Soaking up the wines, kangaroos and rolling hills of the Yarra Valley And raising money along the way
It’s 10am and we’re standing in the Foodworks carpark in Coldstream, the gateway to the Yarra Valley.
It’s not how I like to begin my Sundays. But this Sunday is different. This Sunday, my sister Julie and I have organised a Winery tour through the Yarra Valley to raise money for the kids at Amari Community Development School. You know the school, the one we travelled in 2016 to do some volunteer work, the one where the kids stole our hearts, the one in Uganda.
We’ve coerced 24 people to come along with us, to give us money that we can send on to help the school grow, to help the kids and the local community.
Twenty-four people who have never been to Uganda, who had never heard of Buliisa until we told them about it; 24 people who have opened their hearts and their wallets to help a community on the other side of the world.
The bus arrives early, and we begin loading stuff. We’ve got food, games, and raffle prizes – so many raffle prizes that everyone could walk away with a prize. And then we all pile on to the bus.
There are so many wineries in the Yarra Valley that it was hard for us to whittle it down to just four for this tour. We’ve been to many of them, but this time, we wanted to try some new estates.
The Yarra Valley, about an hour’s drive from Melbourne, is one of the premier winery locations in Australia. With more than 70 vineyards, it is a cool climate region best known for chardonnays, pinot noir and sparkling wines. But don’t discount their shiraz. In fact, we’re yet to find a wine we don’t like from this region.
But I digress, back to the tour.
First stop on our fundraising winery tour was Helen and Joeys. We were met by our host Emily and immediately made to feel welcome as she took us through the list of wines on their books. We stood on the expansive timber deck, overlooking the vines.
But the best bit about Helen and Joeys was the life-size Unicorn overlooking the spectacular views. Because seriously, what could be better than sitting on the back of a unicorn in a winery?!
From here we went on to Punt Road, which we had to include on the list as it happens to be one of Ade’s favourite wineries. Again they scuttled us outside and our group dispersed to the tables and the bocce pitch to enjoy the sunshine. Did I mention it was about 28 degrees in Melbourne? A perfect Autumn day.
Punt Road didn’t disappoint. The wines are beautiful, and the setting relaxing.
Lunch was at the beautiful old Yarra Valley Grand Hotel in Yarra Glen and then we were off to the next winery, Morgan Vineyards.
Our host, Simon, welcomed us warmly. He was funny and accommodating, nothing was too much trouble. The cellar door was small, but the vineyard was beautiful, a little boutique winery with roaming dogs and sheep.
After working our way through the list we moved on to our last vineyard for the day, Killara Estate. The views here are amazing. Our host Kevin ushered us down to the bottom deck, where we had the most amazing views over the vineyards and the rolling Yarra Valley hills, complete with kangaroos grazing in the fields.
Again Kevin took us through the wines, he was funny and helpful. And a shout out here to Killara, which donated the tasting fees back to us to give to Amari.
Overall we raised just over $2000 through games on the bus, banned words and ticket prices for the day. All the money will go to our friends at Amari to help them build a new kitchen for the school.
Not bad for a day’s outing. And we had a lot of fun in the process.
Yarra Valley – Fast Facts
We spent a day in the Yarra Valley, but as it’s not far from where we grew up, we’ve spent many days trying the different vineyards, and visiting the quaint towns.
How long should you spend here? You can spend a day on a tour, a weekend, or a week in the Yarra Valley, and you’ll find plenty to do and see.
Highlights: sitting on a unicorn in a winery, watching the kangaroos in the vineyards, driving through the rolling hills of the Yarra Valley.
Tip: If you’ve got the time check out the Yarra Valley Chocolaterie and the Yarra Valley Dairy.
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Finding travel inspiration from the people around us
I’ve just come back from Vietnam where I was lucky enough to be hosting a tour with Two’s a Crowd. It’s my second time to Vietnam in 12 months, Ade’s been there twice too, all with Two’s a Crowd. And it got me thinking, as I’ve been going through my photos and unpacking all my stuff, about the people we meet on tour and all the travel inspiration we receive from them.
Our job, and yes, it is a job, despite what my family says, allows us to travel the world, all the time chaperoning different groups of solo travellers through unfamiliar countries. In the past 12 months we’ve been to Peru, Mexico, Cuba, Canada and Alaska, Italy, Bolivia, Fiji… the list goes on.
Of course we love the travel, who wouldn’t? We get to see amazing locations for free, and get paid for the privilege, but as well as that we get to meet some amazing people and I always come home feeling completely inspired by the people on my tours.
The company generally attracts older solo travellers –somewhere between the ages of 45 and 75. Often, they’ve never travelled before; sometimes they’ve only recently lost their life partner. But they’re all trying something new, making the most out of life.
I’ve had people in their seventies who have hiked hours through hot sun to reach a tourist attraction, a woman in her late sixties who was determined to paraglide off the side of a mountain in Peru and another who made it as far as you can possibly go through the Cu Chi Tunnels – the small war tunnels – in Vietnam. She went through them on her own.
We take people to the edge of their comfort zone and beyond and they embrace every moment of it.
And while I can sometimes feel a little nervous about what’s next, my solo travellers face it all with gusto. They force me to challenge my own fears and remind me that it’s never too late to do something new, never too late to tick those items off your bucketlist. Teach me too how to face those fears and overcome them to – there’s nothing quite like getting outside of your comfort zone to know that you’re truly alive. And every time they fill me with a new sense of travel inspiration. A desire to get out and see more, experience more.
In Vietnam we took a boat ride up the Mekong Delta, visited the Cu Chi War tunnels and the Hanoi Hotel prison, we did a street food tour in Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi, spent a night on a junk on HaLong Bay and had clothes tailor made for us in HoiAn.
We went to a water puppet show and an acrobatics show, got caught in the traffic madness on a cyclo tour and checked out the frantic Chinese markets in Hanoi.
I didn’t go with my group to Cambodia this time, just a few continued on for the extension tour to Siem Reap to see Angkor Wat; but I saw the photos from that trip. And the one that stuck with me was a pic of all of them, drenched in water, water pistols in hand and ear-to-ear smiles across their faces.
The group was there during Cambodia new year’s eve celebrations and evidently in Cambodia, new year’s eve is marked by a giant water fight. Those from my tour who had gone on made the most of the freedom of being on holiday, they armed themselves with toy guns and took on the locals at their own game. And, as clichéd as it sounds, they truly lived in the moment.
When I come home from a tour I’m excited about the sites I’ve visited, the things I’ve seen and experienced, but equally, I’m amazed by the people I’ve travelled with. These every day people provide me with endless travel inspiration with their zest for life and willingness to embrace whatever travel throws at them, and let’s be honest, travel can throw some tough curve balls!
Who or what inspires you to travel?
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Coconuts, kava and crab races in Fiji
When you think of Fiji you think of gentle lapping waves, coconuts, brightly coloured fish and palm trees.
Imagine then, waking up every morning, hearing the ocean crashing outside, feeling the lull of the waves gently rocking your boat and knowing that each day, you’ll find yourself on a different island, in a different paradise.
Such is a trip on board the MV Reef Endeavour, cruising through the islands of Fiji.
I’m here to host a tour with the Australian based solo travel company Two’s a Crowd. Yes, I know, it’s a tough job, but if someone has to do it, I’m pretty happy that it’s me!
Fiji has 332 islands as well as 522 islets. We don’t make it to all the islands – we’d be there all year, come to think of it, that may not be such a bad thing (mental note for the bucket list). But we don’t really need to. Instead we travel up through the Mamanuca Islands and into the Yasawa Islands.
These are some of the most beautiful islands of Fiji. So beautiful that Hollywood used Monoriki as the backdrop for the Tom Hanks’ movie Castaway – yes we stop there and yes, it’s as beautiful as you’d expect.
Cruising over lunch and by night, each morning and afternoon we stop at a different beach.
On our first full day on board the ship we stop at Brothers Island in the morning and Naviti Island in the afternoon.
But it’s not all lounging around on idyllic beaches, sometimes there are decisions to be made. Thinking to do. Shall we head out in a glass bottom boat, go snorkelling, lounge or swim on the beach or stay on the boat?
The beaches, when we arrive are deserted, except for some of the crew from our ship who have gone on ahead to set up the kayaks and paddle boards. They’ve set up the “bar” too – an esky full of drinks in case we need hydration. It’s thirsty work this lying on the beach under a cloudless sky.
We laze on the powdered white sands, summoning up the energy to walk the few metres to the clear blue ocean waters. We’re on a secluded island, just us and the crew making use of these waters, this beach.
After a few hours lazing in the sun we make our way back to the boat. It’s lunchtime, a smorgasbord of seafood and salads awaits.
By the time we’ve finished eating we’ve arrived at our next beach, Naviti Island. One of the more adventurous solo travellers pulls out a paddle board and tries gliding through the water. Taking her lead, another pair of solos, take out a kayak and investigate the waters further afield.
The next morning, for those feeling even more energetic there is a limestone cave to explore. A short walk up the side of a hill brings us to Sawa-i-lau. Inside we find a large cave and lagoon. A couple of the young men from the boat – our crew – come with us to show us the way and entertain us by climbing the walls inside the cave and jumping into the water below.
The rest of us remain happily in the water, watching in awe at the heights they climb to, but staying safely in the water.
At night we stop at Gunu and are treated to a traditional Lovo. The villagers set out a market for us on our arrival. They welcome us into their village and entertain us with traditional cultural music and dancing.
It’s one of two dinners we have on the islands, at the second we’ll be invited to take part in a kava ceremony. And will join in the dancing.
We stop at Monu Bay and are welcomed into a local church service. We wander through the surrounding village, where the children come out to greet us, pulling faces for our cameras.
We sail past the stunning islands, including Tokoriki, an idyllic island that Ade and I have stayed at before. The kind of island where your biggest decision is whether to lounge next to the pool or on the beach.
On Waya Islands we stop to visit a school. We sit outside, the ocean in the distance in front of us, and watch the children as they perform local dances that tell the story of life.
When they’re finished we walk through the nearby village, visiting a health care clinic, seeing how the Fijians live, learning about their days. We are taken inside the homes – inside a small basic hut to see what it’s like to live on a small Fijian island.
The next morning some of us get up early and climb the mountain behind the school. We take in the views over the islands, see our ship dwarfed by the vast ocean surrounding it.
At night there is a crab race. Tables bid to own a crab for the night and then coax and cajole their prized “athlete” to get over the line first, to be the first crab to fall off the table and to take home the winnings.
Our crew entertains us with local music and kava ceremonies.
And we finish the week wondering how it is that even though our senses have been so completely engaged, we can leave feeling so completely relaxed.
Fast Facts
We stayed on the Captain Cook Cruises – MV Reef Endeavour.
We were here for eight days.
Was it long enough? It was the perfect amount of time to unwind, soak up the sun and enjoy the Fijian culture.
Highlights: The cave and lagoon at Sawa-i-lau, visiting the schools and churches, kayaking in the calm, blue waters.
* I hosted this tour for Two’s a Crowd.
*This post first appeared on the Two’s a Crowd website.
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Embracing the spectacular and “other-worldly” views of Flinders Island
Wombats, wallabies, abundant birdlife, guest author Katherine Smith paints an idyllic scene of Flinders Island in the latest post in our You’ve Been Where series. Just try to avoid the snakes. And now we’re dreaming of rugged landscapes and lichen-covered rocky shores…
Who are you and what do you do for a living?
I’m Katherine and I work at the University of Melbourne, where I do all sorts of marketing and communications projects.
Where is home?
I live in Woodend, a village in the Macedon Ranges, about an hour north of Melbourne, with my partner Brian and two lazy, spoiled cats.
Where have you been? When did you go?
In September 2016 Brian and I spent a week on Flinders Island, a mountainous 1,367-square-kilometre island in Bass Strait, northeast of Tasmania, with a permanent population of around 800 people.
What were the highlights of your trip?
For nature lovers Flinders Island is amazing, a stunning, truly rugged and incredibly varied landscape, with the most amazing bird life. It’s the southernmost location on the East Asian Australasian Flyway for migratory birds and there are a couple of official Important Bird Areas. We kept a list of everyone we saw or heard, which was quite long by the end of the week.
The waters are considered some of the most pristine in the world, and the lichen-covered rocky shores and golden sand spectacular. September was too cold for swimming, but we paddled and vowed to come back in the summer sometime. Mount Strzelecki, at 756 meters, literally rises up out of the ocean. There are giant granite boulders looming about everywhere which give it an otherworldly atmosphere. There’s a definite spirit of place.
Our accommodation’s property was home to lots of Bennet’s wallaby families. They grazed meters from the deck where I drank my morning tea, joeys peeking their tiny faces out of mum’s pouch for a simultaneous mother-and-child nibble. There were wombats living on the property, along with quite a few snakes (the island is very snakey so caution in the bush is essential). The abundance of wildlife has a flipside though: the amount of roadkill is out of this world, even though we drove the 20 minutes from our accommodation to Whitemark (the main town) several times without seeing another vehicle.
Flinders generates its own wind-powered energy, and big white turbines line the roads. We thought they added a certain grandeur, and contrasted interestingly with the landscape.
Every evening brought a spectacular sunset, and the complete absence of light pollution meant stars like you’ve never seen! We stayed outside each night until the cold drove us inside, watching shooting stars and satellites go over, listening to night noises. It was magical.
What did you least like about your trip?
Getting there by air involves taking a VERY small plane (you can’t stand up), which is rather disturbing. Our pilots were VERY young and it was VERY warm inside until we got going properly and the air-con caught up. We made it there and back again without incident though, so props to Sharp Airlines.
Do you have any funny stories from your travels?
Funny in retrospect, it wasn’t at the time. We walked along the beach for about two hours and came to a gorgeous small bay ringed by a cliff looking out to a wild sea. It was sublime and I pulled off my shoes and socks to paddle in the foamy surf crashing onto the shore while Brian was oblivious, doing something technical with his camera. I ducked behind a rock for a ‘bio-break’, and when I re-emerged he was running absolutely panicked up the beach calling my name (which I couldn’t hear above the surf), fearing my sudden disappearance meant I’d been washed out to sea. When you hike they say you must always tell someone you’re ‘going’, and I guess that’s true for a beach-bush-wee as well if you care about your partner’s nerves.
What were the locals like?
A mix. Certainly not unfriendly, but not super-friendly, as you tend to find in small, isolated communities. Mostly farming families, non-resident yachties and fishers, a few alternative lifestylers, beef industry workers, some retired arty types (jewellery makers and wood turners and the like).
What was the food like?
Unlike King Island to its west, Flinders Island is not a foodie’s destination, apart from the Flinders Island beef, which is a premium export product. In particular, and very frustratingly for an island in the middle of pristine ocean, there was absolutely no fresh fish/seafood to be had (our favourite). Our host said what fish was available in the island’s two pubs was probably flown in frozen from Melbourne! I guess you are meant to have a boat and catch your own. But we cooked and had BBQs and enjoyed ourselves very well.
Did you learn anything about yourself or the world on this trip?
We in Australia are not very good at acknowledging the horrible truth about colonial treatment of Aboriginal Australians. A visit to Wybalenna historic site in the north of the island challenged us to acknowledge a cruel and shameful part of our national story, which I’d never even heard about before.
On a bleakish day we drove to this isolated, windswept valley where the 200 plus Indigenous Tasmanians who survived the so-called ‘Black Line’ massacres were exiled for their own ‘protection’ in 1835, made to wear western clothing, practice Christianity and desist from traditional ways. Settlement remains on the site include a chapel, remnants of a house, graves, and foundations of other small buildings.
Their lack of freedom, separation from country, families and children (who had been forcibly removed from them), cultural tensions within their population, disease, and scarcity of food destroyed their mental and physical health, and by 1847 there were only 48 survivors. They were removed once more, to Hobart, where they were left to ‘die out’. It was depressing, but a valuable and moving experience, one of the many relatively untold stories from Australian history.
Would you recommend others travel here?
For people who are sustained and moved by nature, who enjoy holidays living simply and being outdoors in their own company, or inside quietly by a cosy fire, absolutely.
Do you have any tips for people thinking of travelling here?
Wine lovers should book some extra freight with flights and take some mainland supplies along, to avoid the poor quality and/or high priced over-the-bar offerings in the pubs.
Been somewhere recently? We’d love to hear about it! Drop us a line allabroadau(@)gmail.com or leave a comment below.
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Cigars, mojitos and broken shoes – your average walk through the Vinales countryside
We’re trudging through the countryside in Vinales, Cuba. It’s hot, the sun is beating down on us and yet somehow the open air, the expanse surrounding us, brings with it a cool breeze.
And the countryside is just so pretty, so green, that we lose ourselves in the walk ahead of us.
When the bus dropped us off where country meets town, on the outskirts of Vinales, we were immediately stopped by a bullock and cart blocking our way on the narrow dirt road.
We had moved to the side, waiting for it to pass, and of course, photographing this symbol of the countryside, of times gone by, of another era, as be passed by.
Our tour guide, who seems to double as a comedian, immediately put us at ease with his easy, relaxed manner and knowledge of the countryside. I’m here hosting a tour with the Australian solo travel company Two’s a Crowd. I’ve travelled through Mexico with most of my group, and we’ve just come from the very cool city of Havana.
But Vinales could be a world away from Havana.
It’s a sleepy little town in western Cuba, known for its farming and cigar making. And while tourism is strong in the city, you wouldn’t know it. The city has retained a sense of its traditional way of life. There are no large hotels here; instead colonial style timber homes all painted in bright colours line the narrow roads. It’s not uncommon to see horse and carts crawling through the city centre, interspersed between the big old-timer cars.
But right now, we’re learning about the traditional way of life for the locals. Our guide stops frequently to explain plants, the scenery, the farming practices.
When we look up we can see the craggy face of the Sierra de los Organos Mountains – limestone hills known as mogotes that rise up sharply from the Vinales Valley that we’re now walking through.
Our guide sees a young man coming towards us, someone he knows. He stops and chats, asks after his family, where he’s been. The young man, who our guide tells us is just 18, has joined the army and has been away from his family for three months. His family is a farming family, they live in this valley, he tells us.
We continue walking, delicately balancing on a flattened log serving as a bridge to cross the river. We stop to watch as a man directs two bullocks pulling a plough across his fields and then we come to a farmhouse.
Our guide introduces us to the owner who shows us how they make coffee. Meanwhile a woman in my tour group has realised her shoe is broken; the sole is coming off, meaning she’ll have to do the rest of the walk barefoot. But our guide mentions it to the farmer whose house we’re visiting. He knows someone nearby, a cobbler. We wait and within minutes the cobbler arrives. He takes Jan’s shoe off to be mended, promising to have it back in 20 minutes or so, long enough for the rest of the group to enjoy a cup of thick Cuban coffee.
When the shoe comes back, fixed perfectly, we move off again. This time on to a cigar farm. We pile into a shed made from bamboo sticks, perch ourselves on the surrounding benches and watch as our guide and the farm owner’s son talk us through the process of growing and drying tobacco. He explains the methods of rolling it into cigars, tells us that all the farms have different ingredients that they use, something that makes it unique to their farmhouse.
And when he has finished rolling, when there is a completed cigar in front of him, and all our questions have been answered, he asks who would like to taste a real Cuban cigar?
There is trepidation initially; no one wants to go first. But eventually all the group get involved, they make smoke flumes and circles. They pose for photos and take in the taste, the experience of trying a Cuban cigar, and then, of course, we all buy.
We leave the farmhouse edging ever closer to the mogotes. The ground here is flat, with just the odd undulation. We follow the path as it curves through the vegetation, and then we spy the timber open-air hut our guide has us moving toward.
Our guide asks us who feels like a mojito, this is still Cuba afterall. We laugh, thinking he’s joking, but say yes anyway, because well, it is Cuba and anything is possible, plus we’ve walking for hours this morning taking in the Vinales countryside and its farming practices.
But as we draw closer to the hut we realise he’s not joking that even here, in the middle of the Vinales Valley, with nothing but farmland and spiky drought-loving vegetation surrounding us, there is a bar.
We take our seats around the single large table. The hut has a roof to keep the sun off, but open sides so we can continue to admire the view. We are handed menus, but the guide tells us about the in-house specialty – basically a large mojito with a special ingredient so we pretty much all follow his recommendation.
The owner brings us our cocktails and leaves us the bottle of rum – to spike the drinks to our own tastes.
When we’re finished, and fully revived, we pay our $US2 and continue the long slow walk back into town. Slower now, as the rum kicks in under the Cuban sun.
Been to Cuba? What was your highlight?
Fast Facts
This was part of a tour to Cuba that I hosted with Two’s a Crowd.
We stayed in local Casas – local homestays.
We were here for two nights.
Was it long enough? It was a perfect amount of time to check out the city and the valley and to just chill out. My group loved this little part of Cuba.
Highlights: Learning to make and then trying the Cuban cigars – touristy, we know, but when in Cuba… taking in the green beauty of the valley, relaxing with a mojito and some Cuban music on a lazy afternoon.
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Travel scams and how to avoid them
We love travel, really we do. But things don’t always go to plan on the road. Just as at home you need to be alert to email and phone scams, on the road you need to be alert to all kinds of people trying to help you part with your hard earned dollars – and we don’t just mean the helpful market stall holders and shop owners trying to sell you their wares.
Scams are rife when you’re travelling. There are some that are notorious, and some that are not so obvious, so here’s our quick guide to some of the scams we’ve come across during our travels. Some of them have sucked us in, some of them we’ve seen and some we’ve just heard about.
The Rice scam
We fell for this in Kenya, but we’ve heard about it in Vietnam, Cambodia and a few other developing nations. A man walks up and starts chatting to you. He’s very friendly, interested in finding out more about you and how your trip is going. Eventually he starts chatting to you about his sister/mother/school/ someone he knows that’s in trouble and a bag of rice would really help them out. Will you help? Just a small bag of rice. He’ll accompany you into the grocery store and try and talk you into buying the biggest bag they have. When you leave, he’ll most likely take the rice back and get a refund, pocketing the money.
The taxi scam
On our first trip to Italy we were stuck trying to get back to our accommodation in Rome when a very helpful local offered to share a taxi with us. Our good Samaritan hailed a cab and negotiated with the driver to get us home safely. When we got to our accommodation the taxi driver gave us the price. It was exorbitant. We’re pretty sure our good Samaritan had told the driver we were paying his fare as well. We argued, it fell on deaf ears and in the end we paid. But we also made a mental note – always carry small change so you don’t have to hand over big notes when you sense you’re about to be ripped off.
Crowd scam
Another scam in Italy – most people will tell you when you go to Italy keep your wits about you and watch out for the gypsies. They’ll tell you all kinds of stories from ‘the gypsies will throw a baby at you and when you go to grab it they pinch your wallet’ to they’ll stand very close to you on the train/bus and stealthily go into your bag, pocket, or hidden money wallet.
We haven’t seen the baby trick, but we have seen gypsies crowd around a woman, unsettle her, and while she’s distracted shoved a hand in her bag and walked off with her wallet. It all happened so quickly there was nothing she could do. We’ve also seen a man on a bus put his hand in a woman’s backpack and try to find her wallet. Luckily someone saw the attempted theft and alerted the unsuspecting woman. A good reminder to always keep your valuables in sight and be aware of who’s around you – wherever you are in the world.
Offering a hand scam
There are some places you go that are a real challenge. You know, you want to get to the top of that hill, but it’s just so steep and so far. Enter your good Samaritan. He’s a local, just happens to be here today and will support you as you walk up. Often he’ll call in a mate and they’ll walk one either side to make sure you get to the top. This happened to Ade’s parents at Sigirya in Sri Lanka, when they got to the top the locals asked for the equivalent of about $US300. In the end they paid about $10, a good wage for an hour’s work in Sri Lanka.
The help was worth the final price they paid, not the amount they tried to charge. Just be clear up front whether you’re good Samaritans are going to expect money. We always assume they will and if they don’t, if they’re doing it out of the goodness of their heart, which also often happens, we’re pleasantly surprised.
The unsolicited guide scam
You’re walking along and suddenly a very friendly local walks up beside you and strikes up a conversation. You think he’s just being nice, he starts pointing things out to you. Offers to show you the major sites. He’s not just being friendly. He’s hoping you’ll pay for him. We always tell people up front we don’t want a guide, if they would like to continue walking with us, we welcome them – it’s always great chatting to the locals and sharing a laugh.
We know of someone else who ended up paying for this in Tanzania and they said it was a great way to see the city through a local’s eyes. They felt confident going into places they probably wouldn’t have gone to on their own. And they helped a local earn some extra money.
It also happened to me in Myanmar when I was travelling with a friend. A young guy travelled with us at Mignon near Mandalay, pointing out the sites and showing us the best place for lunch. He was amusing and knowledgeable so we didn’t mind paying for his time and the entertainment.
Just be aware upfront whether or not you’ll be expected to pay.
Free gift scam
You’re walking along a river, through a city or near a temple – a tourist hotspot. Someone will come up and hold out an offering. It could be a piece of wool tied around your wrist as a blessing, a ‘free’ massage, a rose because you’re so beautiful. Once they’ve got it in your hand, on your wrist they’ll ask you for money, something to cover the cost. We’ve seen this in various places from India to Italy.
They’ll pressure you until you pay up. But know that, often, you can just hand the gift back.
Dropped wallet scam
We’ve seen this scam in our home town, Melbourne. Someone drops their wallet; you pick it up and call out to them, telling them they’ve just dropped their wallet. They’re so appreciative but then they check inside. There’s money missing – you must have stolen it. They’ll argue with you, bully you into giving them back the money you ‘obviously’ stole from them.
Closed hotel, tourist attraction scam
You’ve scoped out where you want to stay, got the address and are in the cab or tuk tuk, with your trusty guidebook, and are on your way. Or so you think. Suddenly the driver will tell you the hotel is closed and you need to stay somewhere else. It closed last year, they’ll tell you. They might even drive you past a hotel in a state of disrepair and tell you this is where it was. Luckily they have another option for you, somewhere they can recommend. They’ll get a kickback, of course, for delivering you to their preferred hotel. We’ve had this happen to us in India and Turkey. In Istanbul we persisted and found the hotel we were originally looking for. In India we relented and went with their option, the hotel was fine (though very noisy!).
Be aware that we have also heard of this happening at some tourist destinations – drivers may say it’s closed on this particular day and try and take you somewhere else instead.
Local knowledge scam
We fell for this in Bangkok, though we didn’t actually have to outlay any money, we just lost time. Our very helpful tuk tuk driver stopped at a temple. Inside we met a man, a local now living in the US. He told us about Thailand, gave us some ‘inside’ tips, such as you really should go home with new suits and gems, and then told us of course the best places to go for both. When he finished his spiel, we went back to our tuk tuk driver who just happened to suggest he could take us to these places. Fortunately we wanted to get suits made anyway, and his tailor seemed as good as any. We didn’t buy any gems.
Free fuel scam
You hop in a tuk tuk and negotiate a price. It’s pretty low, you feel satisfied that you’ve learnt the art of local negotiations. Then your driver suggests you stop to check out the local silks, just a quick stop and he’ll get free petrol stamps. This will happen a few more times. And it can take hours to get to your actual destination.
This happened to us in Bangkok (we were quite new to travelling when we visited Bangkok!), after three hours driving around we said we’d had enough and just wanted to go to the markets. He pulled over a few metres from where he’d originally picked us up, pointed to the light rail and said it’s three stops from here. (I know, I know, we’re not always the smartest travellers!)
Scams can happen anywhere, and you’ll probably get caught at some point. Our advice is to always be alert but don’t let the fear of a travel scam stop you enjoying your holiday. Also, not everyone is out to scam you. We’ve met some really lovely people who have helped us immensely while travelling and who have expected nothing in return.
We’ve had people drive us home from restaurants, airports, strangers have lent us money, people have invited us to parties.
Generally people who are trying to ‘scam’ you or who have some ‘business scheme’ for helping separate you from your money earn a lot less money than you do. Often they’re asking for less than you would spend on your morning coffee at home.
Some of these stories have become amusing anecdotes for us, every story just another thread in our tapestry of travel.
We always try to have a good laugh and stay polite and friendly with people when we travel, even if we suspect a travel scam. But always keep your valuables close, especially in a crowd and make sure you know where your wallet and passport are at all times.
Tell us it’s not just us? Share your own travel scam experiences with us and help us feel better about ourselves…
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Battling the crowds (and our travel bias) on a tour of China
It’s unusual for us to do a tour, unless its one we’re hosting. In the past our only tours have been day tours, single sight tours or personally guided tours – and of course the tours we host with Two’s a Crowd.
We did a tour in Tanzania, once, but as there were only three other people on the tour – a couple and their young adult daughter – we hardly think it counts. And in Kenya we basically designed our own tour. We contacted the Kenya Association of Tour Operators, told them what we wanted to do, they put it out to their members and just like that, we had our own personal guide.
But hosting our own tours with Two’s a Crowd has given us a new appreciation of the value of tours. It could also be the fact that we’re a bit, ahem, older now and like to be looked after sometimes when we’re travelling.
Sometimes it’s nice to just sit back and let someone else do all the worrying for you, to work out where you need to be when, what to do if things go wrong and to organise the tickets for all your day activities. At least, based on our experience as hosts, we imagine that’s what it’s like for guests on a tour.
It started when Ade saw a tour of China advertised through Webjet on the back of our local paper, an eight-day tour for just $999, including flights.
“You should do this,” he said to me.
“Get Sam (you may remember her from my Myanmar travels) or your sister and just go, it’s such a great deal.”
And so it was that Julie and I ended up on a tour of China for 11 days – when we went to book, it turned out that for just $300 more we could stay an extra three days. We decided it was worth staying on.
Forever dubious when something seems like a deal that’s too good (and with the words, if it seems too good to be true it probably is ringing in my ears) I checked out the itinerary and the accommodation before I left home. All appeared to be acceptable.
And if the websites were anything to go by, the accommodation was indeed, five-star.
I travelled through Uganda, where we volunteered at a primary school, and Cambodia with Julie so we weren’t new to travelling together.
The two of us travel well and tend to get very excited when we travel together. She is a very excitable person, and that energy rubs off on me. So we hadn’t even left Melbourne airport and we were finding giant coloured pandas – a promotion for China – to take selfies next to.
The first stop on our tour of China was Beijing where we joined hundreds of other Australian tourists all scrambling to figure which actual tour group we were in. There were about 50 of us in each group, ranging in age from early 20s to 70s, with most around the 50-65 age group. And at least five tour groups all travelling with the same company, all doing the same deal, or variations of that deal, as us.
Our first day was spent in a haze of jetlag and a determination to follow the correct tour guide. As you’d expect Beijing streets are crowded and locals aside the government is working hard to attract tourists from all around the world, adding to the already inflated population.
We walked through Tiananmen Square, wandered through the Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven.
The pace was brisk, so we moved through the sites quickly, Jing our guide pointing out the main features as we passed. Normally I like to sit and absorb new cities, to take in the sights and sounds and to people watch.
But there was no time for that on this tour. That’s not a bad thing, I’m not complaining. It’s just that a tour like this gives you the opportunity to see the highlights in a condensed amount of time. You keep moving to see as much as you can quickly. But it does give you a good overview of a city, an opportunity to see which bits you like, which bits you’d like to come back to explore a little deeper.
Our stop in Beijing included the stunning Summer Palace, Beijing Zoo to see the pandas – can you say you’ve been to China if you haven’t seen the pandas? – a stop at the Chinese Herbal Institute a tour through Hutong Village and of course a walk along the Great Wall.
We also stopped at a Cloisonne Factory and a Jade Exhibition where we resisted the temptation, and the strong sales tactics, to buy any local products.
From Beijing we moved on to Shanghai with stops in Suzhou, Hangzhou and Wuxi as well as the city of Shanghai.
Our tour included a tea plantation, a river cruise, a visit to the Lingering Garden, a silk mill, relaxing on a boat on Lake Tai, a cruise along the Grand Canal and a walk along Nanchang Street.
It did not include a karaoke session and yet somehow Julie and I managed to find a venue. We dragged two of the younger women from our tour along with us and sang very badly at the tops of our voices.
We visited a fresh water Pearl exhibition, a market that sold just about every kind of “knock off” product you could think of, walked along the Bund, checked out the views of the sprawling city from the 88th floor of the Jin Mao Tower Observation Deck and checked out the City God Temple of Shanghai – but not so much for the temple as for the labyrinth of market stalls that surround it.
And we travelled on the Meglev Train, with speeds of up to 460km/h it’s the fastest train in the world.
Eleven days in which we squeezed the highlights of Beijing and Shanghai. Eleven days of history, culture, information overload and fun.
We’ve often heard people say they wouldn’t do a tour, that they much prefer to travel on their own, see things at their own pace, in their own way. And, truth be told, we used to say the same thing.
But it’s such a shame. A tour is just a different way of travelling. You see and experience things that you probably wouldn’t on your own. Some good, some bad. You get to meet new people and see travel through a myriad of eyes, not just your own – again, some good, some bad.
Our tour of China was exciting and interesting. There were aspects that we didn’t like, and aspects that we loved, there were people who frustrated us, people who amused us and people who we found really interesting. But travel is like that.
However you choose to travel, it’s always about making the most of the experiences before you, embracing the challenges along the way and appreciating the beauty around you.
Fast Facts
We booked our tour of China through Webjet. Check out their website for other awesome holiday packages.
We travelled through China for 11 days with Nexus Tours.
Was it long enough? No! It was a fabulous introduction to China, but there is still so much more we want to see, and I’d definitely go back to Shanghai and Hangzhou.
Highlights: The Great Wall, the 88 million trees in Hangzhou making it truly a green city, the Hutong Village tour, karaoke.
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Gretna Green, Warwick Castle, Hadrian’s Wall… need we say more? A British tourist takes on Lancashire
What happens when a Brit living in New Zealand returns home as a tourist? In the latest in our ‘You’ve Been Where’ series Rachel Sawyer takes us to her home town in Lancashire, in north-west England. You just know she’s going to take us to all the best bits! Even if you’ve been before, we guarantee you’ll want to go back to see more of this beautiful country.
Who are you and what do you do for a living?
My name is Rachel Sawyer and I’m a freelance Marketer. I gave up the 9 to 5 a couple of years ago and decided to ‘go it alone’ – mainly so I could travel home a little more and work whenever and wherever!
Where is home?
I’ve been in New Zealand for the last nine years, becoming a citizen a few years ago. I love being here and adore the people and lifestyle, but ‘home’ will always be a little part of England they call Lancashire!
Where have you been? When did you go?
Since moving to the other side of the world, I’ve made the trip ‘home’ to the UK every couple of years. Just recently, with a bit more freedom up my sleeve, I decided to make it a twice yearly trip, cheekily enjoying two summers and avoiding the worst of NZ winter! This year we spent a most enjoyable ‘almost white Christmas’ there, heading off at the beginning of December and returning in January.
Who did you travel with?
The Christmas trip home is always particularly special as I get to take my partner Shane with me. And the family love him! Although I don’t mind travelling alone, the 32-hour trip home can be tiring, so having someone you know at your side makes everything just that little bit easier. And more enjoyable.
What were the highlights of your trip?
The best part of travelling with someone who is new to your country is the fact that you very often end up visiting spots that you haven’t been to yourself. First on most ‘Kiwi’s to do lists’ is ‘history’ and lots of it! From exploring the ramparts and towers of Warwick Castle, to seeing in the New Year clambering over Hadrian’s Wall, we saw our fair share, including unearthing some fascinating Roman Baths in the North West city of Lancaster. We experienced the silent magic of snowfall in the stunning Cotswolds on our way down to the thriving city of Bournemouth and took the ‘ferry across the Mersey’ in the big hearted city of Liverpool.
What did you least like about your trip?
The short days can always be a little challenging. And it’s no myth that the UK winter goes on for a while! On a good day, you might see sunrise at 9am, disappearing some time after 3pm. That said, on the other end of the scale, in summer the days go on forever and you can happily still find yourself sitting in the garden, glass of wine in hand at 11pm.
Do you have any funny stories from your travels?
We spent New Year’s Eve in Carlisle, pretty close to the Scottish border, so decided to cement our 2018 travel resolutions with a quick trip over the border to the nearest town – Gretna Green. For those unfamiliar, this tiny Scottish town, is famous for runaway weddings, dating back to when Scottish law allowed for marriages without parental consent, unlike England at the time. It’s now one of the most popular wedding destinations in the world, a fact unbeknown to Shane, who arrived looking rather alarmed, considering we’ve made our very own pact to never say ‘I do’ and just be happy ever after instead! Once he’d gotten over the shock, I managed to persuade him to get down on one knee. To tie his shoe lace and pose for a ‘comedy’ photo. Definitely one for the album!
What were the locals like?
One of the most fascinating parts of a trip to the UK is the difference in accents and personalities between bordering towns and we encountered a fair few on this holiday. From the quick witted Liverpudlians to the ‘ever so slightly’ snooty Cirencester folk. But if you’re looking for a bunch of people to truly warm your heart, you need go no further than the North West county of Lancashire. As my parents live there, we spent most of our time in and around it’s myriad of towns, mainly in Lytham St Annes, a small holiday town on the Fylde Coast. The locals are often referred to as ‘salt of the earth’ which basically means they’re thoroughly decent and will do anything to help you out. Especially if it involves brewing a pot of tea!
What was the food like?
You won’t go short of anything in the UK. From fabulous Sunday lunches in your local pub, to a plethora of supermarkets and food outlets serving up anything you can think of to eat in your own home. Things to try in Lancashire include its legendary hot pot, a hearty stew consisting of lamb or mutton and onion, topped with sliced potatoes and baked in a pot. Hence the name! It’s also worth hunting down a serving of fish and chips from a local chippy. And no trip is complete without pie and gravy. A ‘North of London’ staple.
Did you learn anything about yourself or the world on this trip?
I learned that no matter where you travel to in the world, there is nothing quite like walking back into a room full of your friends and family to remind you of where home lies. And that you should never forget just how cold a December day in Lancashire can be! Pack layers!
Would you recommend others travel here?
If you’ve never been to England, it’s absolutely worth a trip, but my advice would be to head out of London. Yes, there’s heaps to see and do in the capital, but to discover the ‘real’ UK, you need to hit the road and travel. Visit Scotland, head to Shakespeare country, discover the South Coast. Visit Lincoln Cathedral, the New Forest, the Pendle Hills. Take it all in and discover what it truly means to be a Brit.
Five of our most amazing travel experiences
Ade and I have been lucky enough to do quite a bit of travel. We like to explore cultures and get to know people while we travel, so sometimes our experiences are a little less conventional and off the usual tourist lists.
We’re often asked to help others plan their holidays or recommend ideas for tours and travel. And always people ask what are our most amazing travel experiences.
As I was helping out a friend recently on her upcoming trip to Europe, it got me thinking about some of our amazing travel experiences – ok, travel is never too far from my mind, but we can sometimes forget the awesome things we’ve seen as we search for the next great adventure.
So here it is, my list of the most amazing travel experiences we’ve had:
Surrounded by lions in the Masai Mara
We’d been on safari for almost two weeks and thought we’d seen it all. By now the animals had to do something pretty amazing to impress us and hold our attention.
But then we came across a pride of lions. Two big males – the king and his brother – the mum and their cubs, all of different ages.
There was no one else around but us. Two travellers and a driver/guide. We sat quietly in our van, watching, witnessing. The lions had recently killed a zebra and were taking it in turns to eat, the babies were full of energy. It was mating season. There was so much activity. We were in the middle of our own David Attenborough series.
One of the babies stole a large bit of meat, an older brother chased after it, the younger tripping over as it ran, but determined to hang on to its prize. Eventually it got away and lay down to enjoy its prize.
The large male, the brother of the king, decided it was his turn, roared loudly, scaring the other lions off. It also scared me!
The mum and dad wandered off to copulate. Eventually coming to rest beside our van, close enough that we could have leaned out the window and ruffled their fur.
Eventually our driver let other vans know where the lions were, but for one magical hour we had them all to ourselves.
Read more about our experience on safari.
Swinging across the top of the Alps in Europe
This has to be one of our all time favourite experiences – swinging across the tops of the alps, suspended in a tiny cablecar. It was just big enough for the two of us. The views from here are amazing – you can see the French, Swiss and Italian Alps spread out beneath you.
Chamonix is pretty stunning in its own right and there are so many beautiful walks to do. But then you can take the whole experience up to the next level by following a series of cablecars across country borders. The trip takes you from Chamonix in France to La Palud in Italy – yes you get to cross into Italy by cablecar, how very James Bond is that?
Read more about Chamonix.
Volunteering in Uganda
I can’t do a ‘best travel experiences’ list without including this one. Study after study has shown that if you really want to be happy practice altruism, and two weeks volunteering at a school in Buliisa, Uganda, gave my sister and I a fabulous dose of happiness..
Buliisa, is one of the poorest towns in Uganda. It is close to Murchison Falls and the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo. My sister and I stayed at the school, visited the children’s parents to learn more about how they live, and hung out like locals in the town. The combination of learning more about a culture so different from our own and knowing that we were doing just a tiny bit to help children in need made this extra special. Oh, and the animal safari at the start and gorilla trekking at the end were pretty amazing too!
The children, staff and even the local town got under my skin and I can’t wait to get back there. Hopefully next time Ade will come with me too!
Read more a about our time at Amari.
White water rafting on the Zambezi
In a moment of madness I decided to join Ade white water rafting while in Zambia. It’s probably worth pointing out that I suffer a bad case of FOMO (fear of missing out). I’m not much of a water person and white water rafting, in level five rapids? Seriously! But it was such an awesome thing to do. The rapids were tough, the guide even tougher, but the views were beautiful and the sense of achievement is something I will never forget.
Our guide forced us to get out and swim through the smaller (level two rapids) but then when we hit the calm waters and someone jumped out of the raft, lazily floating in the water, he started yelling, “get back in the raft, get back in the raft, there are crocodiles here!”. No one dared jump out again without our guides encouragement.
Bedding down in a gypsy hut in the Himalayas in India
Our trip to Kashmir wasn’t without its challenges, but it also had this – a few days living with a gypsy family in the Indian Himalayas. The area was beautiful, the fresh mountain air welcome after the craziness of Delhi, Agra and Varanasi and the walks something special.
But the thing about this stay that was really amazing, was sitting in the family’s living room with the family, in front of the open fire place and drinking tea. They didn’t speak English, we didn’t speak their language, but they made us feel so welcome. And we felt so fortunate to be able to see into the world of another culture, a culture so foreign to our own, even if only for a few days.
Want to read more about Kashmir?
What are your favourite travel experiences? We’d love to hear about them in the comments below.
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