Not only does it have a clip of me on horseback (unawares), it also shows more of the estancia in San Antonio de Areco, some truly fabulous tango dancing, and clips from the Carnival in Gualeguaychu!
Irresistible!

Check it out on YouTube, or simply watch it below:

PS: We’re home! So happy!! So tired…

As Mark puts it, “After flying in to Jakarta, Indonesia, we travel to Yogyakarta to see the Hindu temple of Borobudur. A diversion to the Bromo region to see the active volcano Gunung Bromo and then off to Bali. Add to this the drama of failing insulin due to exposure to heat while traveling and the past week or so has been a roller-coaster of highs and lows.”

Check it out here, or click on the video below:

I thought it fitting, at this halfway point, to reflect on what it is we’ve learnt so far… Here are some thoughts:

• Travelling is a great teacher. I had no idea I had so much to learn – about myself, about our relationship, about life in general, until I was whisked out of my comfort zone and into completely unfamiliar surroundings.
• A place is made more beautiful if you stay somewhere beautiful. Or, at least, somewhere quite beautiful. We made the decision early on to choose comfort over budget, and it was a really wise one, I think. The times we’ve stayed in really stunning luxury accommodation have been amongst the highlights of our trip so far – where you stay, it turns out, makes a huge difference to how much you enjoy staying there.
• Mark and I make a great team. I always knew this, but in the last couple of months it’s really been put to the test. Travelling with someone 24/7 really shows you their real character, you get to see them tired, grumpy, hungry, sick, worn-out and irritable. And if you still love them after all that, that’s saying something!
• We’re tougher than I thought. Apart from the last week of bad health, Mark and I have hardly been sick at all, despite strange food, strange beds, strange transport and strange weather. It turns out we’re tougher than I thought we would be… It’s amazing how adaptable the human body is.
• There are many forms of transport. Before this trip I’d done a bus, car, bike, scooter and boat. Now I’ve done a becak (bicycle rickshaw), horse-drawn cart, bemo (open-sided minibus), ferry, train and moto (motorbike taxi) – and that’s only in the last week!
• Control isn’t always necessary. This is my hardest lesson, I really like being able to have things as much in control as possible. But you learn, when it’s late afternoon and you don’t know where you’re sleeping that night, and you have to move on tomorrow but you’re not sure how, and there’s no way of finding anything recognizable for dinner, that sometimes you just have to release control. And it is a rather lovely feeling, in fact.
• Going slow is key. To rush around while travelling takes all the joy out of it. You don’t get to experience anything or relax anywhere or have any authentic interactions with people. The slower the better, as far as I’m concerned (and don’t ever only spend one night somewhere – it’s not worth unpacking for!)
• It is possible to travel well with diabetes. I’ve had my fair share of ups and downs these past few months – insulin not working, crazy food, hormones and weather making my blood sugar do unusual things – but all in all it has been SO manageable. Much easier than I thought, in fact. Which just goes to show that although travelling with diabetes is more of a challenge than travelling without it, it’s just one more thing to think about, not something to make you give up entirely.
• Practically:
- Packing and unpacking your suitcase is a nightmare if it’s too full… These incredibly useful Vac Bags have saved our lives on a daily basis. They take all the air out of your clothes so massive piles of stuff shrink into delightfully packable flat packs.
- The rumours are true: You don’t need to change your clothes as often as you think.
- We will never again take being able to drink water out of a tap for granted. Months of bottled water makes tap water seem like a luxury!
- Travelling when you’re sick is just awful. Our solution? Take vitamins every day, don’t try dodgy food, and don’t overdo it.
- Sleep is very important if you want to be able to enjoy every day to the fullest.
- Backpacks give you a sore neck, and let you (mistakenly) believe you have enough space to buy things you don’t need. Suitcases are better.
- Patience is vital.
• We are the luckiest people in the world. To have been able to have these months together, exploring this wonderful world of ours, has been such a gift. And every day we’re able to continue doing it is one more day I feel like the luckiest girl on earth. Here’s to the next half being just as wonderful as the first half!

And now, today, we’re leaving Vietnam! Off to Indonesia. We arrive at midnight today, and are VERY open to suggestions about where to go and what to see…

First, though, as promised, I wanted to tell you about one of the highlights of our trip so far – a two day one night adventure in Halong Bay. Wow.

Halong Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, about 3 and a half hours from Hanoi (one of the main cities in Vietnam). There are hundreds of tourist boats that ply the same old route, but we were lucky enough to get on to the Red Dragon, an all-wooden Vietnamese junk, made in the style of a 17th century pirate ship that took us on a unique route with only one other boat! Incredible.

We set sail into the wild blue yonder, and immediately fell in love. It’s just amazing stuff – huge limestone karsts (like islands jutting out of the ocean) as far as the eye can see, hundreds and thousands of them fading into the horizon, accompanied by nothing but aquamarine water. It’s the kind of sight that’s so beautiful you don’t really know what to do with it, so your brain quickly gets used to it.

We stopped mid-afternoon to go kayaking around and through the islands, and we were on the kayaks as the sun set, turning the water from aquamarine to orange and pink and finally silver, as the moon rose just behind the junk.

Then it was time for a feast on board, and much laughter, and finally a cup of tea out on deck with Mark, watching the moon make a silvery path on the water. It was one of those moments that I’ll remember forever.

The next morning we woke up early and headed off on bamboo boats to see a floating village – a group of fishermen who live year-round on the water, on a cross between houses and boats. Fascinating stuff. The Red Dragon company is doing a lot of outreach work in their community (building a school and starting an eco-friendly initiative to remove the rubbish from the area), which was really interesting too. But mostly we lay on deck and soaked up the beauty.

Here’s our Best Moment from that day, you can see I’m a little giddy! It was truly one of the most incredible things I’ve ever done.

(Also check out, when you have a moment, our last supper in Vietnam – quite an adventure! – and our attempts to cook local food. Fun!)

I’m back! Sorry, it’s been a bit of a silent week – we’ve had extremely sporadic internet access and I wanted to wait till I had a little down-time to update you properly.

It’s been a lovely week. Ever since my bad health day when we first arrived on Phu Quoc Island I’ve been feeling heaps better (thank goodness!) due in large part, I think, to my secret to travelling with diabetes (which I reveal in this week’s video diary… to be posted tomorrow).

We had a really fun couple of days in Phu Quoc – the first two nights we spent at an eco-friendly resort called Mango Bay, right in the middle of nowhere surrounded by stunning views and beautiful beaches. Then we moved to town (we were craving shops and snacks and easy access to things), although still with a beautiful sea view and a mere 3 minute walk from the sea. What a stunning sea it is! Clear and bright blue, no waves, warm… heavenly! (You can see some footage of it in our video diary and in our best moments… Be warned, though! You might get jealous.)

We had a fair amount of work to do – catching up on hotel reviews for Just the Planet and real work, to try and earn some money as we travel (turns out travelling is rather pricey, who knew?) But we made time each day, usually around sunset, for a long swim in the sea, just as the sun dipped into it and turned it golden-pink-and-purple. Incredible.

It was during one of these late sunset swims that it hit me (once again) how lucky we are to be this age, living this adventure. I feel like there’s this small window of time in life – when you’re old enough to be able to have a clear head and look after yourself overseas, but not so old that you have a mortgage and responsibilities – and we are lucky enough to not only be in that stage but be living it to the full. Some days I find myself longing for a slice of familiarity or to see my family or my friends, but most of the time I feel (quite rightly) like the luckiest girl in the world.

The feeling was heightened by finding this fantastic little restaurant right on the beach where we could sit at small, lantern-lit tables, our feet in the sand, and eat delicious fresh seafood and yummy barbecue, while sipping on iced fresh lemon juice (my new favourite drink – about as diabetically friendly as you can get with something resembling fruit juice). This place (whose name I can’t remember) became our regular hang-out for its’ really reasonable, really fresh food. If you’re planning a visit to Phu Quoc, pop me an email and I’ll give you directions J

We also spent a day scootering all over the island on a hired motorbike, exploring little side streets and beaches, and picnicking right next to the sea… And we popped into the night market for some authentic Vietnamese food (delicious! Although a little strange, I was served flat squares of vermicelli noodles with my pork. Hmmm… How many carbohydrates would that be?)

And then we jetted off to Ho Chi Minh, or Saigon, as it is still known, on our first aeroplane in months! Turns out it was only $20 more expensive to take a 1 hour flight than a 2 and a half hour ferry and a 7 hour bus ride, so we treated ourselves… And what a treat it was. I’ll fill you in on our delicious time in Saigon so far in the next day or two – looks like we’ll probably be more connected this week… If you have any tips for us for Ho Chi Minh, let us know asap (please!)

Any suggestions for us as we head to the North of Vietnam?

Sihanoukville, a small beach town in the South, is lovely. Really lovely – white sandy beaches, clear turquoise seas and long vistas stretching out to horizons dotted with small islands… Really beautiful.

It’s been somewhat ravaged by the recent typhoon – parts of the beach were washed away terribly, and the structure of the beaches has changed completely, apparently – but it’s still by far the prettiest place we’ve seen in Cambodia.

We’ve spent the last couple of days swimming, snorkeling, eating barbeque on the beach, and lying in the hammock of our beach bungalow… It’s a hard life, I tell you! (Check out our Best Moments of the Day to share in it with us). But now it is Monday morning and, believe it or not, Monday mornings still mean something when you’re traveling the world and next to the Cambodian beach. We have a whole pile of work to do today, and we’re moving to a more work-conducive place to do it in (aircon, desk, not right next to the sea!)

I know I promised to speak more about the Killing Fields and the Genocide Museum, and to try and unpick how they made me feel, but I’m not too sure that I can, to be honest. I will say that I’m feeling a little down. I’m not sure if it’s hormonal, or the 5am low blood sugar I had this morning (which woke me up with my heart pounding, and which I can’t quite figure out) or if it’s the weight of this Cambodian conundrum that is still chasing our steps, or if it’s just a bit of travel fatigue. I’m not going to question it too much, I’m just going to go with it, and have an easy day of feeling a little less-than-chipper. Everyone has them.

I haven’t stopped thinking about the whole Cambodian situation, though. It’s impossible to, really, when you’re surrounded by evidence of it on all sides. And we’ve been talking about it a lot, to people who live and work here, to try and get to the bottom of it. I think I might be too empathetic for hectic political situations – I immediately go for the emotional response. For example, in my head (and heart) it makes complete sense that the reason we haven’t seen too many Cambodian success stories and the reason people don’t seem to take too much care with their properties and public spaces, is because a mere 30 years ago, anyone who was refined and looked after themselves and their properties, anyone who strove for something higher and better and more than they were given, was punished, in the worst possible way. They were executed. Now surely that must have a significant, lasting impression on the lives and minds of a country’s people?

Heavy thoughts for a Monday morning, I know! It’s interesting, though. From home I thought traveling was all one happy holiday – but when you’re really trying to connect with a country, it’s often a lot deeper and more troublesome than that.

Yesterday, 1st October 2009, exactly a month since we left, was HECTIC.

Allow me to set the scene before I give you a blow-by-blow… I arrived back in Bangkok, Thailand, from a really busy (and fascinating) 4 days in Vienna. 10 hour flight, 14 hours in transit, 5 hour time difference. My second dose of jetlag in a week. The idea was to spend 2 days recovering, catching our breath and resting before the trek to Cambodia. Except my flight landed late, we had to wait an extra hour for the bus, and the traffic in Bangkok was crazy. So we only arrived at about 5.30pm, and then found out that the only bus that would get us to Cambodia in one day (and thereby avoid sleeping in a dodgy border town) left at 5.55am. So let’s change that two days into one. The day after that one day…

* 2am: Woke up sweating, heart pounding, head floating, and craving sugar. A night-time low, my absolute worst (and as far as I can tell, without direct cause – I’ve taken notes trying to find the source of a night-time low. Anyone have the answer for me?) After a super-sweet juice and a couple of miniature bananas, my heart rate slowed enough for me to go back to bed and try to fall asleep again (now 2.20am)

* 4.30am: Alarm went off to wake us for the day. Dragged myself out of bed, showered, drank tea. Had stupidly decided in my exhaustion the night before that I could quickly pack in the morning. Baaaad idea. We both scrambled to get everything packed in time to catch a taxi at 5.20am, to get to the train station in time for our 5.55am train.

* 5.30am. Still in the hotel room. Torrential rain outside. Pitch dark.

* 5.35am. Run through the rain with a backpack and suitcase each, desperately trying to protect our electronic valuables with an umbrella. There is water everywhere – huge puddles every footstep. We’re too late to care.

* 5.40am. In the taxi, at last. Our train leaves in 15 minutes. The hotel recommended we allow 20 minutes to travel. Thai trains are notoriously punctual. I chant a prayer the whole way to the train station – we’ve already bought our tickets and transfer tickets and they’re non-refundable.

* 5.51am. Arrive at the train station, throw money at the taxi driver, and run to the train. Find a seat just as it departs.

* 5.55am to 11.40am. Train ride. 3rd class seats only, so they’re a little hard (and dirty), and all the windows are open. None of the cushioned air-conditioned luxury we’ve been treated to on Thai trains before, but the tickets were ridiculously cheap, the scenery is fascinating, and we’re too tired to care.

* 10.21am. High blood sugar, for no reason. Makes me feel emotional (let’s make that extra-emotional, given the exhaustion, the jetlag, the low this morning, and the inability to sleep on the train).

* 11.42am. Met at the train station by a very nice man from the company we booked our transfer with. He takes us to a songthaew (a kind of open-backed, covered truck) where another very nice man drives us to what is supposedly the border between Thailand and Cambodia, but is actually a ‘consulate’s office’, one of the famous border scams. Two men dressed in official-looking costumes sit behind a desk with Thai and Cambodian flags, hand you official-looking forms, and ask you for 1200 baht each for a visa ($36 US dollars). When you say that you’d rather just get a $20 visa at the border, they tell you it’s impossible, and that it will take 3 days. We’d read all about the scam, so we insisted.

* Noon to 1pm. Made our way through the maze of scams and false stories out of Thailand, across the stretch of mud to the Cambodian border, where we went through a ‘quarantine’ (had our temperatures checked) and got a $20 visa no problem. Then we waited at the ‘bus station’ (a couple of benches just around the corner from the border, next to a stretch of mud) for our bus, which we had paid for in Bangkok, and was supposed to leave at 2pm.

* 2.35pm. An hour and a half later, still no bus. Eventually arrives and takes us to the bus station, where we catch another bus, which will supposedly take us to Siem Reap Bus Station or Market, depending who you ask. Either way, no problem to catch a tuk tuk to our guest house, they assure us.

* 3pm. We are now officially on the road, and officially in one of the tourist scam buses we had read about. I’m not quite sure how, because we’d booked from the State Railways of Thailand information desk, so you’d think it was all above-board. You’d think wrong. Our trip will take us 4 hours, so we’ll arrive at 7pm, after dark and, we’ve now been told, at a guest house that offers a ‘special deal’ for tourists (the special deal being that any tourist who checks in earns a $7 commission for the bus driver).

* 5.15pm. Mark keeps saying that the landscape around us looks flooded (there was a typhoon in this general area a couple of days ago, but we’d heard that it was concentrated elsewhere). I keep telling him maybe that’s just what Cambodia looks like.

* 6.53pm. We finally pull into Siem Reap, and it is F.L.O.O.D.E.D. People walking down the street with water up to their knees. Our bus making waves that wash over motorbikes. No distinction between the river and the street. Water water everywhere.

* 6.58pm. The bus driver tries to convinces us that the area we’ve booked a guest house in is severely flooded, but we don’t trust him (the dirty scammer) so we get a tuk tuk to take us there anyway.

* 7.09pm. He wasn’t kidding. The water is so high that it washes up over our feet while the tuk tuk is driving. Eventually it gets so bad that we get out and walk (the water is up to our lower thighs) while the tuk tuk valiantly carries our suitcases to the door.

* 7.15pm. We arrive! At last. Our guest house is clean and comfortable, and above ground (i.e. no flood water, thank goodness!) We have made it through over 13 hours on the road, without sleep, with jetlag and, oh did I forget to mention? Our first two days on anti-malarial tablets, which tend to make you tired and a bit under-the-weather.

So all in all, I’m going to go ahead and say that was our most hectic day yet.

Today was a lot easier (thank God!)

]]> http://justtheplanet.com/sweet-life/2009/10/02/our-most-hectic-day-yet/feed/ 15 http://justtheplanet.com/sweet-life/2009/09/28/talking-about-diabetes/ http://justtheplanet.com/sweet-life/2009/09/28/talking-about-diabetes/#comments Mon, 28 Sep 2009 11:40:51 +0000 Bridget McNulty http://justtheplanet.com/sweet-life/?p=270 So I’ve spent the weekend (in Vienna, Austria, of all places!) talking about diabetes.
In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever spoken about diabetes so much in my life!

Together with 49 other journalists from all over the world (as far afield as Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Scandinavia and Turkey), we discussed all kinds of things relating to diabetes – what the best way is to get the word out about the condition, how to communicate with patients so that they realise the necessity of compliance, the differences between first and third world countries in their approach to diabetes and, interestingly for me, the stigma attached to being diabetic. I have to say, I’ve never felt at all discriminated against because I have diabetes. A couple of people were saying that it’s a big deal for the diabetics they know to inject in public – that they avoid it at all costs. I not only inject in restaurants and cafes, but, lately, as we’ve travelled around Thailand, in train stations, on buses, on the side of the street and in busy street markets. It’s not really a choice, you know – when I eat, I need to inject. And I think there are ways of doing it surreptitiously…

There was also a fascinating panel of diabetics (Type 1 and 2) talking about their daily lives – the challenges and practicalities of living with diabetes. Fascinating stuff, especially for me, because it gave me such a new perspective on the condition, on how other people live with it and how it has changed their lives.

We were all here for the workshop (run by Novo Nordisk, an insulin company who’s doing really impressive work with diabetes), but also for the announcement of the international winner of the Novo Nordisk Media Prize. I was holding fingers and thumbs that I would win (the money attached to the prize would have made the next 8 months a LOT easier!) but, alas, they chose a more traditional journalistic story – a newspaper article from Italy with a lot of practical, scientific information.
Although I was disappointed not to win the prize, the weekend has been so great for making contacts with people who know a lot about diabetes, and work in the field of diabetes outreach. I’ve met some incredibly passionate people, and a couple who are really excited about our journey, and want to help us make contact with diabetic associations in all the various countries we’re visiting. Very exciting stuff!

Physically, though, it’s been quite a tough weekend for me. I arrived at 5am (local time) on Friday morning, after having caught a 10 hour overnight flight from Bangkok, with a 5 hour time difference. The hotel room wasn’t ready for me by the time I arrived at about 6.15am, so I set off to wander the streets of Vienna as soon as the sun rose… It was beautiful, actually, wandering around getting lost and found again, looking at the incredible architecture and having a little breakfast picnic by a fountain in a park. The food has been AMAZING! I didn’t realise how much I’d missed bread until I bit into a roll on the plane and tears came into my eyes…
I’ve been eating a lot of bread.
So I wandered around till about half ten, and then I thought I was going to collapse from exhaustion – jet lag kicked in big time. I managed to check in and slept for a couple of hours, and then went to see a stunning Klimt exhibition (including the original of The Kiss – wow) in a restored palace amongst manicured lawns. A million miles from Bangkok, as you can imagine!

On Saturday I also spent the day walking around (pretty much all day), following some of the path of one of my favourite movies of all time – Before Sunrise. Jet lag has been a killer, though. A 5 hour difference doesn’t seem that bad, but I suppose combined with the amount of traveling I’ve been doing lately, and the late nights and poor sleep on the plane it’s all added up… I’ve been feeling really tired and quite headachey and fuzzy, and I’m sure it’s not doing my blood sugar any favours – I’ve had a couple of surprising readings. But not all surprising, so I can’t blame it on my insulin! It’s not hot enough for anything to have happened to my insulin, anyway, the weather has been lovely and cool.

This morning, for instance, I’ve been taking it realllly easy. I went downstairs for a big breakfast (of largely healthy stuff – cereal, bread, fruit and yoghurt) and then spent the rest of the morning lying down reading, gathering my strength for my late-night flight tonight… I just tested my blood sugar now, and although I took what I thought was enough insulin at breakfast, it’s sky high! Very irritating. So now I have to try and figure out what the problem is… Is it hormonal? Should I switch insulin pens just in case? Can I afford to do that seeing as I have a large but limited amount of insulin? Is it because I’ve been so active and now I spent a morning lying down? (I think that’s probably it). But that sucks, cause it means that I’ve somehow managed to turn into one of those fit people who need to be on the move for their blood sugar to stay down. No good! I liked the lazier version of me

Maybe it’s a combination of all of these, and some other unknown factors. That’s the problem with diabetes – you never really know. I’ll keep a close eye on it and if I stay strangely high I’ll take a new insulin pen out before I fly this evening.

For now, though, Vienna awaits! My last taste of the first world for a few months… See you back in Thailand.

We arrived in the sleepy seaside town of Ban Krut last week – exhausted, sweaty, a little strung out. Sick of being on the move. 5 nights later we emerged (like butterflies out of a cocoon!) rested, relaxed, happy and calm. We’ve spent the last six days getting enough sleep, swimming in the sea, waking up early to watch the sunrise, eating delicious food, reading a lot and spending real quality time with each other. Most days we had a vague itinerary when we woke up (rent a motorbike and explore the surrounds, walk the length of the beach, do some photographic or writing work), but nothing too strenuous. We left plenty of time for afternoon naps and long picnic lunches and spontaneous swims…

It was a delight! Which was why I was so surprised to wake up on Monday feeling down. Nothing specific, nothing related to traveling or being away from home (I went through the checklist and none of the possible problems rang true). Just a bit… off. Now, my initial impulse was to say, “How could you possibly be feeling down? Look around you! You’re in a beach paradise!” but I decided not to fight against it (what’s the point when you’re already not feeling great?) and spend the morning lying in our little air-conditioned bungalow, watching movies on TV. I gave in to feeling down.

And wouldn’t you know it, a couple of hours later I got up for lunch and felt much better. I think maybe I just needed some nothing-time. Weirdly enough, I remember having a conversation about this exact thing with a friend who asked how we’d avoid burn-out. I said, “If we need to take a day out watching TV we will – no problem!” When it came down to it, though, I actually felt a little guilty… Isn’t that silly?

Of course, not having to move around so much has also made it a lot easier to keep an eye on my diabetes, and get back into tighter control. When you’re hopping between trains and buses and walking unknown distances it’s not a good idea to be too tightly in control, but when you’re in one place it’s easier to make sure my blood glucose readings are closer to what they should be. This also means, though, that I’ve had more lows this week than at any other time during the trip. I hate lows! I’m sure all diabetics do…

So we had a blissful (for the most part) six days in Ban Krut, and then got an opportunity at the last minute to spend a night on Koh Talu Island, less than an hour away – a private island with a low-key resort and a truly inspiring coral regeneration project. I’ll be writing about it soon, I’ll keep you posted. We had such a wonderful time there – snorkeling, swimming, and finding out all about the project (see Mark in snorkeling mode here!)

And now we’re about to catch our train back to Bangkok (no running to catch it this time, thank you very much – we’re going to be very early!) Tomorrow night I head off to Vienna for the Novo Nordisk International Diabetes Media Prize Conference (keep your fingers crossed for me!) and on Friday morning Mark will fulfil a long-held dream and go to Singapore to watch the F1 Grand Prix live (the ticket is a little early-birthday-gift from me).

So it’s an exciting couple of days ahead! I’ll keep you updated when I can…

Our Week Two Video Diary, with snippets of all we’ve seen and done, and an honest account of what it’s actually been like (from Mark and my perspective).

Give it a watch when you have a moment, and let us know what you think…