Ok I’ve changed my mind about Ubud. This town is incredibly annoying. Traffic is even slower than Yangon (sic!) and vast areas of Ubud exist solely for the purpose of tourism. I’m always glad when I get out of the town and to our resort on its fringe. The area around is beautiful though. Kids around here have funny pets (warning, picture of a snake ahead!).

It’s been, I don’t know, three days? Four days? I’ve spent my time in Ubud so far by doing rather little besides reading, eating, getting massages and going for walks. Oh and checking out the local co-working space. I had a strong desire for some rest, partially because of what my bowels went through but also because I’ve been on the road for more than a month now. And no matter what people might think, travelling can be very exhausting.

It’s a touristy place but, much to my own surprise, I’m quite fine with it. I don’t see it as a place where I want to experience authentic Asia but rather as a place to stay and have a nice time. The tourists coming here aren’t the 18 year-old Aussie shitheads who populate the southern parts of the island, intoxication and fornication the only things on their minds. In Ubud it’s more a crowd that is drawn by art and nature.

Yesterday afternoon was when my flight to Bali was scheduled to leave. Instead of being on it, I was lying in bed, pondering about whether I should just hang on or go see a doctor at some point in the near future. By that time I had been down with rather bad diarrhoea for a day and a half, barely able to walk and only crouching out of bed to visit the loo.

Thanks to atrociously slow internet in the country, I couldn’t upload any videos while in Myanmar. KL is a little more on the fast track, so here we go with a look back.

I think I’m having a culture shock. Two days ago: Now: They seem to have every single overpriced brand in the world assembled here.

KL’s international airport is big. Walking from the gate to immigration takes something like 15 minutes. In the arrival hall, Christmas tunes are playing. F*** me sideways, isn’t this supposed to be a Muslim country?

I forgot my passport, that’s a first. I realise it when staff at the bus company ask for it. I run outside but the driver who brought me from the guesthouse has already left. It’s 8:25, it’s a 25 minute ride to the guesthouse and the bus leaves at 9:00. The guesthouse doesn’t have a second key for the locker that holds my passport, so I need to go back and bring the key in my pocket.

Just as I had done in Luang Prabang a few years ago, I wanted to go for a two-day/one-night hike in the Hsipaw area. Sadly there weren’t any tours going and I didn’t feel like paying for a guide just for myself. So instead I went for the available option, which was a one-day trek to one of the villages in the hills. Our group of seven tourists, one guide and one apprentice guide started out at 8:00 in the morning, just outside the city limits.