February 2019: Street Food, Snakes, and Forgotten Flights

Accepting Defeat

After what felt like ages in Myanmar, we decided to terminate our time in Southeast Asia. We’ve had brilliant times in the region, but it can begin to feel stifling. What with the heat and the tourists, it’s taxing to get remote and banal to remain on the beaten path.

Now, it is well worth a trip. A long, slow one where you can fully take in the myriad of possibilities and cultures.

But for us, it was time to head back into the woods. And that meant it was time to get the fuck away from the equator.

Unfortunately, this meant doing the unthinkable: changing our flight with a budget airline.

Although we like to keep our plans flexible, we do plan and we do budget. That means booking a few flights in advance, the only realistic way to get rock bottom prices (US to Europe for $89 anyone? Or how about New York to Lima for $200?).

Unfortunately, if you renege on those most basic of basic economy flights, you get absolutely nothing back and have to book a completely new flight. We sucked this up (for the first time this year) with as much humility as we could muster.

Searching for WiFi

Because of our last minute decision to change continents, we had a week to kill. As we had a layover in Kuala Lumpur, we decided to spend it in Penang, home of wildly famous street art and food.

Turns out both of those things are abundant and awesome. Malay food is an interesting mix of Indian, Chinese, and Southeast Asian. We ate many curries and noodles and soups and only got a little ill (unusual for us in Southeast Asia). There were also some spectacular Chinese New Year celebrations and gnarly hot air balloon shows.

Another big goal of the week was to get some work done (writing and planning for the future). Wouldn’t you think that the most popular tourist destination in Malaysia has decent wifi? Well, you’d be wrong. That plan certainly didn’t come to fruition, but we did enjoy our hostel and its pool. $4 was never such good value.

Fighting Fire

So where were we planning to go after our untimely exodus?

Tasmania.

Yes, home of the Tasmanian Devil, although we did not see one.

This little-explored island is the only place we’ve travelled in Australia, and we bloody loved it. It’s rural and coastal and mountainous, with lovely people and some of the best access to the outdoors on the continent.

Unfortunately, it was also on fire. With unprecedented summer temperatures, much of the bush was burning. This meant that we couldn’t do some of the hikes we wanted, but we had an absolutely brilliant time in and around the South Coast Track, Bay of Fires, and Walls of Jerusalem National Park. We saw many snakes, only nearly got bitten once (yes, Stef walks tracks with poisonous snakes in sandals), and enjoyed our time in the boonies immensely.

We actually had to walk the South Coast Track twice (out and back), which took about two weeks, as our original exit plan was consumed in flames and we couldn’t afford the $200 light aircraft ride that everyone else takes. Ah, the joys of being on a budget.

Hitch hiker’s Guide to Tasmania

Some of our favorite times in Tassie were spent hitch hiking. The island is absolutely wonderful for this, the best experience we’ve had anywhere.

We caught rides with fabulously interesting people, most of whom were completely different than us. Hitch hiking puts you in a very interesting predicament where you must be engaged, grateful, and open to every single human you meet. Driver says something you whole heartedly disagree with? Better figure out how to have a respectful, open dialogue real quick. This is a lesson that many people we know (especially Americans) could desperately use right now.

It’s sometimes hard and sometimes you have to put your foot down regarding your safety or the safety of those you care about. But the humility that this sort of travel begets and the opportunity it provides to meet not-so-like-minded people and see their flaws and their points of view as well as their generosity, is unparalleled.

You’d be surprised how many disapproving looks we get on the side of the road. Or maybe you wouldn’t, because you’ve given them out before. One of these day’s we’ll write up a big long article about the joys, triumphs, sadness, and lessons that we’ve gained this year, sitting in the back seat of a stranger’s car.

But for now, we’ll just tell you this: if you see hitch hikers, and you are able to muster up the courage, pick them up. And if you can’t, smile and wave and don’t judge that which you don’t understand. Just as we try to do on the other end.

Cheers!

♡ Stef and Tor