NOMA
NOVEMBER 2015 3 Switzerland
17 America 18 Life’s a Beach 20 Land of the Free, But not the Fat Free
5Bern 8 Marktgasse Market 9 France
10 Val Thornes 12 Mountain Meal 15 Malaysia
22 Travel Talk: Ameica
26 Asia
28 Mapsua
27 Goa
29 Travel Talk: South East Asia
SWITZERLAND
BERN
TRANSPORT Spoiler Alert: Guys, we messed up.
Transport: If you often have a pleasant commute to work or to see friends on public transport, you probably don’t live in Britain. Somewhere along the line we went wrong and Switzerland got it oh so right. No chewing gum on seats that are already seeping with people’s sweat and dog hairs. No local team of young hooligans running from one end of to avoid paying the ticket conductor, playing bad electronic dance music out loud tht burns your ears, and most importantly no constantly late trains and badly scheduled bus replacements in the not uncommon event that the train doesn’t show up at all.
ly met a bottle of detergent you are in a haven of public transport, immaculate, comfortable and quite an enjoyable experience. Firstly, they’re spacious! You’re knees don’t awkwardly touch those of the stranger in front of you, you can walk down the Isles freely, no need to start doing an elvis inspired twist passing by seats. The language barrier is non existent, Bern is an international city and for us brits who are typically quite lazy in the learning languages department (it’s not our fault, honest, they need to stop learning our language so we’re forced to learn theirs, right?)
MARKTGASSE, BERN
MARKTGASSE, BERN
MARKTGASSE MARKET Look no further. Just like your usual big city, Bern holds fruit and goods marker in the city cenopen from Mon-Saturday (most markets open only one or two days a week!) The market boasts over 200 stalls, and even if you’re not buying you get a true authentic feel of Swiss culture walking round and talking to the locals, you’ll even get a super original photo posing with a pair of fake ray bans on that you have no intention of buying, What more could you want for a Facebook I mean, we cant exactly be splurging here, you’ve just spent seven euros on a nutella crepe!
FRANCE
VAL THORNES For the snowsports generation.
WHAT COMES BEFORE PART B? VAL T!
MOUNTAIN MEAL 200 adolescents, drunk on red wine, getting naked for strangers, banging walls and causing chaos with no respect for their surrounding? Yep, that sounds like a mountain meal. It’s not for everyone, it’s. It for 95% of the population probably. But if you’re that hardcore 5% that loves a good day drinking session and and some meat fondue then add your name to the sign up sheet. Just try and keep the madness within its means, you’ll want an invitation back next year.
VAL THORNES, FRANCE
BAR 360, VAL THORNES
APRES
S
MALAYSIA it’s Europes biggest underground nightclub, and it’s worth the hype (sort of). Live bands on one stage, DJs on the other, tequila shotsin glasses of beer, every type of music, every type of person and people dancing on speakers (those photos will come back to haunt you, trust me). Despite the fact the place is packed with sweaty 20 something’s trying and failing to mix the French laid back atmosphere with the British slut dropping generation., you might only see your friends once the entire night after you get in and the bathroom although seemingly segregated becomes co-ed as the night goes on BUT the place really doesn’t have good vibe and you’ll even get in wearing your trainers. Tip: get your coat before 20 minutes before the club closes, that queue can get aggressive! But As long as you don’t mind entering the hunger games to try and get your jacket from the coat room at the end, you’ll have a great night.
VAL THORNES, FRANCE
VAL THORNES, FRANCE
AMERICA THE UNITED STATES OF
LIFE’S A BEACH
CLEARWATER BEACH The name says it all, white sand, stunning skies and, funnily enough, crystal clear water. Every traveler knows that the perfect family-friendly beach has to deliver more than just a picturesque scene. Enjoy the nightly “Sunsets at Pier 60” Festival where sunsets, music, magic and fun create lasting memories And don’t miss the Clearwater Jazz Festival (October 13-16, 2016) . There is always something special going on at Clearwater Beach. Bonus: This little Beauty is BYOB. The downside: Most 6 packs you see will be in beer form.
DAYTONA BEACH This beach is for the night- owls, those who prefer the ocean in the evening, or for your red heded friend who frazzles like bacon in the sun. Coco is a drive on beach, park the car and et up chair for the night, bring some food and drink and get the banter rolling. Perfect night for chilling with friends and even having a game or charades ( or to spend half an hour arguing over the correct pronunciation of charades. It’s Sha-rades by the way. Sha-rads? I don’t think so.)
AMER
ICA Land o
f
THE OUTBACK STEAKHOUSE Outback Steakhouse. Bringing the Bush to you belly. This Austrillain themed restaurant is perfect for a bite with pals when your not looking to get too dressed up but not looking to cook your own meal either. There is only one rule for the Out ack steakhouse, when ordering you starter, get the Blooming Onion, heck get two! Picture this, one large onion cut to and serve red with their spicy signature bloom sauce - absolutely mouthwatering. Aussie cheese fries are also a winner! It’s a chilled out atmosphere with Me
SONIC McDonald’s and Five Guys had a love child, and it’s name is SONIC. Some wil view SONIC as another fast food chain full of grease dropping burgers and cheap food for a late night drunken drive through, but if you look a little closer, it’s so much more than that. Not only do the employees wear a uniform of old school American diner roller skates, you even get to order like a true American. Put on that wonky a accent you’ve been practicing for weeks and try it with me “I’ll have two number 8s, a number 4 , three grape sodas, and Vanilla thing and it’s delicious. With 44 of the 50
15 minutes.
it’s the ultimate road trip food that will have a piece of your heart forever. (Probably in one of the clogged arteries.)
A,
f the f
ree, ju
st not
IHOP International House of Pancakes. A whole restaurant dedicated to the best breakfast food there ever was. It’s a classic, and you can’t cross the pond without visiting this place. Even if it’s just for the Instagram evidence. The menu boast ver and for those who like it a little more savoury in the morning you can also get a full breakfast, bacon rashers an all (It doesn’t really compete with a ry up, but they do try.) The ultimate bonus for those who do not fall into the morning person category, there’s no worries! IHOP is open all day for your pancake-y needs and even does deliveries and drive thru. Bon appetite
the fat
free.
FISHERMANS WARF, SF. Prawns, clams, muscles, salmon, haddock, crab, oysters, the list goes on. Fishermans Warf is a seafood lovers dream. the area is built on you know your get-
you’ll have forgotten all about it, plus it gives the place authenticity. The numbe one order at the warf is Clam Chowder pictured above) in every resurant. The main appeal is hat your bread and your bowl are one. once you started munhing, You will not be dissappointed and the best part - no dishes!
TRAVEL TALK: AMERICA
After living, working and travelling there for the past two summers, Glasgow’s Amanda McFall knows a little something about the US of A. I caught up with her to see what she has been getting up to across the pond.
T
ell me a little about your travelling.
“I have spent that last 2 summers working in Minnesota. It’s in the middle of America and no one has really heard of it but it’s got 10,000 lakes, that’s my claim to fame! Both summers I have travelled throughout Minnesota and 10 other states. I work hard at camp so traveling was well mer I have spent some time in Wisconsin, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, New York, Illinois, Tennessee, Nebraska and we drove through Iowa if that counts.” It does. Where was your favourite and least favourite place to visit? “My favourite part of traveling was working at camp in Minnesota. I love it with
all my heart but as for a favourite place, hmm, that’s hard because everywhere Nashville, Tennessee for the music and atmosphere but I also really enjoyed South Dakota because we seen Mount Rushmore, like, that’s pret-
South Dakota and we drove for miles down this dirt road to come to a sign that said trespassers will be shot and we thought best not take that risk so we had to reverse back the full path whilst racing the sun going down so it wasn’t pitch black.”
I had a least favourite place to spend time in, nothing too bad that it stands out now.”
How much did you need so save?
Was there any unexpected detours/adventure along the way? “Travels about planning, well in my experience it is anyway. We planned pretty well travelled on buses and planes and this past summer after a summer of work we took a road trip. I mean it wasn’t a detour but once we followed
“I go to America through a company called Camp Leaders – you should check them out! The summer camp I work at is for children and adults with disabilities so it’s incredibly rewarding. It’s also a job that means you get paid which makes traveling easy. I would take about $700-ish from my time at camp and use the money I make for my post camp travel. It’s a great way to spend your summer.”
“American culture is fantastic! It’s not so much a shock as your just like this place is so freaking cool. There’s a saying about Minnesota, “Minnesota Nice” and it’s because everyone is just so ly a big change from Glasgow but in a really good way. One thing that shocked me was how far apart everything was - no wonder everyone in America drives. They love their long straight roads and no one can cope if all of a sudden there is a round about. It’s just not a thing there.” Two summer is a long time. Would you go back? back to Minnesota in May to work another summer at camp. I’m counting the days
as always, it’s my home from home now, I can’t imagine my self not being there during the summer. With my degree coming to an end this year however, we will have to wait and see what the future holds for the summer after.”
though like South America, maybe Peru or Argentins. I like the idea of working abroad forever, you’re always happy waking up wen its sunny and you get to see so much of the world, plus it makes coming home Do you have plans to travel in all that more special and the future? “Travel plans? Oh god, I have so many. When you do it once you get the travel bug. For the near future it’ll be UK based travelling. When you work at camp the people you work with live all over but they become a second family to you and seeing them when you can becomes a priority. I have trips to Dublin and Liverpool planned. After camp this summer I don’t know what the future holds but I would really like to teach English in abroad so hopefully that.
home so much more. And as for camp I don’t know how I will ever cope with not going back, its a part of me now and if I could work there forever I 100% would, It’s the most phenomenal job in the world with the bonus of being a part-time American!”
ASIA
GOA, INDIA G
oa is the mischievous little sister in a traditional indian family who hoists her school skirt up three inches once she’s left the house in the morning. Situated in the south of India and a beach on every coast of every Taluka (town) this really is the most gorgeous lo-
really into turtlenecks in 40 degrees but are raring for am Indian adventure, weve found your perfect location. It’s the charm of an Indian small town with an LA fashion sense, get the Bikinis out ladies.
CALANGUTE BEACH, GOA
Mapusa Market
T
ravelling between Talukas in Goa is impressively easy, most are within a half hour drive of each other, so regardless where you stay in Goa you cna take a day trip to the Mapusa Market via return taxi for no more than 500 Rupees (£5). Its a maze of spices, mandala prints, gems, elephant ornaments, dream catchers, woven bags, sari’s and bindis. This market is where the locals shop so you’re getting an authentic Indian shopping experience even though you’ll probably still get
charged a little more than the Goans goa-ing - ha! (Sorry.) This isn’t really a hassle though as argaining for 40
is all in the fun of travelling. The marmire during a shopping break. Bonus: Because its where the locals shop, theres no hassle from sellers to buy their products and no creepy old men trying to negotiate how many camels he can swap you and your friends for.
TAJ MAHAL, DELHI
TRAVEL TALK: SOUTH EAST ASIA
When a St. Andrews Student ventures into the unknown, anything can happen. Daryl McKinley Tells NOMA about his Asian adventure.
S
o what’s you’re travelling been like? Started from the bottom now we here. Nah, started on a secluded Muslim Island in the south of Thailand where I trained in Thai boxing for a while and got battered by the Thai David Beckham. Then hoped over to Indonesia. Cut about Bali for a while, climbed a bitchin’ mountain, became a rescue scuba diver, and done the whole thing end to end, with a hundred adventures in between. I took an unexpected trip to Cambodia on the way back to Thailand where I chilled in the Bangkok for a while before heading home. Wow, you’ve been around. Was there a place you would consider your favourite?
Favorite place – Hard to pick just one but it would perhaps be Gili Trawangan in Indonesia. Gili T is a paradise Lombok, which has become a scuba diving mecca. Below the water, it’s a supermarket things you’ve never even imagined could exist. Oh, and friendly turtles. There’s plenty of them, and they’re huge! But above the water it’s a hedonistic party lover’s dream. I visited during Ramadan so it was a bit quieter on the shore. But the turtles were apparently completely unaware of the religious festival and continued to show up for a wee party every day. Anywhere you didn’t like? The Thai-Cambodian border. It’s a spooky no man’s land where rich Thais go to
gamble, which is illegal in Thailand. They walk among deprived Cambodian farmers pushing wooden wheelbarrows and deranged child beggars. Anyone at the border descriptions is probably a conman waiting to take advantage of travellers as they ously complicated Visa process. Did anything happen you weren’t expecting for on your travels? Everything was meticulously planned before leaving the UK and I was relatively good at sticking to the itinerary so there weren’t many notable detours except one near the end. I was travelling from Vietnam to Thailand and devallium which I’d been using
DALAT, VIETNAM
for long bus journeys in the rough Vietnamese terrain. En route to Thailand I somehow decided that I had to see Cambodia before going home. So when the plane touched down in Bangkok I immediately - but not entirely soberly - headed for a bus to the Cambodian border. This is when the vallium startwould be easier crossing into North Korea. The Cambodian border is an eerie place and I did feel unsafe for a while, especially since it was pitch black. But a few con-men and an under-the-table exchange of cash later, I was en route to see Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument in the world. There was also a fantastic unexpected adventure in Sapa, Vietnam. I had just planned to have a look at the pretty mountains, maybe rent a scooter and whiz about for a day or so before heading back to Hanoi. But upon arrival, Jake (my travel buddy) and I, met a Woman who lived up the mountain in a hill tribe called the us hiking through the various mountain villages of Sapa up to her family home. A home which most Westernas a bike shed. But inside it were the happiest family I’ve ever met [see pictures of the kids]. We stayed with her for two days as we hiked around the rice terraces of the Asian Alps. I think I learned more from her kids about life than I have from the rest of my teachers and mentors combined. How expensive way 3 months of travel? Not as much as one might expect for a 3 month trip. The total cost was around £1500 and most of that went
DALAT, VIETNAM course. If you live like a local, it’s easy to get by on £10-£15 per day in most places around SEA. For me it’s just the adventure tours (like climbing mount rinjani in Lombok, Indonesia or canyoning in Dalat, Vietnam) that hiked up the cost a bit pun intended. ture? even have to look. I just showed up and the culture was right there. No, I really loved the ideas, customs and behaviours of most everywhere in SEA. But Indonesia, noted as the beauty of the character of Balinese people lives up to the beauty of
of their surroundings, and that’s really saying something. Any plans to return? SEA. But I’d like to see some other countries in the region such as Myanmar - which sounds like a pokemon and is starting to open its gates to visitors after a long period of … not … doing that. Also the Philippines, central America and then into South America, hopefully making it all the way to Argentina alive. Any regrets? “Regrets, I’ve had a few, but then again, too few to mention” – Frank Sinatra Seriously though, no regrets, but quite a few lessons learned.
MOUNT RINJANI, INDONESIA