. Guess that's a handy place to start reminiscing, before we begin preparing the 11,000-photo slideshow for when you come to our place for dinner...

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IN MEMORY OF OUR BEAUTIFUL FRIEND & COMPANION

ARIANE DESORMEAUX

The Cavern Club

So, there are 18 of us sitting in a small cavern three-foot deep with orange mud the consistency of clotted cream.

We'd arrived there by ziplining into the mouth of Dark Cave then clambering over rocks and gravel before slipping and squeezing for ten minutes through pitch black narrow, muddy, labyrinthine tunnels and passages before sliding down into the pool.

In only our swimming costume, hard hat and head torch.

Health and safety be buggered. While I didn't let my normal claustro-drowning nightmares get the better of me on this occasion, in bed that night I did contemplate the full potential horror of being stuck in a subterranean labyrinth, fighting blindly for the exit over the drowned or hysterical bodies of my fellow muddy funsters.

Phong Nha was wet. Very wet, very damp.

We'd hoped to escape a wet Hoi An, heading for the Easy Tiger hostel, where we booked straight onto a trip to see the Paradise Cave and Dark Cave, but it was damp all the time we were there.

Still, it all added to the atmosphere...

After spending Christmas Eve at the Easy Tiger roast dinner do and having drunk two bottles of red wine, I spent all of Christmas Day in bed, while Kim went on a bike ride on her own to a local farmstay and chatted with some friendly locals.

Paradise Cave was a much nicer prospect than Dark Cave.

It was very big (longest or biggest in the world, I can't remember), but we walked 1.4 km into it and it was pretty impressive.

Stalactites down, stalagmites up, it was like a Ray Bradbury alien world, some of the formations very Geiger-esque, shadows and cool stillness adding to the mysterious ambience.

Apart from the Chinese family group with video camera, tripod, selfie-sticks and whooping little sh**s in tow, obviously. Where's Alien when you actually need her!?

No cameras in Dark Cave. Here are some shots of the ziplining area, our guide and a temple instead...

Next day we headed by boat for (the eponymous) Phong Nha and Tien Son caves, with two tiny Vietnamese ladies paddling eight big Westerners and a large boat for hours on end. They make them tough here.

Phong Nha Cave was made of three 'chambers' through which we were rowed. This was a safe haven for people during the war. Ammunition and bombs were kept 'safe' at the back, families lived in the centre cavern and the first cavern was muster point, loading bay, entrance, etc.

In eleven years of pretty regular bombing, the Americans only got one bomb through the front door, only damaging it a little. So much for Top Gun.

The final cave, Tien Son - smaller and less impressive than the others - was reached via 300-odd lovely, steep steps, but afforded great views of the surrounding countryside and river.

After another nice feed at our favourite restaurant, the Bamboo, we finally left Phong Nha on the night bus for Hanoi. It was still raining.

... Of Our Elaborate Plans

I've run out of time for words (or maybe just run out of steam and superlatives...), but please have a look at the links and pictures to get the gist of our charming Hanoi wanderings, idyllic Halong Bay New Year 'cruise' and heart-lifting Sapa trek and farmstay.

We've done Laos (lovely Luang Prabang, via a convoluted bus trip 'through' Vientiane) and are back in Bangkok, ready to fly home tomorrow, Friday 23 January.

Hanoi

Halong Bay

Sâpa