Mel's Travel Blog

Day 1 – London to Amsterdam

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Mel

Well, today I learnt some important lessons. Firstly it is never okay to be jet lagged out of your brain and give in to it by going to bed at 7:45pm. You will wake up at 2am. And 2:12am. And 2:36am and so on…

At 6:30am this morning we met our other contiki travelers downstairs from the royal national hotel. It is the contiki hotel as they operate from it so as you’d expect it is cheap, nasty and cost efficient. The leaving process was pretty orderly and onward from there we headed to the port of Dover. After an easy customs stop we got to drive onto the ferry! Biggest boat I have ever seen! Hot breakfast – even better. We drove off the ferry and through Belgium, we don’t get to stop there unfortunately. After a 5hr bus trip we made it to Amsterdam! An average buffet dinner, followed by a quick shower and we were ready to head out! We signed up to go the sex show…it was….interesting. Not what I expected. Very naked lol.

We headed off next to a bar called the grasshopper and chilled there for a few hours and then set off back to the hotel to bed. the taxi driver back was a scam artist and a maniac driver but we survived. All in all, the red light district in Amsterdam was…memorable.

Percy having an early night while we explore the red light district!!

Categories: Europe 2012 | Tags: Amsterdam, contiki, Europe | 4 Comments

Jet lag SUCKS

Posted on September 24, 2012 by Mel

Well we arrived safe and sound in the UK! Our trip was pretty good. We left Perth on time and arrived in Doha pretty early. Doha airport only had one currency exchange and it was closed so we spent our two hours at Doha desperately wanting water which was a bit depressing! We then spent 37mins standing on a crowded bus waiting to board the plane…hmmmm. Qatar was an awesome airline though – good service, comfy and clean. Their food was plentiful as well! We ate like piglets haha. Spent a total of 27.5 hrs at airports, on planes and on the tube. Both of us were close to homicidal by the time we arrived – a definite highlight was emma busting some little kid on the tube for taking pics of her hehehe.

Arriving at heathrow was nowhere near as stressful as we had though and navigating the tube was a breeze. Keep in mind it was a Sunday afternoon though. We checked in at the royal national hotel which is pretty much what you would expect – small, cheap and basic. At 6pm we went down to the contiki basement meetup. Chatted to a few people, signed some stuff and then walked up to tescos to get breakfast for the next morning…tescos was insane. Probably the most terrifying experience so far! SO MANY PEOPLE IN ONE TINY PLACE.

I crashed and burned at 8pm London time and was wide awake at 2am. Which is when I am writing this! I will have to wait until we have wifi to publish it though.

Oh and P.S. roaming sim FAIL (don’t even ask) so I’m using my own number. Keep in mind it is $1 a text to send and receive 😦 bloody stupid phone companies!

Today we are off to Amsterdam 🙂 first official day of contiki….

Categories: Europe 2012 | Tags: contiki, Jet lag, london | 4 Comments

Proud aunt!

Posted on September 20, 2012 by Mel

What a great start to my trip! My adorable nephew Hunter arrived 2 days before we are due to leave. Which meant I got squishy newborn baby cuddles today 😀

Congratulations to my baby brother and future sister in law!

Categories: Europe 2012 | Tags: baby, family, holiday | 3 Comments

Lovely pre-holiday presents!

Posted on September 19, 2012 by Mel

Today I got some lovely “have a safe and super fun trip” presents from my amazing colleagues at Canning College. I felt so special!

The presents were: a toiletries bag, travel diary, individual shower “sheets” in a dispenser (looking forward to testing those!), a reading light and a lovely, perfumed scarf! Plus the Vegemite from the other day 😀

I feel very lucky to work with such lovely ladies xo

Categories: Japan Snow Trip | Tags: gift, love, travel | 2 Comments

Tattoos, term ends and total packing fail!

Posted on September 17, 2012 by Mel

Soooooo I haven’t packed yet. We leave in 5 days! I have a bunch of random stuff stacked haphazardly next to my suitcase with the intention that, eventually, it will go in my suitcase. That’s as far as I have gotten.

There are two things causing me to not be packed and ready yet…one is the fact that I am still wearing half my clothes…the other is my packing experience.

Every domestic trip I’ve been on (and there has been a lot!) I have been fully packed a few days before and then on the day I leave I ALWAYS have a massive attack of “oh my gosh I forgot something” so everything gets pulled out again. This time I’m removing that step and I’ll just pack the day I leave.

This is the excuse I am using. I’m sticking with it!

Don’t even ask about the tattoo part of this post….

Vegemite courtesy of a fellow teacher for the family in the UK!

Categories: Europe 2012 | Tags: contiki, holiday, Packing, teacher | 2 Comments

Countdown!

Posted on September 12, 2012 by Mel

Ten days from today!! Not that I’m counting…

Categories: Europe 2012 | Tags: contiki, countdown, holiday | Leave a comment

Trip mascot

Posted on September 8, 2012 by Mel

This is Percy the Platypus. He will be our holiday mascot 🙂

Categories: Europe 2012 | Tags: contiki, Percy, platypus | Leave a comment

Motion sickness

Posted on September 8, 2012 by Mel

Anyone got any ideas to help motion sickness? I am fine on planes (provided they aren’t crazy bumpy) but cars and buses are a disaster.

I’ve always been a nauseous traveler. Small or big buses, front or back seat, I’m a puker. I have to avoid reading altogether which includes maps, text messages and street signs and that helps a little. So does sitting near the front.

Travacalm does work for me but it makes me into a zombie so is no good for short trips where I need to do stuff at the other end. I mean a real zombie…drooling and falling asleep standing up…much to other peoples amusement.

So I am gonna give these pressure bands a go and I have zombie Mel stuff as well.

Any other ideas or suggestions are most welcome?

Categories: Europe 2012 | Tags: holiday, Motion sickness, tour bus, travel | 2 Comments

Holiday preparation with two weeks to go

Posted on September 6, 2012 by Mel

Things I have bought or borrowed or found in my closet or pinched out of other peoples closets so far to take on my trip:

coded padlock

mini clothesline

a roaming sim (thanks Zeus for this and the two things above! You’re the besterest buddy EVER)

comm bank travel card plus back up loaded with £ and €

neck pillow for bus and plane trips – thanks Jess!!

headphones for iPod

iPhone

e-reader (can only use on the plane as I’ll vomit on the bus if I try)

travel adapter for Europe and the UK

suitcase that meets contiki size rules

a back pack or day pack for the bus

a cheap “over the shoulder” handbag for adventuring during the day – big enough for wallet, camera and a small water bottle

a bunch of leggings and tights as these are going to be my default clothing item

a warm, waterproof jacket with a hood to keep me warm on the planes and the places we go that are a bit chilly

a light jacket/cardigan for the slightly warmer places or evenings out

one pair of jeans

quick dry undies from Kathmandu – best invention EVER

some long and comfy shirts to wear over leggings

two dresses to wear out partying

a pair of 3/4 Capri pants

comfy walking shoes

boots for wearing out and wearing in the colder places. I need my boots, I will feel naked without them!

a pair of pretty red shoes (flats) for nights out

a pair of thongs to bludge around in

socks and bras

basic girly toiletries including the amazing goo-tubes, very glad I don’t wear make up

mini first aid kit with sewing stuff, dettol cream, bandaids, sunscreen, insect repellent, Panadol etc

a small towel which I don’t need but having purple hair means I tend to turn lovely, white hotel towels a permanent shade of brightness 🙂

Things I have on my “pretend I am super organised list” that I still need to buy or sort out:

a spare camera memory card

a journal to write things down by hand (gotta have a hard copy as well as a blog!)

motion sickness bracelets and motion sickness meds – I hate the meds so am going to try the bracelets as well

an extra padlock for my day bag when I leave it on the bus

some £ and € in cash for when we first arrive

copies and printouts of all documentation including passport, itinerary, UK hotel confirmation and contact details for our UK relatives

Two weeks and one day to go!

I have been posting on the contiki “shout” app and chatting to people who will be on my tour. Have to say it is an awesome app. Already I have had some fears alleviated – mainly that I won’t be the only one NOT whitewater rafting!

Roaming sim rates. Very reasonable!

Categories: Europe 2012 | Tags: contiki, Europe, holiday, Packing, panic, shout | 1 Comment

Where else have I been in the big, wide world…

Posted on August 28, 2012 by Mel

Where else have you been Mel? Why did you wait this long to travel? Why now?

The only place I have ever been overseas is Bali. I didn’t enjoy it very much, way too hot and touristy for me. Plus if I want to get drunk and run around like an idiot I will do it in my own country which has a decent hospital system thanks!

I have travelled a fair bit around Australia. One of my favourite places is Canberra, my best friend lives there so I have visited a lot in the last 18 months. As a P&L/History teacher I find all the national exhibits and places to visit in our nation’s capital fascinating. Question time at Parliament House has been a highlight three times so far, not to mention the Australian War Memorial. Some of the places I’ve been around Australia include:

Karratha WA (for work)

Cunderdin, Kalgoorlie etc in the wheatbelt WA

Margaret River, Dunsborough, Albany etc in south west WA

Canberra ACT

Sydney NSW

Blue Mountains NSW

Thredbo NSW (snoooow!)

Brisbane and the Gold Coast QLD

Melbourne (very briefly for work) VIC

So why did I swap from exploring places in Australia to overseas? Previously I had no interest in travel at all. Anywhere. Not even my own state. After being sick for awhile and slowly getting better, I was only working part time so was able to plan more trips interstate and weekends away. The idea of travel and independence gradually became less scary and more exciting. Not to mention the inarguable fact that seeing awesome sights becomes a lot more appealing when you have faced the possibility of never getting the chance!

After awhile I started itching to explore some of the places you see in photos. You know the ones I mean, where people are posing cheesily in front of amazing landscapes or monuments. Other friends international holiday snaps began to inspire jealousy and *I really wanna go there* sentiments which had never happened before! What was wrong with me? Oh no, it’s the travel bug!

I was a goner.

As a side note, the budgeting for this trip has been insane. I still only work part time (my choice) and have basically had no social life for 9 months as I save my butt off! Contiki was great as they had a payment plan so I took 4 months to pay the trip cost of $3200 and have scrimped and saved since then to get together as much spending money as possible. With 3 weeks and 4 days to go, I am confident I have saved enough to cover essential spending money, extra for fun stuff, back up money for emergencies and all the bills back home since I don’t get paid while on leave (the down side to casual/self employment).

Hooray!

Photo from Bali trip, 2010 (yes, I was distinctly chubbier then)

Categories: Europe 2012 | Tags: Bali, Canberra, holiday, travel | Leave a comment