Wandering Fractal

Hoi An's river side. Vietnamese boats have eyes painted to frighten the crocodiles, sea monsters and evil spirits. The ancient port of Hội An has now shifted it's main activity from trading toward tourism. The town is full of old houses and pedestrian streets that makes it pleasant to stroll. The architecture is influenced by all the foreign traders that had settled there, mainly Chinese, but also a few Japanese, Portuguese, Dutch, Indians. The town can easily be visited in half a day, so I used the afternoon to go to the beach. I rented a bike and went to the An Bang beach, 5 km outside of town. It was one of the best I visited in Vietnam. The waves were big enough to surf, but unfortunately I couldn't find a place to rent a board. To go to Hội An, I took a train from Ho Chi Minh city to Nha Trang. I stayed a few days in this city but except the beach there isn't much to see. It's a very popular spot for Russian families and it was fun to see restaura...

Tanjung Bungah floating mosque. The city of George Town on Penang Island is full of historical buildings, great restaurants and of course shopping malls. My favorite eateries were : The Spicy Lemak (278 Lebuh Pantai). The place doesn't look fancy, but the Nasi Lemak was great. Yeap Noodles (227 Chulia St.). Homemade noodles with different flavors. Nasi Lemak at the Spicy Lemak restaurant. I took a day to go to the Feringghi beach on the north of the island. I rented a city bike to ride the 16km from my hostel to the beach. The first part was an easy stroll in the old town, but once I got out I was in the middle of traffic on huge roads with cars and trucks on my side. There was also some slopes and the bike had no gears. It wasn't a pleasant experience. The beach had nice sand. The water was a bit muddy but overall clean. You can swim but no more than a few meters from the shore because there is a lot of jet-ski and boats for paragliding. In conclusio...

Wreck of the S.S. Maheno Fraser island or K'Gari for the locals is the biggest sand island in the world. It's not a barren pile of sand as the name might suggest. It's actually covered by a rainforest with many lakes and rivers. It's an exceptional ecosystem. The main attraction is it's population of dingoes. Those native wild dogs can be spotted wandering on the island. The guides and rangers of the island made a good job of explaining the correct behavior to have in front of those animals: no feeding and stay away. In the past there was a few cases of tourists doing stupid thing and getting bitten as a result. There even was  a child who was killed by dingoes. I did a 3 days/ 2 nights tour on the island organised by the Palace Hostels & Adventures in Hervey Bay. It includes the camping, food, transport in jeeps and nights in their hostel before and after the tour. There are other tours by other companies but they are mostly similar. We spent most of...

Brisbane I made a stop in Surfer Paradise (yes that's the official name of a suburb) in the city of Gold Coast. There I met a friend who was in an English school. It's a party place, full of hotels and luxury shops. Between two nights of clubs and bars, I took a surfing lesson. With good waves conditions, a beginners board and the advice of a pro I was able to stand after less than an hour. But the next day when I tried by myself in huge waves and with a smaller board, well, I got a few bruises. I still need some training. Next I moved to Brisbane. I was there during the celebrations of ANZAC day and could see the military parade in the city center. It commemorates the Australian and New Zealand soldiers who fought during the wars. Me, learning to surf.

Surfers From Sydney I took the night bus to Byron Bay. This part of the east coast has only one bus option and it's the night one. Prepare some warm clothes because the air conditioning can be quite strong. After 12:45 hours I arrived in this small town near the sea. It has amazing beaches and a hippie vibe. The main activities are swimming, surfing and strolling along the beach. One good walk is to go all the way up to the lighthouse. I stayed in a hostel called Arts Factory Lodge . It's a bite outside of town and looks like a small hippie village (even more than Byron Bay itself). Don't expect a nice and quiet place. It's raucous, dirty and crowded, but it's a worthwhile experience. Tip: avoid the kitchen. It's more a battlefield than a cooking place. View from the lighthouse. Water pool at low tide. Cormorant

The Weka is a flightless bird endemic of New Zealand. On the south island, I went sea kayaking and trekking in the Abel Tasman National Park. There I could see: stingrays, seals, fishes, cormorant and the Weka. The best experience was sleeping in a boat in the middle of the park, where we could admire the Milky way in the sky and a bio-luminescent sea around the boat. The water was filled by plankton that would emit light if disturbed, thus moving your arm in the sea would make it glow. All the fishes moving around the boat where leaving a trail of light. It was a magical night. Part of the park seen from the trail. Cormorant. Swimming back to the boat after having jumped from its roof. Drifted stick on the beach growing back.

The Torri seen from the mountains. Miyajima is an island in the bay of Hiroshima. It has the famous Torii (sacred gate) in the sea. We spent a night on the island in a traditional house. During the day, there's a lot of tourist, but at night it's a completely different atmosphere. The village is desert of people and only the deer are roaming the streets. So if you want to go there, I would highly recommend to stay a night on the island. One of the many deer living on the island. At low tide, you can walk to the Torii. The sea floor is covered by coins of 1 Yen that people stuck in the cracks of the Torii. Yes, I like moss.