Next destination wasn't far from the Thale Ban National Park - Ko Tarutao just off the West coast of the most southern point of Thailand. The journey to the pier by songthaew was easier and cheaper than expected and we had time for breakfast after buying our tickets. When our departure time was approaching the guy who sold us our tickets led us to a boat where we had to walk across a plank balanced between the pier and the boat (slightly worrying when carrying my bag and feeling slightly top-heavy). We got ourself some seats and waited as the boat [View Full Entry]

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Our next destination was the Thale Ban National Park which caused some doubt before we even set off, with neither of us wanting to ask how to get to the Taliban Park until we were assured that that is the correct pronunciation (I pictured some sort of an extremist theme park with rides like a suicide bomber rollercoaster etc). Once we were sure that our pronunciation wasn't going to cause offence we started trying to barter for a songthaew (pick-up truck with two benches put in the back) ride. During an animated discussion involving myself, Monique, the driver and the guesthouse [View Full Entry]

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The following day we once again sheepishly approached the information desk (being fairly sure they were laughing at us regarding the spider) and once we managed to find the only English speaker working there we asked if the leeches were everywhere and if there was anything we could do to combat our new arch enemy. Once again our question was met with a big smile, and we were informed that they aren't poisonous (she seemed to miss the point of our query) and that they happily drop off once they've had the fill of your blood. The crazy woman actually seemed [View Full Entry]

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Our next destination was a tiny town called Satun in the deep south practically on the border with Malasia, primarily because Monique needed to renew her Visa by leaving the country and re-entering. The journey down was not quite so comfortable as the one to Krabi, with 9 of us crammed into the back of an ancient minibus driven by a guy who used his horn much more often than his brakes. After about 4 hours we were unexpectedly kicked out without even being told where we were, but we gathered that we needed to get a second bus to take [View Full Entry]

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My fears regarding the overnight bus journey down to Krabi were unfounded as it turns out that the locals use luxury coaches with reclining seats, achres of legroom and snacks served periodically whereas the tourists use the ramskackle deathtraps that I thought we'd be using! This meant a pretty comfortable 12 hour journey and even a few hours sleep (would have been more had it not been for the awful film played at full volume for about 3 hours!) Krabi itself isn't up to much. It's a pretty quiet little place with a handful of tourists using it as a base [View Full Entry]

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So, I eventually got round to doing something other than wandering aimlessly, eating and sweating. I had a touristy day of visiting the Grand Palace and Wat Pho. Both were extremely impressive for different reasons: The Grand Palace is incredibly ornate and beautiful and the holiest site in Thailand, while Wat Pho is a nearby temple which houses the reclining Buddha (a 46m long, 15m high golden Buddha, looking quite chilled out). However the heat of that particular day was almost unbearable, and combined with the huge numbers of tourists wasn't the most relaxing of days but was enjoyable n [View Full Entry]

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So I finally got here and proved the doubters amongst you wrong! The journey was fairly unpleasant as the planes seemed to be designed to fit the hundreds of tiny Thai and Malasian people who use them, and the legroom is fixed accordingly. Having said that, it's a small price to pay really. First impressions of Bangkok: Mental! I thought the bus journey from the airport was pretty frightening, that was until I took a tuk-tuk later that day which put most rollercoasters to shame! Crossing the road is more of a matter of luck than judgement, although I have taken [View Full Entry]

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I'm still in sunny Birmingham at the moment, and making some final preparations for flying on Thursday morning. I reckon I've got most things ready, but I'm sure to have overlooked something massive. Although this is likely to change dramatically, my rough itinery is as follows: * 24th March: arrive in Bangkok * Up to 2 months around Southern Thailand * 23rd April at the latest, Cambodia for two to three weeks * Early to mid May: Southern Vie [View Full Entry]

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