Where in the world....: Apologies for the delay!

Hello - really sorry about the delay in getting this thing sorted... been having too much fun and ithas also been difficult to get hold of a computer that I can upload stuff onto and share with you all! I will have a full and up to date coverage shortly - bear with me :o)

How we almost missed our flight!

Well we did make the flight, but only just! Katie & I met up at Stoke station to start our epic adventure, I was dropped off by my Grandad and sister and Katie was dropped off by her best mate Rachel. I expected there to be a few tears but no, composure was retained and there were no last minute nerves! Arrived into Euston and got the tube to my mate's on Canary Wharf as planned, had a quick drink and we got a lift over to Heathrow airport (with a quick detour past Buckingham Palace) and checked in at about quarter past 8 in the evening. Now, the flight was due to depart at ten and as boarding didn't start for a bit, we decided to have a mooch around and get something quick to eat... went through passport control etc and I noticed that the board said our gate was doing 'Last Call'... we thought that this was a bit odd as it was only just passed 9 o'clock. We nipped into WHSmiths and as we came out they said that our gate was closing! We had to run to the other side of the airport but luckily I got there with only 3 people left in the queue, by this point I'm pooped and realise justhow unfit that I am! Katie followed behind shortly after as red as I was and with the same lack of breath - people around us looked and laughed to themselves at the sight of us two collapsed on the sofa's but we were too knackered to care! The flight itself was fine, very little turbulence that decided to come as I'm sat on the loo... a very wierd feeling! As we were taxiing for take off, Katie turns and says "You do know I'm a nervous flyer?" as she clutches my hand... Now we have been on holiday together before, we went to Ibiza last year but I wasn't sat on the same row and missed her take off jitters. The squirms as we headed down the runway soon went though after take off and the rest of the flight was occupied with the films on demand, cd's, radio and games on the console that was in the back of the headrest. The food was nice too... started off as I intended and went for the Eastern dishes and really enjoyed them! After take off, we both changed into clothes that were more comfortable - Katie went the whole hog and put pjamams on and wrapped herself up like an old woman in her chair, it was so funny! We landed into Kuala Lumpur at 6.15pm local time and our hotel was attached to the airport so we got a buggy man to give us a lift with our stuff and checked into the hotel.

Kuala Lumpur

We stayed at the Pan Pacific hotel which is a 5* hotel and was very posh - too posh for us! The entrance was massive as the pic shows and marble everywhere... we were upgraded to a business suite too for free so we were well chuffed with that - the single beds were more like a double and there was everything and anything you could imagine to hand. We ate at a restaurant which was downstairs but after ordering drinks we decided that we wanted to go to the other restaurant that was over the way. Now in Manchester we'd have either a) got up and done a sly runner or b) make up some lame ass excuse and leave but instead we just said we wanted to go to the other restaurant - and they carried our drinks over for us! That's service! Had an early night as we had to be up pretty early to go into KL city and get the train to Gemas. Breakfast was lush and served in a very comfortable dining area with people waiting on your every whim - this was like the calm before the storm! All will come clear soon... We got the shuttle service into KL city centre and had a wander around - saw the Petronas Towers and were planning on doing the Skywalk where you go up into the towers and cross the bridge that connects them. The city seemed really nice and modern, clean and it was really warm! It was so nice to feel the sun on your skin after having a miserable winter back home! Unfortunately, we didn't have the time to do the skywalk and had to make our way back to the train station. The train system is pretty good, seats have to be reserved to make sure you get a seat but our train was really quiet. We travelled for 3 hours on the Singapore train in first class - they had a TV and the seats reclined so it went pretty quickly but despite these luxuries, it suprised us that the toilets were basically a metal tray with a hole in that you had to squat over... they had a hand rail infront to hold onto though if the train was moving! As a boy I didn't find going for a wee hard in the slightest, but Katie on the other hand had a few teething problems with having to squat over a hole and trying to wee!

Gemas, Malaysia

The sole reason for getting off the train at Gemas was to catch the jungle train the next morning - it's not a place on the tourist map and I can see why. Gemas is a small town in the middle of nowhere that is run down and what seems a little behind the times. As we left the station, I had read there were a couple of hotels a street away so we headed off to find one. Locals stared like we had three heads but then I suppose that they don't get many 'Western' people in these parts and it's easy to forget that in places like this we are outsiders in a very local town! We saw two hotel signs ahead and headed to what looked like the nicest of the two, at this point we come crashing down from our first class experiences to a very basic backpacker style part of the trip. Our room was more like a cell that was on a main truck route, the squat toilet and pipe showe were at the end of a dark corridor, the curtains didn't fit the windows, our light switch was outside the room and there was an old tv next to the beds (must have been for show because there wasnt a plug on it) and the beds were smelly and old - luckily we had brought our own sleeping bag liners incase this happened and I had some nytol on me so were were well prepared! We nipped into the town to try and find somewhere or something to eat, there were no restaurants and a lot of places were closed up and in honesty, the town felt a little intimidating. We brought a few basic things from the shop and headed back to the cell to get some sleep - bed time was 8pm with the help of a nytol tablet but I woke at 3 needing the toilet. Most places would keep a light on but not this place, I had to make my way to the toilet and then pee in the dark, guessing where the hole was and trying not to get any on me in the process! As you can imagine after going to bed so early, I could get back to sleep. There were a few wierd noises and the noise of the trucks passing under our window was constant so there was little hope. Morning came and we showered and made our way to the station to get the eagerly awaited jungle train!