Summer 2012 Recap : Update on my bucketlist

Remember the bucketlist I posted before I left for SE Asia? Well I thought I would share how I managed! Keep reading if you are intered in knowing whether or not I suceeded in achieving the goals I set for myslef for this summer :)

1) Dive in Koh Tao

Status : Success

Yep :D we went for a total of six fun dives in Koh Tao, all of which we're amazing. The reef is beautiful and there are so many fishes. Loved my experience and loved Koh Tao <3

2) Eat Pad thai


Status : Success

Well that's kind of an obvious one. I did even better than only eating it though. I went to a cooking class and learned how to make it. I will be making it at home quite soon! Would you all like to see pictures of the result?

3) See Angkor Wat

Status : Success

We went to Angkor wat and we quite enjoyed it even though it was a very hot out and there were pretty impressive crowds. The ruins are beautiful and the carvings are really well preserved.

4) Go to half/full moon party

Status : Success

We went to the full moon party. It was a blast! There were 9 bars along a huge stretch of perfect white sand beach, all playing different kinds of music. I got a neon dragon on my arm and danced in the sand until dawn. So much fun <3

I just realised I forgot to blog about Koh Phangan entirely :S oops! Here's a pic of me at the Full Moon Party though!

5) See "the beach"

Status : Success

We did and unfortunately it's really not that impressive. Don't get me wrong, Maya Bay is quite nice, but it's way too crowded and honestly, I've seen quite a few nicer beaches in Thailand. It was cool to be where the movie was filmed though!

This is Maya Bay, about one hour before sundown :)

6) Drink juice in a bag

Status : Success

Check! I had some juice in Hanoi from a street vendor. It ended up tasting gross (to me anyways) so I gave it to Mathieu after a few sips. Does it still count? XD

Not my best shot, but I had to get proof XD

7) Have coffee in a can

Status : Success

I had Nestlee coffee in can at least 10 times. I love the stuff. I wish we had it here.

8) Eat from street carts

Status : Success

We did it at the very begining of the trip. We had chicken on sticks from a cart. After that we had a bad experience with beef which smelled like poop (no kidding!) so we laid off the street food for the rest of the trip. :P

The offender

9) Go to Hanoi

Status : Success

While writing this list, I had no idea how much this particular item would mean to me later. Hanoi was simply a place I had heard the name of. Now that I have been, I can say it has been my favorite place in Vietnam by far. Hanoi is an amazing city.

10) Go on a multiple days hike

Status : Failed

I didn't do this one. Didn't really feel like sleeping in a village in the jungle. We did a one day hike though!

11) Leep my pack under 20 pounds

Status : Failed

I was almost going to check this one until the very end of the trip. However, with all the souvenirs I bought along the way, when we left Vietnam my bag weighed bit above 20  pounds (23-24 pounds). To make matters worse, once we arrived in Bangkok I bought a second smaller backpack to carry all my shopping and I filled it to the brim XD.

12) Take food pictures

Status : Success

This one doesn't need any explanation. I have about a million food pictures. I'm sorry to all who do not like seeing them. I must have aggravated you like crazy lol.

And in case you were not sick of food pictures yet, here is some banh cuon :P

13) Get in better shape

Status : ???

I'm not sure! lol I probably haven't gotten worse, but better? Who knows. Let's say I did, it can't be worse than the couch potato I was before I left, can it? :P

14) Go to a night market

Status : Success

We went to the Chiang Mai night market and I got a couple souvenirs there :D

15) Eat Pho

Status : Success

Again, I even learned how to do it! I love pho especially with loads of bean sprouts and rice noodles. Yummy <3

16) See the Mekong Delta

Status : Failed

We decided against it. Going there would have meant traveling south of Saigon, which was in the opposite direction of every other destination on our itinerary. We could have booked a day tour from Saigon, but we heard that the cheap tours were rip offs and the pricier alternatives were really expensive T_T.

17) Go to Halong Bay

Status : Failed

Almost! We got all the way to Cat Ba island near Halong Bay, but the weather was horrible. We stayed one night and left right away in case the weather worsened. We were afraid that if the weather got any worse we would get stranded on the island until it calmed down.

18) Go back to Chiang Mai

Status : Success

We went twice on this trip. Once at the begining and another time one month later with our friend from Quebec who had never been. I just love Chiang Mai. The atmosphere, the food, the people, the activities. Everything is great!



19) Drink a bucket

Status : Success

I had more that one :P (never by myself though!)

My total : 15/19 

Not bad :P