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Published: January 12th 2010
Sa wat dee!
Well i've been back in the homeland a month now and i've finally managed to get my A into G and write about about my latest amazing adventure. I know lots of you have been asking to see photos from home and the Wedding etc but i'll do that all in a seperate blog after the Races and Sevens (all costume ideas welcome by the way!) cause there's so much work in downloading pics, It's fair to say i'm slightly over it!
Vicki, to look over past blogs you can just click 'previous entry' at the top left of this page. For those of you that just like looking through the photos there are 46 from Thailand (a little more modest than my usual 100 photo effort so as to try and keep your interest!)
Anyway enough of my ranting here goes..
We flew Thai Airways from London and had a comfortable 12 hour flight to Bangkok. Once there we made ourselves at home in the Club Lounge before our 1 hour flight to Ko Samui. We waited very impatiently for a shuttle at Ko Samui Airport because we were sooo eager to be
Bodypaint
At the full moon partyreunited with Aidan and Vicki and what a reunion it was. We threw our bags in our room at Relax Resort and headed straight to the resort bar/restaurant where we drank cocktails and made up for lost time. Such a brilliant first night!!
Sadly amongst all the excitement Annie lost her handbag somewhere along the way, we're unsure if it was lost or stolen later on that night at the beach but she had to head to Bangkok first thing that morning to sort out another passport. Aidan, Vicki and I went for a walk and found a few carts on the side of the street selling chicken skewers and fresh fruit. Perfect way to kill a hangover.
When Annie returned we hopped on a very hot and crammed bus to get to the Ferry Port. The Ferry took an hour and a half to get to Ko Pangnan and we slept most of it. Once there we soaked up the buzzing atmosphere and we had our first official Thai Lunch of Stirfry which we picked up at a local bar. It was here that Aidan suggested we eat no western food whilst on holiday in Thailand which
we all agreed to. We then jumped in the back of a little ute (or taxi) and got taken on a bumpy off road journey to what would be our home for the next three nights.
Baan Panburi Beach Club (a 25 minute journey from Ko Pangnan) was a lovely secluded little place with spacious bungalows and the most amazing Restaurant. Unfortunately the weather didn't put on a good show for us while we were there but we made the most of it with lots of cocktails, massages and walks on the beach and spent alot of time at the Restaurant trying as much authentic Thai Food as we possibly could.
I woke up on our first morning with enormous welts from Mosquitos even though i'd been well prepared and coated myself in Jungle Strength Deet before bed! It seemed they were just attracted to me and unfortunately this was the theme for my entire time in Thailand. That night we got a Shuttle from our Resort to Haad Rin beach for the full moon party. What an amazing sight. From afar all you could see was the bright lights of stages and body paint lighting up the
Aidan and I in Hammocks
At our Accom in Khao Suk National Park. Loved these! beach. Not to mention the overbearing sound of DJ's clashing which didn't seem to diferentiate from one another until you actually got down on the beach. We picked our meeting point and luckily didn't need to use it. We got straight into the Vodka/Red Bull buckets and danced until the sun came up and the tide came in on the beach.
The next day was a total write off and potentially the worst hangover in history (damn those buckets!!?!).
Friday the 5th was time to head off from Ko Pangnan and just Vicki, Aidan and I left as Annie went to join her parents on more Thailand adventures. We originally planned to head to Ko Tao but after talking to Don (one of the very kind men who worked at the Resort) we agreed to take a detour and go to Surat Thani and Krabi on the way to Ko Phi Phi -in hope of dodging the bad weather and getting some sunshine! We got a shuttle to the Ferry which took 3 hours and it was here we were met by the woman who would be our chauffeur for the next few days.
Not only did
this woman (and her hyperactive 7 year old daughter) drive us the entire way to the Ferry Pier in Phi Phi but also stayed the night there too (we later found out when we saw them in the morning!). It was great. Surat Thani didn't have alot to offer but the Resort was seriously five star (despite Don's description of ''it's just ok''). We spent that night by the pool, then had a huge meal and Vicki and I finished off with two hours worth of pampering in the Day Spa, just in time for bed at 11pm. Seriously can there be a better way to end a day?
Next day we headed to Krabi and on the way there stopped to be taken on a 'longboat' by a man named Mang. We went out to this amazing little place that consisted of lots of cabins floating on water and reminded me of the movie Water World (minus the fighting).
Back in the car after that for another 2 1/2 hour journey and got taken to our accomodation 'Smiley Bungalows' in Khao Suk National Park. After a Beer we went on yet another boat expedition but this time
Vicki, Irish and I
This Irish dude seemed to pop up on every island we went to! they were rafts, very relaxing (Apart from seeing the snake in the tree. I didn't like the thought that it might fall!). The weather was slightly better today but still not amazing. Had a quiet meal and a much needed sleep and up again for our journey to Ko Phi Phi.
The Ferry to Phi Phi was an hour and a half and once there the heat literally hit us like a ton of bricks. I almost complained before realising it was what i'd been wanting all along! We found a pretty shabby resort on long beach and once bags were in rooms we spent the rest of the afternoon on the beach, sunbathing and swimming in the gorgeous crystal blue water that our resort looked out onto.
For the next few days Aidan was heading off on his much anticipated Diving Expeditions so Vicki and I decided to take a look around the rest of the island. It was on exploring this that we decided there must be somewhere nicer to stay and thank god we did explore! We ended up at a lovely clean motel type resort with a beautiful infinity pool which we spent alot
of time at!
During our last 4 days in Phi Phi we shopped, swam, ate, drunk and even did cooking classes. The classes were so much fun and we learnt to make loads of dishes including Phad Thai, Red and Green Curry and Tom Yum Soup. Not to mention having a huge feast afterwards.
On our last night in Phi Phi after meeting up with a very excited Aidan who had completed his PADI (and loved it!) we spent the night partying at the various beach bars, drinking buckets and watching the awesome fire displays.
It was a very sad morning on Thursday the 11th (not only because of those damn bucket hangovers) but because Aidan, Vicki and I had to say our goodbyes after the holiday of a lifetime. I then headed off on the ferry back to Phuket for my flight to Bangkok and eventually landed in Wellington where the next part of my adventure began!
Since i've been here it's been all go, Hen's Night's, BBQ's, not to mention my cousins fabulous Wedding, Christmas and then New Years in Sydney. We had the best time in Luna Park watching the Fireworks Display over
Sydney Harbour Bridge and then playing on the various rides at the fun park.
I then went to Melbourne to visit Hannah and Nina and it was so good to see them both -what a little Aussie Nina is too. So as most of you know i've decided to stay on here for a bit. The London Winter isn't exactly beckoning me back and i'm quite looking forward to spending time with friends ar home and going to the Races and Sevens like old times.
So for those of you in London i'll see you on the 26th of February. I hope you all had an awesome Christmas and New Year.
Talk soon guys, love and miss you (so weird writing this from home!)
xx
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