Leg 2: South-East Asia

Shanghai – Beijing – Hong Kong – Hanoi – Bangkok – Chiang Mai – Kho Phi Phi

Dara Flynn and Andy Isaacs met at work and decided to embark on a six-month world tour on their first date. They started in India and have now headed east.

HER SIDE:

Travel: the ultimate test of a new relationship

Dara and Andrew were in the first flush of love when they got to India - but quarrels, scams, bugs and Delhi belly put paid to that

• 19 things you must know before going to India

Related Links

• Five essential tips for backpackers in South East Asia

The first leg of our 180-day world tour, where we hit India (or more accurately, India battered us) was pretty tough going. The second leg, covering as much of China and South East Asia as it's possible to see in 30 days, bordered on the Biblical. As if travelling as a couple wasn't hard enough. Now we had floods, locusts and disease to contend with.

First up: disease. Or rather, a slow-burner of a stomach infection I picked up early on, which led to 10 days of dizziness, sweats, digestive trouble and exhaustion, before I finally decided to throw Western medicine at the problem.

The culprit may or may not have been the dumplings I devoured in one of Shanghai's impressive food halls. After wandering along countless aisles of dried fish lollypops and bizarre cuts of unidentified meat, they were one of the few things I recognised on sight and I had to have them.

Their juicy entrails exploded in the mouth - lemongrass, pork meat, with an unmistakable coating of monosodium glutamate. And despite the outcome, I still maintain they were one of the most delicious things I've eaten since we left home.

In China, food was a highlight, as well as charming, polite and friendly people. With just 10 days to spare here, we barely strayed beyond its two major cities, so the language barrier – the one they say is as great as the Great Wall itself – really wasn't a problem. And where it was, pointing was plenty.

Andy, my boyfriend and travel partner, had thoughtfully bought us a "Point It" book before we left, containing photos of everything you could possibly need. It isn't quite as essential as he was convinced it would be, but it's worth having, especially away from the department stores and tourist-trodden areas.

My tummy bug led us to cancel our trip to the Great Wall, so I cannot confirm how great it actually is. One thing's for certain, however - China is earmarked for a return visit.

Next came the locusts – an entire plague of them – though by the time we saw them, on a street food cart on Bangkok's Kho San Road, they had been caught, killed and caramelised. I got a fright when I spotted them, though. All I wanted was a banana pancake.

Times recommends

• The 10 best bits of travel gear
• Soho's classy, cheap new townhouse
• Germany's perfect Christmas city