Incredible views Loved your descriptions. From your pictures and words it is easy to tell you were in paradise. Sorry it took you so long to escape the frozen north to get there. I'll have to plan on staying a week in the city and then another week in the country to relax and unwind.
Just arrived in samui today.. Sobering reading! Like you said, it can happen anywhere at any time but you never expect it to happen to you.
Thanks for sharing your experience
shoo! Wow, thats pretty hectic day. I hope your mind is at rest by now, as I know these things even though not directly involved can scarr you. I woke up one morning, to shout at my nieghbors, who's kids must obviously been playing with left over christmas crackers, this I thought was an endecency to not only the animals but the neighborhood, it was only 6am. As I stormed out of my drivway and turned the corner into my nieghbours driveway, I almost had a heart attack myself.
I walked straight into the back left corner of his car. He was standing outside on the right hand side, just starring into his car and I? I was starring at the man who lay on his passenger seat, door still open, and stomach/chest area blown to shreds, it was months before I could eat chicken again due to the visual effect of a bullet at such close impact, nothing like the movies.
Needles to say no kids got into trouble, however it wasnt long after the cops ( police) arrived that the startled neighbor started rambling on about something down the road, and pointing and crying, he was a massive wreck. The guy in his front seat, had shot a woman that lived in the house down the road first, she was his girlfriend and drug dealer. He had walked in on her sleeping with some other guy and shot both her and attempted to shoot him. He then ran up the road saw my neighbors car and jumped in the passenger seat as he was leaving for work, still waving the gun around my nieghbor could not understand what was going on.
When my nieghbor told his friend he would not take the weapon nor hide it for him, the guy then point blank shot himself, sitting right next to my nieghbor..............5mins later I had randomly strolled up the driveway..................
The woman killed had also been a mother to two kids.........
Thanks for the blog! Thanks - an enjoyable read but sad to see the prices have gone up disproportionately to the improved facilities. I'm staying here for 7 weeks - the last time I was on Koh Tao was Jan 2007 so I'm going to stay positive and remember the little bit of paradise for what it was!
Well, Mister Munkey, you really are quite the cad, and a semi-literate one to boot. When did you exchange your simian grunts for words? I have just been in the company of some of your family (tarsiers and black macaques) and none of them could utter a single ineligible word. Shame about the weather furry one. I can sympathise though, as its been pretty dreadful throughout SESA this yeah. Now on Sulawesi where its supposed to be the monsoon but it's perfect. Go figure! keep swinging monkey boy
Thoughts...? Incidentally, in regards to the monkey business in the final paragraph, and in equal regards to the "first draft" pictured with Mister Munkey... do you know Karl Pilkington himself goes ape over all things monkey related? In fact, he probably works for the BBC. Just need to bring the two together. Talk about killing two birds with one stone...
Gang of Ten My sister Alice is one of the Gang of Ten, the other 9 are very close friends of mine. It was lovely to read what you wrote about them, they're a great bunch! x
Bloody marvellous !!! Hi you two...and Mr Munkey of course ! What a delight and with such humour....I nearly wet myself !!
Just brilliant Chris..........hope to see you all soon at a bongo meet.
Yorkshirelass. xx
Nightmare Someone once said they never understood the words "terminal illness" until they'd been to Heathrow airport. Sounds to me like Stansted is the new Heathrow. The horror, the horror. Nice entry.
Grand Stuff Enjoyed reading your tour of Scotland as I know most of the places you and your family was in.
I hope you have a return journey in 2010 as I live in Inverness and it would be nice to meet up.
Kind regards,
Gordon.
Great post - East Coast pointers Hi,
Really enjoyed the blog.
However, on the East Coast drive you need to get off the A1 and into some of coast towns like North Berwick. Best of all though is getting right down to the beach at Coldingham - especially of the surfers are out.
http://www.stvedas.co.uk/ - it's the hotel/restaurant as well as the surf shop.
Cheers,
Tony
Let me firstly introduce myself to t'internet.
I have very little recollection of my early years growing up in the Tropics until I was adopted at the age of two by a lady who worked at Paignton Zoo.
She became my benefactor in England, providing me with very comfortable accommodation & a reasonable standard of living until her sad demise, late 2004 after what can only be described as a bizarre gardening accident. After her death, I was adopted by a generous - if not kind - couple, who owned a small human of their own, up in the frozen north. They took it upon themselves to yank me from ... full info
Trish
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Best read ever
Totally enjoyed this, felt like I was there myself.