Island Hopping

As Rob is such a perfectionist / slacker he has not finished his blog entries yet - so I thought I would just give you a brief up date of what we have been up to, and let Rob fill in all the details!

We have been to lots of the Thai islands from Ko Samui to Ko Phangan (the place of the infamous Full Moon Parties - which we missed by 1 day) We will I promise publish some photos soon - but we're in an internet cafe at the moment as we haven't found anywhere round here for the laptop.

As you will have all read we did a cookery course in Ko Phangan and also we hired a 2 man canoe and went from our beach (Thong Nai Pan Noi) round the island to the next beach Bottle Beach, which was great fun. We did it with Matt and Dorina - who were very much better than us at the whole sea canoeing thing!!! After getting there enjoying a quick dip and a drink we canoed back - it was great - even if did get a little sunburnt in the process!!

We also found a great place on the island to eat - other than the Bamboo Hut of course!!! The guys from the restaurant went out to the fishing boats each evening and came back with a fabulous selection of wonderfully fresh fish which they then pack on ice. You come along and choose your fish / shellfish and they BBQ it for you, it was delicious - Rob had squid which has to be one of the best tasting squids I've ever had! And I had red snapper - lovely.... it's going to take some beating to have fish that good again!!!

After Ko Phangan we went to Ko Lanta. The drive was a rather crazy one - driven by a complete nutter who refused to do less than a ton all the way - and offered me and Rob these crazy leaves that tasted like stewed tea! (much to the amusement of all the other thai passengers - we were the only westerners on the bus!) Any ideas of the nature of these leaves would be appreciated!!! This is where i had the mozzie attack! Once I had recovered from that we hired a scooter - and Rob at the helm did really well - considering he had never ridden a motorbike or scooter before - he wouldn't let me drive!!!! Sensible really I guess..... We went round the island seeing the Sea Gypsy town and the went to the mangroves on the island. We found a community project who offered boat trips around the groves. We were sailed around the groves 0n a traditional thai boat - wonderful! We stopped by a little clearing and after our driver whistled a little and threw a few bananas a few monkeys appeared and came right up to the boat - wow! After spending some time observing the monkeys we went to a floating fish farm and saw all manner of crazy large fish, which lived in the mangroves. It was such a wonderful trip - looking forward to showing you all the photos.

In Ko Lanta we also found another fabulous restaurant to eat - it was wonderful food - but the best thing about it was the in house entertainment - the frogs!!! The majority of the eatery was outside and as a result was plagued by flying creatures of all shapes and sizes!!! It was a little unnerving - but then out of the corner of my eye I spotted a frog - and then another and another and a few toads for good measure too! they came in like a little army and began cleaning up all the bugs! Hooray for the frogs - they were great entertainment and Rob has some fabulous photos.

We went then from Lanta to Phuket. This was by far the most touristy of all the islands - feeling bit like a beautiful Blackpool. We found a nice Bungalow to stay in and did some exploring of the Old Town which was an interesting one as it was very European architecture and felt more like being in Spain or somewhere.

We also went on a day trip - but I will do a separate entry for that as we did loads in a day - and I definitely want to tell you those stories with the aid of pictures.

As you can tell - we did quite a few of the islands and loved each and everyone of them for their unique character and charm. Shall miss the sea for the next few weeks......

Bloody Mozzies!!!

Well we thought Ko Phangan was a chompy island and after accumulating just under 20 bites (to Rob's pathetic 4 or something) I thought it wasn't going to get worse....... how wrong I was!!! We left Ko Phangan after having a wonderful 5 days and we decided to get to Ko Lanta we would catch a night boat to Surat Thani and then bus/boat to Ko Lanta - which is easily the cheapest way and we thought quite fun too - and it was - we were on the top deck of a 2 deck ship and either side on the deck were just rows and rows of mattresses on the floor where you could lay down and sleep through the night while the ferry cruised through the night on its 7 hour journey. After a couple of games of scrabble me and Rob settled down for the night for a little sleep - unbeknown to us that when the buggers struck!!!!

Thankfully we were too tired when we got to Surat Thani to realise and then after dealing with the slick travel agents and many 6am minivan transfers we were finally put on a bus to Ko Lanta, so it was not until we reached out destination about 15 or so hours later that I realised the full devastation on my legs, we checked into our next bungalow and I felt a little itchy...... and then I felt very itchy!!!! I rolled up my trousers to discover the total had gone from 20 to nearly 50!!!!!

I spent a pretty uncomfortable night not really knowing what to do with myself and having nurse Rob administrating every anti -itch remedy we had! (God bless Germolene!!!) First thing the next morning we went into town and went to the pharmacy to show the pharmacist my bites - without going into too much detail I looked none to attractive - we got up there and she proved to be our saviour, (Rob had a few bites by this point too and I'm sure was happy to see the end of my whining!!) she took one look at them and came out with a cream and a pill that has put me on the mend - so now except for a load of blemishes I feel hundreds of times better.

Believe it or not we had been using loads of repellent but these b*stards don't seem to care - and if they are bothered they seem to be able to find the tidy spots that you haven't got repellent on - so me and Rob have waged official war on the mosquitos and now carry in our pack another type of repellent, tiger balm (which the locals swear by to sure everything!!!), anti itch cream, antiseptic cream, bug spray and 2 different types of mosquito coils - now let the little buggers have a go!!!

I am please to report that since then neither of us have been chomped by anything - and we are both feeling itch free and normal again - hooray!!!! So not to worry we're all good again and even more equipped than we already were. One tip for anyone visiting the island in the south of Thailand - don't rely solely on repellent, coils or long clothing - none of these seem to work!!! We have asked many islanders how they stop getting bitten and it seems to be a timeless questions which if anyone can find an answer for they would be very rich indeed - For Rob a great repellent seems to be me - as for whatever reason I am infinitely more tasty than Rob!

Thai Cookery Course

Well after a spot of Island hopping which I'm leaving Rob to Blog about, we went from Ko Samui to Ko Phangan (Ko meaning Island if you hadn't guessed). Once on the Island we went into full relax mode - what a beautiful island (but anyway don't want to spoil Rob's spot!!) We spotted a cookery course being advertised in one of the little shacks just off of the beach called Bamboo Hut. It also served food - so we decided to sample the food before committing to a course. The food was wonderful and while we were there we watched an Austrian couple start the course, and it looked right up our street so we went for it!

We were asked to choose 3 meals off their menu which they would would then show us how to prepare. We opted for Thai Green Curry, Tom Yam (a seafood soup / broth) and Pad Thai. Our teacher was a lovely Thai lady called Asia. We sat down in the main eating area of the hut and she brought out all the herbs and spices we were to use for the pastes and broths we were making, some of which I could not identify, but between all 3 of us we were able to put English names to them all! I had never seen tumeric in root form before - never realised it was so orange!!

We prepared all the herbs and spices and then went through to the kitchen at the back and was shown what to do with all the things we had just chopped, ground and peeled. The smells were wonderful and after only an hour we had in front of us 3 very authentic looking Thai dishes which we then sampled with our friends Dorina and Matt and I must say - rather boastfully - I was rather impressed with our efforts; so I can promise you a treat when you come round for tea at our house when we get back!

We also had a lovely time after eating (while Rob and Matt had fixed one of the corrugated iron gutters after it collapsed during a rain storm and threatened to wash away the bar of the hut!!) where Asia showed us how to make a body scrub out of coffee grounds and lemon juice. Then she very kindly sat down with us and explained about the 2 islands we were planning to do next, Ko Lanta and Phi Phi. With all this information in hand we left the Hut feeling very full of food and friendship - it was a fantastic 4 hours! We then walked up to our taxi to be taken on the next part of our journey - to Ko Lanta by nightboat, bus and maniac minivan!

If you're interested I'll put the recipies on here so you can try them yourself - let me know in the comments!

Finally just to say thanks to Rob's folks who gave me the money to do the course for my birthday it was a great gift.

The Grand Palace and Wat Pho

Well what can we say except stunning! We started our journey immediately being hussled by this Thai guy claiming he was a police officer packing us onto a Tuk Tuk and trying to take us to a private boat to take us up the river. We quickly realised what he was up to and got the Tuk Tuk driver to drop us off and found the Express Boat - the locals rivertaxi and about a 10th of the price we would have paid! It was a good reminder to keep sharp in the city - and we survived!

We went firstly to the Grand Palace which was where the Royal family of Thailand used to have their residency but is now only used by them for occasional ceremonies - one of which was to be on the evening we visited where a royal ox is asked to choose from a certain set of foods, which one it chooses predicts the agricultural performance of the country for the next year. So when we arrived there were many people busying themselves putting out red carpets and different ceremonial dishes etc. There was also many Thai people flower and insence stick in hand doing circuits of the palace blessing it before the families arrival.

In terms of the architecture in was beautiful. Wonderfully bombastic and over the top. As you can see from the photos it puts Winsor Castle to shame!! Myself and Rob particularly like the figures that appeared to be straining to hold up the buildings. Another favourite of Rob's was a beautiful painting that went round the entire wall of the grounds with certain figures picked out in gold leaf. It was depicting a story which was fantastical, and we will when we get bored on line be sure to figure out what it was staying.

Wat Pho was equally as wonderful. Having been told by no less that about 5 individual Thai guys that it was shut - we were a little disappointed to think we had missed out - however, lucky for us as we were walking back to the Express boat we discovered the entrance and it was in fact open - apparently after the reading the guide book it can be a scam by some Tuk Tuk drivers - telling you something is shut when in fact it is not - so they can take you other places.

The Buddah was an awesome sight. It is apparently the oldest and largest temple in Bangkok dating from the 16th Century and here's the best part within the temple is a stunning reclining Buddah 46m long and 15m high. The reclining position illustrates the Buddah passing into the final Nirvana. It is covered entirely in gold leaf and the soles of his feet are made from Mother of Pearl depicting loads of different Buddah positions.

As well as obviously the stunning spectacle what hit us when we walked in was the noise! We could not at all work out what the constant tinkling of metal was until we got round the other side - where Thai people were picking up small gold coins and walking the length of the buddah dropping a coin in each of the 40 or so bowls that lined the length of the wall where the Buddah lay.

It was stupidly hot so after two hours of melting like proper tourists we retreated back to air con via the Express Boat. What a fantastic day of sightseeing.

Hotel Lebua

Well what can we say? Except that the hotel has to be one of the most decadent experiences of my life! It was such a wonderful way to kick off our travels. We arrived on Thursday evening - and didn't venture out of the hotel - instead taking in it's ambiance by drinking several wonderful cocktails on the sky bar with awesome views of Bangkok and then enjoying a chef taster menu (we think it was 9 courses but we lost count of how many there was) Everything from sea trout with a cucumber shot to the most delicious beef to some courses we couldn't actually fully identify at all but were nevertheless extremely tasty!

Our room faced the river with a balcony (had to sign a HSE form to use it!!! The bastards get everywhere!) It was such a wonderful view both during the night and day, and all the amenities of a luxury hotel, plus service on hand in all areas of hotel including guys who it seemed their only job was to call the lift! All of it was done with the wonderful genuine thai smile. Something that I have really noticed since I've been here is the fact that the thais love to smile - it really helps you feel good.

We then spent the next evening at the hotel enjoying the pool and a round the world tapas - again each tapas looked like mini works of art and were very nicely washed down with a cocktail or 3!!!

So all in all it was a fab experience and if you are ever feeling a little plush or have a special occasion to celebrate I thoroughly recommend it - it is certainly a birthday present I won't be forgetting in a long time...... I should imagine our accommodation for the rest of the journey will be a lot less indulgent - or we'll see you all in a couple of weeks!!

Itinerary

At first I wasn't sure how to start this blog and what the first entry should be - but I figured that you all may be interested (or maybe it is me gloating??) in our itinerary for the next 9 months. So here is our trip.....

On Wednesday we fly to Bangkok where for my birthday Rob has booked us into a rather wonderful hotel called the Lebua at State Tower, where we plan to get our holiday off to a very decadent and relaxing start!

Except for that not much else is planned yet for the SE Asia part, all we know is we have 3 months to get to Hong Kong by what ever means we choose - so civil unrest permitting we should have a chance to check out Thailand - and we hope to do Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and a very small amount of China before finally arriving in Hong Kong.

Once there it is off to Japan - this is one I know Rob is particularly excited about - I think this is likely to be the biggest culture shock of the whole trip!

After Japan we spend 2 days in Sydney and then straight to New Zealand where we are spending 3 months touring by car and tent or campervan - doing plenty of trekking and some high adrenaline activities no doubt!

The final leg of our tour is off the Santiago where we have 3 months to get to Rio. Where to spend new year???? Choices choices choices!!! (it's a hard life!)

Let us know if you have any recommendations from your own travel experiences and we would love to hear from all of you. We will be on Skype a lot so please add Rob's email address to your contacts if you have Skype too.

Anyway signing off for the first entry - more news soon - hopefully with cocktail in hand surveying the Bangkok skyline........