Got a taxi to the bus station and went in search of the kiosk that services buses to Pai... a bit of a mission as it turned out to be out of the main station and hidden round a corner but eventually found it and asked to book onto local bus with fan at 11am ... turns out the timetable i'd read was a wee bit out of date and the next bus was not leaving until 2pm (it was 10.30am...) so i opted for the slightly more expensive (..minibus with aircon over scary looking local bus with fan..) option that left at 11am and after a bit of fun and games and swapping from one minibus to the other 3 times (..they obviously couldn't decide where to put the farang - again i was the ... read more

Soooooooo ...... apologies all, have been completely rubbish, and to be frank was having far too much fun in Taipei to dedicate sufficient time to Travelblog i'm afraid so again i find myself very very behind! in an effort to catch up quickly i have decided to let this entry be more of a story by pictures... i.e. a lot less text (... i hear some of you exhaling a sigh of releif!!...) Sooooo, TAIPEI, TAIWAN!! It all started off very well, had booked my flight with KLM and was so excited about 4 fun packed days in Taipei with Jo and Akira! flight went smoothly.... except for the fact that now my coral wound had swollen up quite a bit so that my foot and lower leg resembled that of the marshmallow man in the ... read more

... Ko Tao = closest to paradise i've ever been... Fairly uneventful trip down to Ko Tao - arrived in Mae Haad at around 6am and got in the back of a pick-up for our journey to Sairee beach. The sun was shining and the beach deserted at such an early hour - absolute paradise. It felt amazing to be back knowing i was here for at least a week and could fully relax and enjoy this incredible island. We'd decided on staying at Sairee Cottages but the office didn't open until 8am so Caroline and i relaxed on the balcony of Sairee Cottage restaurant and took in the view, looking at eachother and shaking our heads and giggling sporadically at how amazing the view was! When the office opened we booked three huts booked for ... read more

...another smooth journey back up to Bangkok on boat and coach, sad to wave the sunny beaches bye bye but its only for a few days. Arrived in Bangkok at 1am and went to check into Villa Cha Cha (lush little boutique hotel with pool and really nice rooms - thought Caroline and I could do with a bit of luxury before 2 weeks in basic beach huts!). they wouldn't let me check in until 6am unless i paid for a nights accomodation - so to save myself 800bht i decided to stay up until 6am..... Khao San road is quite an interesting place to wonder round when you're tiered and sober!! killed a few hours in internet cafes catching up with mail and drinking lots of coffee, its incredible that this road is buzzing 24/7!! ... read more

The Journey...hadn't really paid much attention to various friends and relatives comments on 'how brave' i was being.... this has always been the ultimate dream for me, i've longed for this opportunity for over ten years and always was so focused on the going that hadn't really spent much thought on the actual getting on a plane by myself to a country where i knew no-one and having to work everything else out along the way, by myself. this didn't hit until i said goodbye to Dad at the departure lounge entrance and put my bags through the X-ray machine... panick hit, tears came out of nowhere - needed gin and fast!! after two double GnT's and a pep talk from Shorty and Mark (thank you both!) was raring to go! ... well almost! definately ... read more