Singapore

We spent a week in spotless Singapore visiting the Telmers and having great fun with my young nephews, Jack and Luke, and niece Madison. Maria and Craig took us to some great local restaurants - we absolutely loved the pepper crab - and showed us some of the sights.

But our favourite day was our impromptu visit to Jack's school. While I managed to bore an entire class of six-year-olds by talking about hunger in Malawi, Erwin had a great time playing soccer with Jack and his classmates. Erwin has never been so popular. :)

Thank you Jack, Luke and Maddy for making our stay in Singapore so much fun. And thank you to Maria and Craig for being gracious hosts and taking us all over town and, particularly for transporting our giant suitcase back to Europe (fortunately customs failed to check the double bottom).

Laos

Luang Prabang

This small, charming city is a lovely place to unwind for a few days, exploring the lively night market, eating your way around town and bargaining for trinkets from the very young local girls. "Today is your lucky day, sir. Morning prices... Cheaper than cheap. 10,000 kip? Cannot do sir, I loooose money!"

We stayed in a great hotel on the river (Sala Prabang) with comfy rooms and great service.

Our only advice is about the SLOOOOOWWWWWW boat to Luang Prabang: don't do it! The boat ride is excruciatingly long and the seating uncomfortable and cramped. While the views of the Mekong River are lovely, you can easily arrange a boat ride once you're in Luang Prabang. Flying into the city is a much better option.

Vientienne

We enjoyed spending time in this lovely city. It offers some beautiful temples and great, inexpensive restaurants. To explore the out-of-city sights, we rented a motorcycle and hit the road. We met some friendly locals and spent the night in a beautiful hotel in a small, untouristy town - we had the whole place to ourselves!

Beware: if you rent a moped or motorcycle, do not leave your vehicle lights on during the day. It's against the law in Laos! We needed to pay a "fine" of 150,000 kip (12 euros) to a police officer and his buddies. No doubt they enjoyed a few cool beers on our behalf.