Travelling as a Macho Malay

Low Cost Airlines

2010-04-05T03:21:00.000-07:00

If anyone of you are trying to find low cost airlines to almost anywhere,these are the links to it

List of Low Cost Airlines in the World

Low Cost to Europe

Low Cost to Asia

Low Cost to North Africa

Low Cost to Middle East

usefull tips on getting fit to cycle

2009-02-17T15:36:00.000-08:00

Useful tips on getting fit

by Hannah Reynolds, leading cycling and fitness expert

Looking after your body with good nutrition, balanced training and careful equipment choice will enable you to get the most out of your cycling experience.

Some useful tips:

Use weekends and bank holidays to practice riding several days back to back. On your trip you will be riding nearly every day.
Get your bike set up properly by a respected bike shop. Poorly fitted equipment is the leading cause of injury or cycling discomfort.
Build up slowly. As soon as your holiday is booked start gradually increasing the volume of cycling you undertake.
Cycling fitness isn’t just about cycling. Basic weight training, stretching and core stability exercises develop all round fitness making you a better, more resilient, bike rider.
Use any new equipment - including clothing, shorts and shoes- frequently in advance of your trip to make sure they are comfortable and there are no problems.
Watch your diet. Cycling requires a lot of fuel both to exercise and recover from your exertions. Make sure that you are providing yourself with the best fuel possible.
If you are riding for more than an hour use a carbohydrate sports drink to help maintain hydration and provide energy. Take a supply with you on your trip.
The “glycogen window” refers to the first fifteen minutes after finishing exercise when your body is most able to absorb food and start the recovery process. Make best use of this opportunity by eating a small snack of carbohydrate and protein.
Recovery drinks contain both carbohydrate and protein for rapid refuelling after exercise. They are very useful if you are short on time or don’t feel particularly hungry after exercise.
Occasionally cyclists may develop an overuse injury such as knee injury, most likely from increasing mileage too quickly or a poor bike riding position or technique. If this happens to you in the build up to your trip get it investigated by a physiotherapist as soon as possible.

Turkey to Georgian border [ on going plan..didnt go for it]

2008-04-26T02:51:00.001-07:00

For the past one and a half months,i've been sticking with my plans of going from Istanbul,Turkey and go overland by train until i reach Erzurum,drop off the train and get on a mini bus/dolmus to Sarap(the Georgian border) and then Sarap to Batumi,Georgia(mini bus also)

Turkey to Georgia

i've searched high and low on the bus from Erzurum/Kars to Georgian border.But all i got is just some vague pictures on how its like.There's no means of booking these mini buses.
There are two ways of doing this

Crossing the Turkish-Georgian Border at Posof (train stops at Kars)
You take a minibus from the minibus station in Kars to Posof (4 hours), then a taxi/minibus via Türközü and Eminbey to the border (30 minutes).

The road on the Georgian side is very bad. You have to get a taxi (US$25) that will take you to Akhaltsikhe.
From Akhaltsikhe it's easy to get to Tbilisi by minibus
Crossing the Turkish-Georgian Border at Sarp (train stops at Erzurum)

First, take a bus to Hopa on the black sea and you will arrive at the small but chaotic bus terminal. Walk directly out of the terminal and walk left down the road for about 3 minutes. You will see a small shack on the left side of the road with some small minivans with the English name Sarp in the window. The cost is 3 Turkish Lira and they will take you to Sarp. Get off the bus at the border and look to your right for a building that says Passports. Go inside and get your passport stamped. (small stamp) Next, walk straight and go through the four checkpoints

#1 is a small hut with a guard and he will check to see if your passport is stamped.
#2 is to go to the small window on the left with the woman and she enter your passport info onto the computer.
#3 Go through the carwash looking terminal (look up and for the picture of a man walking) and get in line. You dont have to fill in the Russian or Georgian forms as tourists are not required to fill them out.
#4 Go through the final posting and go to the NEW tourist information center!!! They speak English too!!! They will even manage to find you a hotel and taxi for about 10 $ US dollars and the taxi brings you to the hotel doorstep. Hope this helps!

These info's are only a few gatherings i've made from my researches through out the whole planning period.i've never actually experienced the things i've written down.So some of them might not be exact.If anyone has anymore updates,feel free to email me at leffa.atta@gmail.com

If you want to go the other way round:

The other way round Georgia-Turkey:

Crossing the border from Batumi to Hopa in Turkey via the Sarpi/Sarp crossing is easy. The Georgian side were very friendly, and some of the guards joked about me giving them a dollar for cigarettes and vodka, but there was no pressure, no annoyance when I refused, and no searching of bags. The Turkish side was also simple, and took less than five minutes. The biggest problem was getting to Hopa from the border. Taxi drivers know they can charge what they like, because you either take a taxi or you spend the rest of your life at the border...the only road to Hopa goes through a tunnel, which you can't walk through, and there are no buses and not enough traffic for hitching. The journey should cost no more that two million lira Getting to and from Batumi is no problem as there are regular minibuses to the border (there is a popular beach in the village of Sarpi), and it is very cheap.

I cancelled this route because at first i thought that with my Malaysian passport , i could just get the Georgian Visa upon arrival.But since i'm going overland, it seems that this rules only applies to people that came by flight,and may just apply their visa at the airport for just 10USD....hmph....that leads to me having to apply for a visa in London at the Republic of Georgia Embassy.One of the requirenments is that i need to have a letter of invitation(LOI) with me.Now..as all of you fellow travelers might know..and have experience these paper work ****, Many Money = Easy LOI , No Money = No LOI...guess which one i stands for?u know the answer.But i havent found a single company or website that offers to do a LOI to Georgia.Again,if anyone knows how..email me~~.

Georgian Railway

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Chinese Visa during Olympics..[on going plan]

2008-04-26T02:37:00.001-07:00

I tried to find a way to go in and out of China overland.But i guess i picked the wrong time of the year to do this overland stuff.Hmph.Its Olympic people!~and The Chinese
Visa recently tightened their rule for foreigners to get a visa.We need a copy of in/outbound flight to China and the hostel booking confirmation of where we're gonna stay.
It took me about 3 weeks to settle this thing.At first i tought that i could just book in advance the trains i'm gonna be in from Almaty to Urumqi and Guilin to Hanoi.but nooooo~
after endless of emails sent to trip advisors,travel guides,so called train bookers..then i finally found the answer i've been craving to know...but didnt quite exceed my expactations.(well that serves me right for wasting endless time on the net searching for these instead of revising for the upcoming exams..;p)

Nope..i'm not alowed to do that.The one and only way to get a Chinese Visa is to book the stuupid flights.hmph..again.what?dont belive me?well read this yourself .
For anyone interested to know,i found lots of websites that anables you to book China train online ..domestically.

To buy Almaty to Urmuqi train online
To Check for the trains schedules and trsain numbers in China
China Domestic online booking trains Nihao China Tours[recommeded!replies your email promptly!and service charge is 6GBP!]
Train bookings to and from main capitals in China only
Online bookings[need to email booking@cbw.com to book other destination.]
Train traveler websites
Other domestic train online bookings CITS[ service charge is 30GBP..too much]
or email to markinfo@163.com for specific train bookings[ doesnt work for me..ask him how much he charges first,then give him the train details you want..or you'll end up paying overpriced tix]

So yeah...money goes down the drain again..but money is not the matter(well..at least thats what i've been telling myself over and over again..but my bank statements seems to prove me wrong) .The real matter is the experience!I WANTED that experience.to ride the train from Almaty to Urumqi.

Plan B:
Ok..so the plan B seems like..its not gonna work.I recently found out that Malaysian passports wont need a visa to go through Kyrzygstan.And plus..its right next to the Chinese border.So the plan B was to catch a flight from Tehran to Bishkek(flight..again) then from Bishkek to Osh(since the only transport to cross the border starts from Osh..and Osh seems like a beautiful village).Then need to find travellers to share a car/van/taxi to the border.We need a pass for that.its called the Irkeshtam Pass:

It is the border between China and Kyrgyzistan. It opens all year round.It dosen't need any permits. You can cross the border, if you have a valid visa. There are two buses in a week. They are on Thursday, and Monday. It is 420 RMB for a ticket. It takes about 30 hours. Second option, you could rent a car to the border and from the border, you can find a car, taxi or truck to any city of Kyrgyzistan easily. It is 240km from Kashgar to the border. From Kyrgyz border to Saritash is 78 km. For more info, abdultour@yahoo.com is at your service. ---> http://www.silkroadinn.com

but theeeen...this option will only get me into China..but noot the Chinese Visa..as i couldnt book them in advance.This option does looks more interesting and more adventures too.

hrmm..so..should i just book the flights and be the rule-abiding-human-being?or should i book the flight just as a dummy paper to get a visa..and use the trains instead?nyeeeh hehehhehee*evil laugh*~~~

Blogged with the Flock Browser