In tribute to all the brilliant people I have met on my travels I have decided to list my top 5 locals. A special note goes out to the lady in Wuhan, China, who took us around the city on buses 3 times until she found where we were staying. She didn't speak a word of English and went completely out of her way to help us asking nothing in return.
1. Olga Smirnova, St. Petersburg, China
Olga quite literally introduced me into my travels. She worked as a "honcho" for Vodkatrain in our Trans-Mongolian trip but did so much more than the job requires. She really has a passion for her studies and it was plain to see when she took us around the Hermitage. Being as she likes to travel herself she knew what sort of things we wanted to see and do and helped us on our way.
2. Song, Qingdao, China
We met Song in Qingdao in North-East China. He came to the hostel to practice his English and buy me and Andy copious amounts of alcohol. The first night we met him he got us really drunk and took us out to some street stall and bought us food until we felt sick! He turned up the next day with his family and eventually took us to his brothers house to carry on drinking. He was a bit scary and we probably shouldn't have gone anywhere with him, but he just wanted to show us a good time. He didn't mind when we turned down his cocaine or prostitutes either!!
3. Costya, Irkutsk, Russia
Costya really cared about his country and his city and was one of the nicest people I've ever met. He took us to this amazing place at Lake Baikal and joined in with playing football on the ice and snowball fights. He once told us how American gangster films and the perceptions that Russians have, have affected the Russians and was deeply upset by this. It was really interesting to hear his point of view on why the Russians are miserable and how they have every right to be.
4. Izz, Chiang Mai, Thailand
A recent addition this one. If you've read my most recent post 'Trekking in Northern Thailand' you might understand why I really liked Izz. She was an excellent jungle guide and was really interested in finding out why Westerners travel and what differs between the Thai people. She was great fun and enjoyed a bit of banter too.
5. Truc, My Tho, Vietnam
Truc was a strange one. We didn't know whether to trust him or not as he seemed like just another Vietnamese man trying to sell us a tour. We had eaten at his place a couple of times and in the end decided to go with him on his trip in the Mekong Delta. As it turned out he was really knowledgeable of all the fruit and other things that the locals grew in the area. He also introduced us to our favourite travelling phrase: "Why not!?" which was when he stole coconut candy from the factory!
A special mention also goes for the girl in Wuhan, China. She didn't speak any English and there was no reason at all for her to help us, but she took us all around the city trying to help us find the hostel asking for nothing in return. We did take her out for dinner though! Also, Made, our guide in Ubud who took us to Mt. Batur and got us ".....a little bit lost!"
