Thailand - Recap

So a recap of Thailand. Mixed emotions about this place, some bits I just couldn't get on board with or felt underwhelmed (sorry, but that's just honest) but some bits I absolutely loved!

Bangkok, particularly Khaosan Road was not enough for me but meeting Paul (a family friend), seeing a ping pong show and being with my sister and cousin made it better.

Chiang Mai and the islands further south were fantastic.

So let's crack on:

Chiang Mai - 03rd November - 06th November

Top 5 moments:

1. Deejai Backpackers Hostel - nice, friendly and chilled out.

2. Wat Chedi Luang

3. The Post Office bonanza - couldn't find the bloody place despite walking past it multiple times.

4. The crazy old man trying to set me up with a ladyboy.

5. Hanging off the back of a Tuk Tuk at 50 kph

Bangkok - 06th November - 09th November / 11th November - 12th November

Top 5 moments:

1. Dave pulling bunting out of a woman at the Ping Pong Show.

2. Samsen Skyline Hostel receptionist - bloody brilliant woman!

3. Khaosan Road first night with Kel and Dave. Shocking Pad Thai Kels!

4. The reclining Buddha and Wat Pho.

5. The airport arrival of Kel and Dave and seeing them for the first time in five months - "Yesssssssssssss!!!"

Kanchanaburi - 09th November - 11th November

Top 5 moments -

1. Elephant Sanctuary

 

2. Sugar Cane 2 Guest Huts

3. Death Railway

4. The bar girls beating us at Connect 4

5. The resort and ghost story talk.

Phuket - 13th November - 16th November

Top 5 moments:

1. James Bond Island - another Bond location ticked off.

2. Snorkelling.

3. The Capsule hostel.

4. The bars and nightlife - they provided plenty of laughs.

5. Jet skiing with Dave.

Koh Samui - 16th November /  20th November - 28th November

Top 5 moments:

1. The New Hut Bungalows.

2. 'Chicken and Rice' with Matt - daily, sometimes double daily, ritual.

3. The Mynt Lounge with Joy, Emmi and the gang.

4. The views.

5. Lou Kratong festival.

Koh Tao - 17th November - 18th November

Top 5 moments:

1. Snorkelling.

2. The Sairee Hut Resort.

3. Setting a head tennis record with Dave - a 57 rally and a splitting headache.

4. Our heart to heart talk at the beach side bar.

5. Fire show at The Sunset Bar.

Koh Phangan - 19th November

Top 5 moments:

1. The Half Moon Party.

2. Finding converse and a Superman t-shirt in a second hand store - what a find.

3. The Lime and Soda Hut on the beach.

4. The dodgy face painting.

5. The Thai Massage.

Day 146 - A day of rest in Phuket followed by a night of madness

Loving that burger.

Day 146 - 16th November

So the guys were lying in and I was doing some work on my neice's christening gift. It's finished now so I'm pretty happy.

We spent the morning eating a fry up in an Aussie Bar and enjoying the local beach. The sand was annoying me so I spent most of my time bobbing up and down in the sea. It was choppy so every eleventh wave was a big one and crashed over my head.

Obligatory Hooters picture.

We walked around the city and ended up having beers in Hooters. Matt was an attraction again with his beard.

It was then time for a wind down. Matt went to the gym whilst Kel, Dave and I sat back and chilled out before dinner. It was nice to just be stationary for a while and by the time five pm came around, I was reluctant to move.

We headed back to Hooters, I was adamant to take on the 12 burger challenger - 12 sliders in ten minutes. When I looked at it again and thought that we'd be on a ferry tomorrow, I thought better against it. Instead I had a BBQ burger - a terrific choice I might add. We also tried the hottest sauce they have - 'Call the Doctor'. It was a tingler.

One for my brother - Yaya, Kolo

We went to a bar and had a drink with a local woman who gave us some tips for Koh Samui. She was a sweet, old lady and gave us a great service. We all commented on her kindness.

Then we moved down to a dancing bar on Bangla Street where a live band was playing. They were actually pretty good, throwing out some Reggae and Rock tunes. The night was progressing nicely, no issues, no problems.

Just before the nosedive.

Before the tears.

It was when Kel left us that it took a turn for the worse. In short, Dave, Matt and I bought three beer tubes and we were set upon by dancing girls who we bought drinks. Then Matt made his dancer cry, I lost mine to a client with a 1000 baht note and Dave was taken by a woman old enough to be his mother - she showed him photos of her son!

A photo that says a thousand words! Just like her, bless her.

We had to escape, and we did, retreating to the capsule and thanking our lucky stars we were off to Koh Samui in the morning!

Day 145 - Phang Nga Island and Bond Island

One less Bond destination to see now!

Day 145 - 15th November

Well I wasn't late getting up because four French people were shouting out loud from 4am. I was getting pissed off quickly but got up at 6am and readied for our 8am pick up.

We took a shorter journey to the other side of Phuket to go to the ferry which would take us out to Phang Nga and the James Bond Island.

The view was stunning and as we drew closer on our hour journey, my excitement was building for the James Bond Island. I'd wanted to visit this icon location for so long and now I was on the verge. 

Siblings loving the Canoe! 

What a glorious day for it.

We were shown around the islands by sea canoe, weaving in and out of the caves to see the bats and the level of water during high tide. It was weird to think the depth of our ferry would leave the caves in a day or so, providing a passage way through. As it was, we were blocked off and could only go so far but even so, it was fantastic to see.

So stunning out here, similar to Halong Bay!

We had lunch on the ferry and then headed to the James Bond Island. As expected, it was touristic and difficult to get a photo on your own but we managed it. Dave and I did our customary comedy shot which I think we pulled off well.

Queues everywhere on this place. It kinda ruins the illusion of a Bond location.

Twenty minutes later, actually thirty minutes because we had to wait for an old woman with hairy armpits to embark, we went swimming near an island and even made it to the small beach on the east side.

As the sun was lowering in the sky, we made it back to Patong. We went for dinner near the beach front at a fancy restaurant. I had a Thai red curry which was pretty good followed by the less elegant McDonalds pineapple pie, free with a bank mini statement.

New Facebook profile pic I feel

It poured down, highlighting to Kel and Dave what I'd been putting up with for the last few months. We had a few beers at Blix bar further up the strip whilst marvelling at a woman on a pole. And I mean marvelling. The power and strength she had had me hiding my little arms behind my back.

Trust Dave to be watching the dancers during picture time

We were due to leave for Koh Samui in the morning but I thought a rest day for the gang would be good. We'd been getting early and going out all day and all night since their arrival so one day off wouldn't hurt.

Day 144 - Phi Phi Islands

I can't see, it's too bright!

Day 144 - 14th November

I luckily rolled over onto my phone and whipped it up to take a look at the time. It was 7:40am... our pick up for Phi Phi island was 7:30am. Bollocks!

I'm pleased to tell you that the usual Asian time keeping saved our arses and we had just over five minutes to scramble around and get ourselves ready to go. We hopped into the mini van and off we went.

It was a forty five minute journey and it was horrendous. We'd all had a bit to drink the night before and left the club late so with low air conditioning and being squeezed into a small van, we all felt the effects of the morning after.

We were briefed and provided with the itinerary by an enthusiastic ladyboy who made everyone laugh. The trip was shaping up nicely.

We sped out from the quay into the Indian Ocean. Thirty people or so bounced on the waves as we dropped up and down on those giant, blue waves. Dave and I couldn't resist a sing song which amused, or annoyed, our fellow passengers.

After an hour, we arrived at the famous beach from the DiCaprio film, The Beach. We drifted about 200 yards from it so didn't really get a great look but the surrounding area was stunning with the clear waters, the rocks and the glorious sun.

Topping up that tan next to a Polish hottie!

We moved around the islands and stopped for a spot of swimming. The water was that surreal lagoon turquoise from the calcium carbonate rubbing off the limestone rock. It was great to just float in and cool off.

Our next activity was snorkelling about twenty minutes from the swimming spot. A beautiful array of fish were on display and I think this was a highlight for Kel and Dave which was good to know on their first snorkelling experience.

Lunch was served on one of the islands. One thing I love about Asian tours. They know how to put together a decent buffet with good rice and noodles followed by fresh fruit. It really is amazing.

There we go!

The afternoon saw us stop off on a remote island and just chill out. Dave and I hired a jet ski. We shot off like Del Boy in Miami Twice, cruising at 75 kph towards another island. I really got into it, skimming the waves, turning at sharp angles and speed and bringing it off the water. Dave was doing the same until he hit a turn to quick and we both flew through the air and into the water. We laughed as we swam back to the jet ski a hundred yards away.

A safe return!

Back on the island, I indulged in a Cornetto and a swim before we reboarded for Phuket. I fell asleep on the way back, sleeping on a Polish girl who apparently took a selfie with her friend. I can think of worse things!

This was bloody good.

By evening, we were back on the strip. This time we had dinner at Eurasia. I had a Soy Pork Belly with white rice which was cracking. We headed to the same side street bar and played the nail game and connect four again with our new waitress friends.

We'd learned our lesson from the first night and retired to bed early so we'd be fresh for Phang Nga and the Bond Island.

Day 143 - Phuket = Party Town

Where the magic happens in Patong... kinda like Disneyland

Day 143 - 13th November

So we did the customary stop off in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere. My legs were near clotted so I had to shake them out a bit to get the feeling back. The food wasn't up to much - cold rice and vegetables were a mistake. I did recover with a Cornetto so not everything was a disaster.

We re-boarded, me switching places with Dave who took up the brutal stint up front. Within minutes he was turning around with a face much to say, 'stupid idea.'

I managed to get off for a few hours with a number of wake ups before we reached the 'bus station' in Phang Nga province. We had cheap coffee and waited for the mini bus to arrive. Matt said he'd join us to Phuket. 

We boarded another bus with an extra 150 baht to drop us off at the beachfront. A small deliberation found that it was probably our best option. So off we went again, winding up mountainous roads and then down them again to the ocean front.

Patong looked like a haven - for British tourists. Bars offering cheap beer, ping pong showhouses, nightclubs, market stalls and tailors. So many tailors!

Matt and I sought a hotel whilst Kel and Dave waited with the bags. A drunk Belgian guy cornered us on the street and had us buying tickets for The White Room nightclub at 150 baht entry, a further 500 baht when we arrived for unlimited drinks between 10pm and 1am. It sounded like a good hustle so we chose to just go with it.

We found the Capsule Hostel - an underground, Japanese get up with 'capsules' to sleep in. I use the word capsule loosely because it was a mattress inside a cheaply constructed MDF box. But, give it it's due, it was comfortable, spacious and had a blind for privacy whilst you slept.

I dashed out to do my laundry in some peculiar backstreet at looked like something out a Tarantino movie, with men standing in suits and bling watching me suspiciously walk up the street with a Tesco Lotus carrier bag full of dirty pants and shirts.

When I returned, we took the short two minute walk to the beach. The sand was soft like flour, the water tangy with salt and the sun warm like an oven. In short, it wasn't a bad olde spot.

Matt reddened quickly and we retreated to an Aussie bar for hotdogs and burgers (and a cheeky beer of course).  

We booked two separate island tour for the next two days at a supposedly good discounted rate, I was down another 2900 baht thinking Thailand was rinsing my bank balance.

Showered and relaxed later, we headed out for dinner. That never happened. We went to a side street bar and had beer whilst nailing nails into wood for fun with the waitresses. I won my first bout with four consecutive, and accurate I might add, blows. A second attempt went horribly wrong and I lost heavily. 

The waitresses were friendly enough, I suppose buying them 200 baht drinks after games of connect four help too! But all part of the experience I suppose.

We moved over to The White Room and the promises of Swedish women was as false as some of the women in there. It was full of ladyboys and western backpackers. We drowned our sorrows for 500 baht but it was definitely not a place we wanted to return to.

Not a bad start to Phuket. Looking forward to the island tours.