Ma Pi Leng Pass, Ha Giang, Vietnam
The north-west province of Ha Giang is as north-west as you can get in Vietnam. Only a dumpling toss away from China this is Vietnam’s wild frontier with secluded mountain villages and one of the most spectacular mountain-pass drives in the world. The gorge road between the delightful towns of Dong Van to Meo Vac snakes its way precariously on the edge of towering cliffs of bright green. It was good that the scenery was so stunning because you didn’t notice the sheer drop next to the narrow road without safety barriers.

Dumplings, Singapore
I was in Singapore for the Singapore Writer’s festival and one of my big highlights was eating dumplings at Din Tai Fung restaurant. This Taiwanese based restaurant is famous around the world (the two Hong Kong restaurants both have one Michelin star!). There are 12 Din Tai Fung restaurants in Singapore and I had to see what the fuss was all about. Well, it was certainly worth the fuss – their dumplings are hands down the best, tastiest and juiciest dumplings I’ve ever eaten. And, the great news is that there are three Din Tai Fung restaurants in Sydney. I know where I’ll be heading when I go up to Sydney next.

Manly, Sydney, Australia
Talking about Sydney, I took Beth up to Sin City a few months back and she absolutely loved it. And with a day like we had it would have been hard not to. We began the day with a stroll through the city down to Circular Quay, then jumped on the Manly ferry across Sydney harbour (which has to be one of the most spectacular commutes in the world for those lucky enough to live in Manly) and when we got to Manly had fish and chips on the pier overlooking the harbour. After lunch we hired a tandem bicycle and rode up to North Head then all along Manly beach. We then caught the ferry back to the city as the sun dropped. it was perfectly romantic, even if I did do all the peddling on the tandem.

Disneyland and Universal Studios, Los Angeles, USA
I went to both of these 22 years ago and it was fun, but not as fun as seeing my 9 year-old daughter’s face when she almost wet herself on Splash Mountain (well, she did get very wet but that was the splashing from Splash Mountain), and when she squealed with delight on the Simpson’s ride at universal Studios (I did a bit of squealing myself, too, actually), or when she squeezed my hand so tight when King Kong jumped on top of the tour train on the Universal Studio Tour and when I finally, after all these years, I let her have Fairy Floss (or Cotton Candy). The dentist bill will be more than the entrance to both parks!

Cooking class, Hanoi, Vietnam
I’ve always wanted to do a cooking class in my travels, but never got around to it.  I’m so glad that I finally did one, and best of all, it was absolutely wonderful. The cooking school belonged to Hidden Hanoi and we spent hours (there were three of us) cutting and dicing and pestling and frying and grilling to make ’simple’ street food. The spring rolls were the best spring rolls I’d ever eaten (even if I do say so myself). I did try to make the three-course meal at home, however, and it took me all day to prepare and my spring rolls looked like squashed piles of mess (although the four glasses of wine I had while doing all the slicing may have had something to do with that!).

Isla Mujeres, Mexico
This is as idyllic as it gets. There was white sand beaches, swimming with dolphins, downing margaritas as big as my head, staying at the perfectly divine Villa Rolandi hotel, cruising around the island in a golf buggy, romantic lobster dinners on the beach, Coronas in the jacuzzi, Mexican eggs for breakfast right on the water and, oh, it was also my honeymoon!

A veritable feast of feasts, Ubud, Bali
This was my third time to the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival and, yes the events are fantastic, and the venues are wonderful, and the crowds are great and Ubud is a beautiful town, but the highlight for me is the food. As a guest at the festival we are invited to banquets every single night. Every night we were presented with tables laden with local specialties including my favourites such as Babi guling (roast suckling pig), Sate lilit (minced seafood satay, served wrapped around a twig of lemongrass), Urutan (Balinese spicy sausage), Opor ayam (chicken cooked in coconut milk) and the list keeps going (and so did the size of my stomach). I staggered home every night (although the bottomless glasses of wine may have helped there as well).

Kayaking, Cat Ba Island, Vietnam
After taking the prerequisite overnight boat cruise around Halong Bay I stayed at this tiny ‘resort’ (see below) which I shared with four other guests. I then spent the entire afternoon paddling around (and under) the countless magnificent limestone karsts and isles that rise out of the clear waters away from the maddening crowds. I even found my own private little beach that I only shared with a few empty bottles and couple of crabs.

Winter fun in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
It was very warm winter as far as Minnesota winters go (it was a mostly around a balmy -3 instead of the usual -20), but we still did lots of fun winter things like skiing (at Welch village which is only 40 minutes out of town), tubing (which is sooo much fun and one day jasmine and I had the entire Tubing Park to ourselves – see pic below), building snowmen (or more like a snow dwarf – or whatever the politically correct term is now for small people), snow fights (Jasmine will say that she won, but I got her a beauty in the back of her head), and my favourite thing – setting off a giant box of fireworks on new years eve in a snowstorm!

Hotel Esencia, Xpu Ha (halfway between Playa del Carmen and Tulum), Mexico
Para, Para, Paradise…. Chris Martin must have been singing about Hotel Esencia. Every tiny detail was just perfect. There was the perfect white sand and warm aqua water, stunningly designed room with private pool and great little touches like an iPod full of cool latino music, brewed coffee on call, and a free minibar stocked with funky Mexican beers. The ‘Mexican’ breakfasts were to die for and the gourmet Mexican cuisine in the gorgeous restaurant was even better. The beach was perfectly quiet with our own little grass hut with table service for lunch and cocktails. And to top it off I was there with the most wonderful girl in the world!

And it is was so beautiful that I have to show you another shot of that beach…

I’ve got a few fun trips planned for 2012 (if they all come off) including Morocco, Argentina, Vietnam and Newcastle (no, not upon-Tyne but Newcastle upon-the NSW-coast.

So, do you have a travel ‘highlight’ of 2011 or any great trips planned for 2012?

My fat head period…

With hoop earring and strange hoop around mouth

My first trip OS passport (wow, don’t I look young and all innocent)

My first passport (okay, it’s not me but they are some impressive ears)

One shocked baby passport photo

One shocking hair passport photo

Just plain shocking passport photo

Ummm….

Here’s me looking like David Beckham – no hang on it is Becks!

Do you have a funny passport photo? If you’re game you can post it on my Facebook page here.

Meo Vac in northern Vietnam

Ha Giang in northern Vietnam.

Boat man in Halong bay, Vietnam.

Heavenly Valley, Mt Hotham, Victoria

Looking towards Mary’s Slide, Mt Hotham.

My beautiful daughter Jasmine at Mt Hotham.

Rome, Italy (okay, I wish it was Rome – it’s Lygon Street in Carlton, Melbourne)

The Mansion Hotel, Ubud, Bali.

The pool at Okiwati’s Guesthouse, Ubud, Bali.

Port Phillip Estate, Red Hill, Victoria.

The Marina Bay Sands Hotel, Singapore.

The I’ve-Forgotten-The-Name Bridge, Singapore.

If you’ve taken some good Instagram (or Hipstamatic) shots I’d love to see them. You can post them on my Facebook page here.

The Call of the Weird: Travels in American Subcultures – Louis Theroux
I enjoyed Louis Theroux’s TV show ‘Weird Weekends’ from a few years back and this book is the follow up. Theroux (who is the son Paul Theroux, one of my favourite travel writers) embarks on a six-month roadtrip across the United States, tracking down and providing updates on some of the more interesting subjects from his show. There’s all sorts of wacky folk and you could read this book having never seen a Louie show and still be entertained, moved and in some places saddened.

Awkward Situations for Men – Danny Wallace
This book was in the ‘travel’ section of the bookshop, but it’s not really a travel book. I do like Mr Wallace and his other books, but this book is more of a collection of anecdotes about his everyday life.  They are all individually very funny, but it means that the book lacks the cohesive story that all of his other books have had. The quality of his writing still shine through, however, and it is a very amusing and enjoyable read.

Made in America – Bill Bryson
This is one of Bill Bryson’s earlier books, which again isn’t quite a travel book but is found in the travel section.This book, which is the based around the history of the English language in America, is part language analysis, part U.S. history lesson and is filled with anecdotes and fun facts that make it a page-turner.

Where underpants come from – Joe Bennett
Joe Bennett, an ex-pat Pom living in NZ, follows what it took to create, ship and sell a pair of men’s underwear. His quest starts from a supermarket in New Zealand on to container ships coming from China. He travels to China and explores the factories and workers involved in creating all thsoe cheap underdaks. Very funny and interesting.

Between Terror and Tourism – Michael Mewshaw
The author sets out on an overland journey from Alexandria, Egypt to Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco and mostly travels with a driver/fixer in each country. Not real adventurous travel stuff – even though he was in potentially adventurous countries - but the writing is very good. Sadly though, not a lot happens – there are lots of long car rides, fading cities, troubles with travel arrangements and some ruins.

Dave Gorman vs The Rest of the World – Dave Gorman
I’m a big fan of Dave Gorman’s books, and although I thoroughly enjoyed this one it’s not as good as his previous titles. In this book he plays lots of games. Gorman tweeted his twittees asking if anyone fancied a game of something and he ends up playing all sorts from skittles to extreme frisbee to monopoly and Kubb. The book doesn’t have the bizarre twists of his previous books, but that boy sure can write a funny yarn.

So, have you read any good travel books this year?

…Adrianna Moore and Glenn Sutcliffe.

Adrianna is a U.S. Army Green Beret from Seattle (so I had to give it to her because she probably has a large gun) and Glenn from somewhere in Australia who threatened to send me nude photos of himself if he didn’t win. Here are the winning photos…

Adrianna getting touched up in Abu Dhabi.

Glenn at a full moon party in Koh Phangang, Thailand. Glenn thought that in his drunken wisdom a pair of 50 baht (although he paid 500) glow in the dark glasses would bring out his eyes and/or get him laid. Neither of which occurred he said.

Thanks everyone for posting your pics. It was fun seeing peoples first travel snaps. I’ll be running another competition soon. I’ll be giving away some of my other books and Naked Man T-shirts (that’s T-shirts made for my book ‘The Naked Man Festival’ not a T-shirt with a naked man on it).

Here are a few more pics…

My yellow bright ski jacket does seem a little out of place with gumboots on a farm in Somerset.

Blowing my own trumpet in Kitzbühel, Austria – although I’m not sure why I’m wearing the curtains.

Oh, what a theme park! (Three years later and I’m still wearing high-top bright white runners and shirts tucked into my tracksuit pants!)

My ‘wild hair’ look in Hawaii (and with only two days before I got home I finally untucked my T-shirt!)

Don’t forget – get those pics posted and like me. I just want people to like me…

Wearing my oh so bright brand new runners in a hotel room in Frankfurt on my first day on my first big trip OS!

Wearing my oh so bright brand new yellow ski jacket in Davos, Switzerland (I caught a train from Frankfurt and then spent three weeks blowing three months of travel budget skiing!)

Wearing my oh so cool sunglasses that I brought in 1986  (that were hidden away in a box for the 20 years until I discovered them and started wearing them again  - but minus the leather straps!)

Wearing my oh so cool Wayfarers, pink Lacoste  polo shirt and bright red socks. This is our bikie gang in Corfu, Greece.

Washing dishes in a kid’s summer camp in Salzkammergut, Austria with Adam from NY. And after 4 months of travel my mullet was coming along nicely!

I’m not sure what I’m doing in this fountain in Strasbourg, France and I’m not sure why I insisted on tucking my T-shirts into my board shorts!

My first birthday overseas. Well, not my 1st birthday, but you know what I mean. I’m in Zermatt, Switzerland and the candles are in the goop that was dessert in the Zermatt Youth Hostel!

Okay, so now it’s your turn. Let’s see those mullets, high pants and maybe even a bell-bottom or two…

Mind you, at another event of mine they put out about 40 chairs and 10 people turned up. That event was ‘Meet the Author’ and it took place in Malaysia. Okay, it wasn’t Malaysia, but it was at the Woodlands Library in the far north of Singapore island near the bridge to Malaysia. I’d been in contact with the head librarian and we had this big event planned with a powerpoint presentation followed by an interesting Q&A session. I arrived at the library, which was full of locals, and my room for the presentation was all set up – including a table full of cakes and food and drinks. Then at the  four o’clock starting time we had… two people (well, five if you count to two librarians and Clara my personal liason girl who travelled with me from the city). We eventually rounded up a few more more punters, even though half of them were young kids and I had to quickly skip the slides about the ‘SUPER PUSSY’ club in Patong and the gay hotel in Bangkok. At least I didn’t get lost like I did at the Ubud Writer’s festival the week before.

One of my ’sessions’ at the Ubud Writer’s Festival was a Jalan Jalan, which was supposed to be a lovely walk out of Ubud across Campuhan ridge and ending up at a villa for breakfast. Except the two writer’s festival volunteers didn’t know where the villa was and we got lost. Then it started pouring with rain and we squeezed under a very narrow awning of someone’s house. While one volunteer rode around in the rain on the back of a scooter trying to find the villa the other volunteer rang for a lift. We did eventually get to the very nice Villa Keliki in time for breakfast, although some of my flock were drenched through. At least my talks are exciting!

Here are some shots from the Singapore Writer’s festival and a few shots I took when I checked out the very flash indeed Marina Bay Sands Hotel…

Where’s Brian? The writer’s wall.

There I am…

The very flash walkway between venues.

Standing room only!

At least my fellow panelists were funny!

The Marina Bay Sands Hotel (with the an infinity pool on the roof stretching longer than the Eiffel tower laid down!)

Not bad, eh?

Some arty bridge near the Marina Bay Sands Hotel.

Look out for my next blog  - I will running a competition to win one of three signed copies of Tell Them to Get Lost!

I had lunch a couple times at Canderi’s Restaurant on Monkey Forest Road where in 1974 ‘the whole travelling population gathers at night to see Canderi perform miracles in her tiny kitchen’. Canderi was still in her tiny kitchen performing miracles 37 years later (although the kitchen is a bit bigger now). When I first visited Canderi three years ago she told me that she was 78 years old. ‘How old are you now?’ I asked when I met up with her this week.
‘I’m seventy-eight,’ she said.
‘But you were seventy-eight three years ago!’
‘I’m still seventy-eight,’ Canderi said with a big grin.
Also when I visited three years ago Canderi’s mum, Niketutmerti, was the oldest person in the village at 108. Sadly she passed away this year at the ripe old age of 110.

Canderi was very excited when I gave her a copy of my book and went around showing it proudly to the other lunchtime diners.

Canderi and my book.

Canderi is still cooking in that kitchen 37 years later!

I also dropped into Oka Watis (who featured in the book), but she was in Denpasar visiting family, so sadly I didn’t get a chance to catch up. I did leave a copy of my book for her though…

I’ve only been back a day and I miss Ubud and Bali already!

Oh, and if you fancy listening to me waffle on about my new book you can listen to my interview on the Detours travel show on JOYFM here.