Why Him?

The first thing you notice about Bangkok is that, just like Sydney, its massive.  There are so many people living there,  so many buildings, the place never seemed empty - even at ridiculous times of the morning.  Always full.

But at the same time, you still have the same dodgy powerlines, the market stall driiven shopping centres, and just this feeling that things are done differently over here.

But thats what I liked so much about it

Bangkok Day 1

I’m not going to consider our first night in Bangkok as day 1, so i’ll start it here.   We had our day planned out to go to the Penis Temple, to go to Phantip Plaza, and then go to Siriraj Hospital to see the Forensic Museum.

So we go downstairs and jump into a tuk tuk after telling the guy exactly where we wanted to go, and after having been there for a fortnight we figured we were fine and could tell the guy what we did and didn’t want to do.

Wrong.  He took us to the usual spots, a suit place and a gem store, before bypassing the penis garden and dropping us off at Phantip Plaza.  Not the best start to the day, but we coped.

Prantip plaza is massive. Its 7 floors worth of computer markets.  I was going to buy an EEEPC over there but decided against it after a sd card we bought ended up being dodgy (thankfully hadn’t left the store yet before i tested it, and managed to get a return).  As much as there are computer stores everywhere, there are also big chain type stores - kind of like your Harvey Normans and your JB Hifi’s in amongst all the small stalls.  And the big chain stores also had smaller stores where they would sponsor a brand and only feature that product. For example, one had its large store as well as a sony store, a samsung store, and a canon store.

After wanding from the bottom to the top (and buying nothing but blank mini dv tapes) we decided it was time to eat - but the ticketing system they have in place (more on that later) combined with seeing one of the kitchens doing the washing up in the public toilet, we decided to give it a miss.  Oh and the toilets were  squats here too, and it was a couple of baht for a small packet of toilet paper.

Outside and still hungry, we followed the lunchtime rush and decided to eat at a street cart where all the locals were eating.  We ended up at this one that had a little bbq running, and bought like half a tonne of meat on tiny skewers for 50 baht.  we nearly couldn’t finish it, but it was so good

After our lunch and some help from a kind local, we flagged down a taxi to make our way to the Forensic Museum.  Unfortunately the taxi driver had NFI where he was going and frequently  had to stop and ask for directions.  But the meter was so slow to tick over, we werent worried.

In the end, the taxi driver dropped us off at the Thai Museum, which wasn’t too far to where we wanted to go.  With a litle more help (and a fair bit of hinderance) from a very well meaning local, we were on the right track, catching a ferry over to the hospital.

After navigating through the jungle of low awnings, hotplates with delicious aromas, and tonnes of school kids, we finally made our way to the forensic museum.  And holy shit, that place is heavy.

Upon walking in, you’re immediatley confronted with skulls and photos of people who have been shot, bludgeoned, stabbed, mauled, squished, and just generally fucked up.  From tiny babies who were crushed in car accidents to shotgun blasts to the face in a nightclub.  Photos, and affected body parts were on display.

After that we checked out the tsunami exhibit, where they showed the rations that were dropped down to people in need, as well as outlining the method in which they categorised bodies and patients for care.  There were detailed explanations adn graphic images of the dead and dying.  Again, very informative  but also very heavy to think about.

After that we wandered over to the general exhibit where they had all sorts of bodyparts under glass. They also had the remains of some rapists who were put to death, as well as  Si Quey a cannibal serial killer who is used as a bogeyman to keep kids on the  straight and narrow.

After looking at smashed/shot/burnt skulls, hands, legs, bodyparts in general, and seeing babies in jars, babies with 2 heads in jars, organs in jars, just bout everything you want except vegemite in jars, we wandered over to an exhibit that showed how childbirth was done back in the day… Danielle didn’t seem to think that gripping onto a rope from the ceiling and pulling was the way to go about it for her, so we left the museum and wandered into the neighbouring parasite museum.  not much to mention there, lots of bugs, but nothing really noteworthy.

So we bid goodbye to the hospital, and caught the ferry again but this time in the pouring rain.  Soaked, tired, and a little hungry, i managed to convince a reluctant cabbie to drive us home through peak hour traffic.  we tipped him well in the end, but the trip barely cost us 5 bux and easily lasted 45 mins.

Back in the hotel with a beer, we rested before attending a free dinner and dance show put on by the hotel.  It was an intimate setting, and we sat around as dancers told stories of kings and queens, monkeys and so forth.  was quite entertaining, and a nice way to cap off the day.

Bangkok Day 2

Today was the Death Railway and TIger Temple tours, which we nearly missed after getting the times wrong to meet our guide

We hopped aboard a bus and were taken about an hour or so out of Bangkok to Kanchanaburi, where we went to the Kanchanaburi War Cemetary. Unfornately it was closed for maintenance, but we still got some nice photos (which will come up eventually).

Afterwards we went to the Death Railway, the JEATH War Museum, and a boatride up the River Kwai before having lunch on a floating restaurant.

After lunch we had another bus trip over to the Tiger Temple where we got to walk with and take photos with tigers and cubs.  The cubs were extremely playful and tried to climb all over Danielle - turning her white top absolutely filthy

A long bus trip home, and we were back and chilling at the hotel.  But our day doesn’t end here!

When we got home I made a call to the Vertigo Bar, a restaurant that is on the 61st floor and overlooks Bangkok. Unfortunately when we got there, they had to close the roof bar due to poor weather, but the view from the 59th floor was more than fine (the 60th floor is a halfway point, moreso for toilets etc).

The meal was fantastic, and a 5 course meal cost less than what you would pay for one of the nicer restaurants in Sydney.

After dinner we were taken upstairs to the top floor and given a private tour of the bar, as well as getting the chance to look over Bangkok.  That place is absolutely massive, no two ways about it!

After the tour and photos, we headed off to the nightclub section of Bangkok - Patpong - where we did the usual shows that tourists usually go and check out at least once :)  We had a giggle, saw some strange things, and left with both of kidneys and no foreign diseases.  a good night!

We certainly slept well that night…

Day 3

Day 3 was a bit different yet again - we spent 9 hours at a shopping centre.  No shit.  We went to MBK Center where we spent the entire day wandering around shops.  We finally worked up the courage to give the food courts a go here too.

Now i should explain how the food courts work.  We saw two different variations.  One was you walked into the food court through a turnstile where someone greets you and hands you a “credit card”.  you buy what you want on the card, and then at the end when you leave, you walk past the cash desk and clear off the balance on the card.  This i could understand and all was fine.

The other tho, was  you walk up to the foodcourt (just like any standard foodcourt) and the first thing you notice are signs on the kitchens saying “Coupons only” or “Cash only”… except there weren’t many cash only options.  You then have to find the coupon desk and convert money into coupons.  Then when you order, you pay in coupons instead of cash… when you’ve finished eating, you have up until 2100 to convert the coupons back to cash.

Now, the coupons look like monopoly money, and they give you change just like normal money. So why they dont actually deal in normal money, i have NFI.

But all i know is that i could get a full meal, a long neck of beer, and some fruit for AU3 bux.  fantastic

After lunch we went and kicked back at an internet cafe to let lunch settle.  Then we were back into the shopping again.  We scoured every floor there, until finally it was time for dinner - so back upstairs we went to use the last of our coupons and enjoy another meal… this time with a foodcourt full of screaming soccer fans.

After dinner and more internet, we started to head back down. It was about 9pm at this stage, and people were all gathered around every floor watching the massive lcd display that hangs down the centre of the building - watching the soccer.  Weird

Just before we left, i bought a 3 string thai guitar that thankfully i had no dramas getting back through customs

That was or Saturday.  Just being nothing but mallrats

Day 4

Finally we got to Penis garden! Today we just bummed around, went wandering through the markets again, and went to the Penis garden.  Its not officially known as that, but its what we’re calling it :P  Its a shrine at the back of a hotel (oddly enough) that appears in the Lonely Planet guide as a destination point for people who are looking for that extra kick in the pants, fertility wise.  All sorts of penii were laying around, carved from wood, made from foam, cement, mosaic tiles, the lot. The garden was edged by a row of penii that went the entire way around the shrine.  It was quite amusing, we got some very tasteful and mature photos here (again, they’ll be coming soonish :P).

Afterwards, we headed out to the Patpong night markets where we had dinner (i had froglegs and ostritch) and shopped away until something like 1am.  Sydney definitely needs more late nite options like this

Day 5

Our last day in Thailand, we started the day off with a trip to the Grand Palace and the Emerald Buddha.  This place was amazing, so much time and effort has gone into everything here.  The place is so ornate, so amazing in the detail.

And the place is guarded by soldiers carrying machine guns. Then again, it is where Thai royal ceremonies and so forth are held.  The Kings dead sister has been on display here for 7 months before her burial in February next year, and there were a steady procession of Thais (no foreigners allowed) still paying their respects.

The Emerald Buddha was something else entirely. No photos were allowed, but the hall where it is kept is chock full of people praying, and minders there making sure you dont break the rules (be quiet, no photos, dont point your feet at the Buddha).  It was a very different experience compared to what people consider religion over here. It just seemed more real and touching to these people, unlike the lip service which is used as artillery in the “Holier than Thou” wars fought over here.

After seeing the Buddha we made our way over to the halls where the Coronations took place, as well as seeing the Kings weapons collection.   A musket with a 3m long barrel?  Couldn’t hit the side of an elephant with that, surely!

Also there were the palace guards who stand there at attention (unless their superior comes over and relives them) while tourists take photos around them…  It was hot enough day without having to stand in the sun in full uniform.

On the way out we survived the pushiest of the locals trying to sell us souveniers.  Up until this point, they would be forward - but not to the point where they swarm around you and pull you every direction.  Thankfully i had a firm grip on Danielle, and just kept moving through the crowd while laughing and smiling… what else could you do?

On the way back to the hotel we passed some protest sites which we had heard about on the day before we left to go to Thailand… It was peaceful from what we could see, with a lot of people doing the usual - handing out leaflets, hanging signs etc.  It was good to see people getting involved, as voting over there is compusory but not enforced.  So to see people still taking an active interest in their local government was fantastic.
I should also mention that while we were in Bangkok, i devoured the local english speakign newspapers daily, and made the effort to watch the news in the morning and night if we were at the hotel and just chilling.  Their PM was given the punt because he hosted 2 cooking programs on Thai tv :)  Gotta love that.

Once back from the Temple, we packed our gear together, and took one last stroll out in Bangkok.  Lunch was one of the strangest thing i’ve eaten - think thai chilli soup with spaghetti noodles… odd.

A drink or two later at the hotel and we were in a van and off to the airport - saying goodbye to Thailand on the whole.

The flight home was pretty much a non event - we slept. It left Thailand at 2359 and we were back on Australian soil at around 1230.

Getting through customs was no dramas at all - we told them exactly what we had, they didn’t even care to see them.  I showed the guy my guitar, and he was more interested in the actual guitar than if it was anything he should be concerned about.

A couple of things i noticed when we stepped out of the airconditioned airport and back into the Sydney atmosphere:

1) The air is really clean.  People told us Thailand smells and its dirty.  I disagree with both.  I didn’t find it dirty, and while the air had a certain flavour - it wasn’t all that smelly.  However that first breath of Sydney air was like that cold glass of water in the morning after a massive night.

2) Just because its sunny outside, doesn’t mean its warm.  We were fucking cold! The sun was shining, on the radio they were saying its a glorious 25 degrees - and we were freezing!

All in all i’m happy to be home.  The holiday lasted just long enough so that i felt ready when it was time to leave.  I have taken some things away from the trip regarding how we do things, and i’ll be looking to change some of my habits and behaviours for sure.

Plus i have fallen in love with korean tv channel Arirang (tho i cant watch it non stop - it does get boring) and japanese channel NHK World.  I’ve found a way to get Arirang streaming online, but still looking for NHK World if anyone can help

So thats it in a nutshell. Be patient and there will be photos. At this stage you can find most of them on my facebook anyway.  Also there is about 9 hours of video i’ve got to get through and i’ll be uploading clips to youtube.

Whats next?  Well.. Danielle’s Ma wants to travel to Hong Kong next year as a family trip, and we’ll most likely go along with her.  On the back end of that, we’re thinking of jumping a flight to Tokyo and spending a week there as well.

I guess its time to start saving again

J

(I’m writing this on a keyboard that has a shithouse spacebar… so if i let a few slip thru, thats why).

The last few days have been massive. 

Last monday I left off just before going to Fantasea.  Danielle and I went for a walk to do some internetsu and get a feed.  After internetting, we found some sort of arab restaurant (i cant remember tbh) and enjoyed a meal much different to what we’re used to.  

A walk home, and we were getting ready for Fantasea.  I’m a bit disappointed about it, because everyone who’s been - including the tour guide - said flat out not to take cameras at all because they need to be checked before the main performance, and its not worth the dramas. Yet there was so much before the show that was worthy of photos and video.  We still had a great time, managed to win a handful of toys at the shooting range - i’m a fucking goodshot with a rifle

The show itself was enjoyable, the seating was not. it was the worst seating i’ve ever encountered.  Now it stands to reason that someone my height (6ft2) is going to encounter some issues in an asian country.  I’ve dealt with it already and accepted it.  But when Danielle, who is 5ft tall at the best of times, has the same cramping issues that i am, something is definitely amiss.

The following day was more of a chillax day, our last day in  phuket.  I’m sure we hadsomething planned, but right now it escapes me.  For dinner, danielle and i went to an egyptian restaurant and then rock city - to score me that elusive shot glass.  A trip home, packing done, and we were ready to leave.

Wednesday was when we said goodbye to sil (bye sil!) as we parted ways at bangkok international.  She flew back to sydney, and then over to nyc after some downtime at home.

we made our way in a personal chauffered limo back to the hotel (kinda - it was a minivan that was well kitted out and we were the only passengers in really comfy reclining chairs), and proceeded to go exploring bangkok.  Afterstocking up on beer and snacks, we booked our tours and headed back to the hotel.

And i’ll leave itthere fornow because this keyboard is really starting to shit me.

J

So its Monday now, we’ve only got a few days left in Phuket before we shuffle on up to Bangkok. Its ok tho, we’ve managed to cram in everything we’ve wanted to. 

In the last couple of days after the cooking course, we went back to our hotel and lazed around a little more. it was a wet and rainy day, and we just weren’t in the mood to do much more than that.  Friday night we went out for mexican for dinner, and the highlight of that was finding a photo of Pete on the wall (its in my facebook photo album, i’ll upload it here at a later date).

Saturday was a massive day.  The weather cleared up for us to go canoing, so after a hearty breakfast we were off to canoe in the Andaman sea.  Firstly we started off with a bit of a swim on a really nice remote beach (well, remote in that we were the only people on the island :P) and a chance to relax (and let the other groups go through the caves).  after that we all climbed into canoes and were taken up close and personal to some awesome rock formations before being taken into a darkened cave for some exploring.  It was hot, damp and more than a bit smelly, thanks mostly to the bats that were sleeping (and excreting) above us. 

After the darkened cave we were paddled along some more cliff faces before we were given strict instructions to lay back flat, all hands and knees flat in the canoe, and for me to suck in the gut.  We were then paddled into another dark cave with a clearance of barely a foot above us. The sight of oyster shells inches away from my nose was enough to keep me as low in the canoe as possible.  At one stage the canoe managed to bump into one, scratching danielle slightly on the arm.

We explored many caves and lagoons, and saw some awesome rock formations such as the sitting budda, the fish, and so forth.  We managed to get hours worth of footage and photos, including our worried comments when passing under the caves in the dark.

Afterwards we went back to the hotel for a shower and a rest before hitting another back lane thai restaurant, and then hitting the clubs.  Well, club.  The night was supposed to start at Rock City (a rock and roll bar/nightclub) where we’d have some drinks and watch a live band or two, and then head to the Banana Discotheque. 

What actually happened was we went to Rock City and were instantly presented with the option of buying over 1metre of shots for 900 baht (AU$30).  thats 3 bux a shot, and they were the sambucca sized shotglasses (when they weren’t just in large glasses).

several metres of shots later, the girls started walking around with syringes full of shots.   Several of those later, they started walking around with bullet belts full of shotglasses and large bottles of god knows what. somewhere in amongst all that these thai cover bands started playing and were playing well.  Green Day, Nirvana, Metallica, Soundgarden, Avril, Evanescence and Linkin Park are the only artists i can remember that were covered, and they did them all great justice.

Sometime after all that, we managed to stumble home through all the lady boys, tuk tuks, iguanas and pingpong show offers, and make it back to the hotel.

Sunday was pretty much a write off, with the exception of the evening where we went to Phuket town night markets.  They were really cool, but my biggest complaint is that the awnings are only 5ft 5 up. So Danielle had no great trouble navigating the place, but Sil and i ended up with rather sore necks at the end of the night.  We found a really nice tuk tuk driver who took us up and back, as well as waiting around for a few hours while we shopped - and didn’t charge the earth either.

Afterwards we went to an italian restaurant, of which the less said the better.

This morning Danielle and I woke up to go elephant riding! We organised it a few days ago (we decided to can the zoo and do the elephant trek instead) and after waiting around (and doing loops with this retarded driver) we were at the park and staring up at a 47 year old elephant.  We climbed up the platform and were more or less led around the park by the elephant deciding what looked good enough to eat.  We followed some sort of trail up and down hills and through trees, while watching the elephants piss rivers, shit out basketball sized turds, and stomp the living crap out of snakes.  Seriously, they see one and they go after it! 

Towards the end, the guide turned to Danielle and offered her his seat - up on the neck of the elephant.  She took over and was steering the elephant (by kicking the back of its ears) around the park until we got back to the beginning.  Afterwards we got some photo opportunities with our elephants as well as got a chance to feed them. they’re cheeky buggers, especially when you’re holding a basket of food

We’ve since made it back to the hotel, where we decided to dump some photos and rest up before heading off to Fantasea tonight.  Tomorrow is going to be a lazy day, perhaps a massage or two, and i need to go back to Rock City so i can pinch a shotglass and not have it smash in my pocket on the way home (thankfully i didn’t get cut up by it).

Sil leaves us in a few days, she returns home before jetting off to New York.  We part ways at Bangkok Domestic Airport where she gets ready to board her connecting international flight, and we are left looking for our transfer over to our hotel in the centre of Bangkok.  Quite exciting, i cant wait to jump right into it.

J

So lets see, where did I leave off last time?

After writing that last post we trundled off to dinner and ended up finally eating thai food at this little restaurant that appears in lonely planet (we found that out after we ate there).  The big appeal of the place was that they did Thai cooking lessons and we decided we’d eat there first to see if it was any good.  It was fantastic food, so we ended up booking a class for friday morning. 

After dinner, more alcohol was consumed and we hit the sack pretty early - around midnight i believe

Yesterday was awesome, we started off with a tour around Phuket. It was one of those complimentary tours thrown in when you bundle a few others together, and so it provided us something to do that we wouldn’t have normally done anyway.  We drove around in a bus to all these different lookouts that provided awesome views of the coastline and many different beaches.  Our tour guide was showing us who was affected by the tsunami in each place, and in some places you could see where they were still rebuilding.   Speaking of the tsunami, every second vendor is selling a dvd of it, i guess you can make a buck just about any way here.

So after going around to the lookouts and getting some wicked photos, we headed over to a buddist temple where we got to light candles and incense sticks, place gold leaf on monks, and wander around the temple grounds taking photos of buddas.  It was fairly hot, so we were all glad to be inside for this one.

Afterwards the tour sort of went downhill, content wise.  We went to a cashew nut factory which was a rubber tree outside to show us what cashews look like on the tree, a woman inside cracking and sorting nuts, and a large shop of cashewy goodness.  we wandered around for 20 minutes eating the free samples until they realised no one was going to buy anything other than a bottle of water, and we moved on.

Lastly we went to a jewellery factory, and we all had the hopes that it was going to be some sort of local jewellery setup, where you can see traditional techniques and methods in making all sorts of nice - if not overly flashy - accessories.  What we got was a tour of a large shop (to be fair, we did see a dvd on gem mining in thailand and watched some guys set and create some rings etc) that had vultures follow us around and try to convince us to buy over priced and underwhelming gear.  Danielle had 4 of them follow her around trying to push it onto her.  And surprise surprise, the tour company was located right next door! 

the real benefit of doing this tour was that we got to see a few other beaches we had heard about, but thankfully didn’t take time out of day to do as a single destination.  Plus we also learned about the existance of the Phuket town night markets which we’re heading to on sunday.

Afterwards Sil went to relax while danielle and i decided to go for a walk.  we found ourselves eating seafood at the end of a little alleyway, our entire meal (with drinks) was less than 10 bux.  again, fantastic food, and a lot of locals were eating there too - so we knew we were onto a winner.

However, at the end of our meal it started to piss down with rain, and we were stranded out without an umbrella… It was still nice and warm tho, so we just legged it back through the rain with no dramas.   Kicked back for a while, before heading out in search of an Austrian restaurant and ended up at a Mexican one. 

We finished the day at the same cocktail restaurant that we started at on our first night, and proceeded to keep ordering drinks until the rain subsided.  In the process we managed to get danielle pretty drunk and thankfully we had cameras on hand

Today was a bit of a miserable day to start with, nothing but rain. Thankfully we had our cooking lessons happening today, and head back over to Pum’s cooking school.  We sat down and started to copy the important recipes from the cookbook that we didn’t get to keep for free (:P) before we chose our 3 dishes to learn. 

I chose: Phad Siewe, Tom Yum Goong, Phad Nam Prik Pow.

Danielle chose: Gaeng Kheo Wan Gai, Khao Tom, Khao Phad Andaman.

Sil chose: Phad Siewe, Gaeng Kheo Wan Gai, Tom Kha Gai.

During the lesson we realised that the street had flooded, and was about half a foot deep.  Bikes were struggling to get through, and cars were splashing everyone around.  2 hours later - it was all gone! just drained away with only mud to show that there was any flooding around.

And literally half an hour ago, we had a power transformer blow up outside the shop we’re currently in.  Large bang, lots of sparks and smoke, and people looking shit scared. It all sorted itself out really quickly, but did nothing for my earlier apprehensions about walking around with a large umbrella with all that dodgy wiring overhead.

Oh and before i forget, the funniest thing i’ve seen all week has to be the couple that tried to take a prostitute back to their hotel room but got denied by security, adn then taken to reception to be tossed out.  The hooker’s skirt was possibly only intended to be worn as a shirt, and left absolutely nothing hidden while walking along.  Everyone they passed stopped and gawked before bursting into laughter.  We had a hard time concealing our own laughter when security stopped them and we had to walk past.  The husband did not look impressed

From now we’ve got a number of things planned.  Tomorrow we’re canoing through grotto’s if the weather will permit us.  If not we can move it, but hoping it goes ahead as planned.  Tomorrow night we’re hitting the nightclubs to see how things are there.  I’m guessing not much different than back home really, but still worth a look.

Sunday Danielle and I would like to either go to the zoo or go on an elephant trek, and finishing up with the night markets in Phuket town afterwards.

Monday we’re hoping to do whatever we didn’t do on Sunday morning, followed by Fantasea at night (Fantasea is a big stage show, complete with dinners etc).

Tuesday is a laze around kind of day i’m assuming, before wednesday when we fly back to bangkok and say goodbye to Sil (who is off home, then to New York).

And somewhere in there, i’m keen to go and check out this thai boxing lessons they’re giving.  Should be a bit of fun

J

After my last post we went off to have yet more drinks, a swim, and headed to an indian place for diner. Not too bad, but was a definite pain in the arse with people coming up to us and trying to sell shit at the table. Kinda like those women who try to sell roses in some restaurants.

Yesterday was pretty full on tho, absolutely massive. An early start and we were on a boat headed out to Phi Phi islands. Firstly we went snorkeling off Mosquito island where we saw heaps of amazing fish. The guides would throw chunks of bread at/infront of us while underwater, and the fish would come up and start a feeding frenzy right in front of you…some couldn’t give a shit if you reached out and touched them either.

After that we went over to bamboo island for just some lazing around on the beach. The girls ended up circumnavigating the island while looking for the toilets - they just set out in the wrong direction is all

Up next we Long Beach and had lunch there, and watched the beach kitty walk around and mingle with guests. Lunch was pretty straight forward, just some random thai dishes that you expect to see in food courts at your local shopping centre.

After that we went to monkey island, which was fantastic. We pulled up close and jumped out so we could feed all these monkeys that were hanging from the trees. We got heaps of photos and video of the little buggers hamming it up for us.

Another short boat ride and we went to some lagoon who’s name now escapes me, and were encouraged to dive off the front of the boat. Some really inelegant footage of us doing so, including one of me attempting a somersault

We finished up with another boat ride to an island where they shot The Beach (the leonardo dicaprio moofie) and a small group of us grabbed the snorkling gear and set off in search of some reef sharks. We saw all sorts of fantastic fish again (we found nemo ) but no sharks. Upon return we found that the sharks were all over on the other side of the beach. Still, was a good swim.

On the 1.5 hour boat trip back, i doubt there was a single person who didn’t catch some sleep. We were all pretty buggered, the whole day lasted about 9 hours. We swam so much that parts of me ached that i forgot existed. Despite our best efforts, all 3 of us ended up with sunburn, but theres not much you can do about that.

After that i shot some footage from the front seat of the shuttle bus, so look out for that when i put it online. Proof that the bike riders are mental, and i got footage of the hill that we nearly got taken out when driving on our first night.

Last night we went out for italian for dinner, and it was pretty damned good. Especially the fact that i could order a long neck and pay 90baht ($3) during dinner. A few of those consumed, and we were all ready for bed (after watching a little Teen Titans on cartoon network).

Today has been a cruisy day, we’ve lazed around the pool, had some drinks, and did some shopping. its now 5pm and still around the 30 degrees mark. it was raining this morning which did take the edge off a little, but now its sunny as hell and just absolutely fantastic weather. We only just had lunch about half an hour ago,and dont expect to eat dinner until around 9.

I should take the time now to point out that the computers here get really abused, and are quite laggy. Quite often i’ve finished typing a sentence before i’ve seen it on screen, and i cbf’d going back and changing the spelling mistakes. Thats why it appears thati’m typing drunk… well, that and the mehkong i’ve been drinking

All in all we’re pretty happy with ourselves, its cruisy when we want it to be - and then we go and ramp it up whenever we’re feeling the mood. So far we’ve got the right mix down between lazing about and actually getting out and doing something. As i said we’ve got a lot of photos and videos to show, but this cafe only has one pc with a card reader so maybe next time i’ll be able to get some photos up for you, the readers

For now, i’m off to do some more shopping, some more drinking, and some lazing by the pool.

oh, and if anyone wants to get in touch with us for what ever reason, you can call my normal mobile number - my brother has my thai mobile number, so if you need to call/sms us, he’s got the details.

J

edit: Sil has uploaded a few of her photos to her photo bucket (and made it public for all to see). Heres the link.