Whilst peering down at the countryside below, at the neatly sectioned fields of varying shades of green and the lines of orderly traffic filing along the well maintained roads - strangely, actually giving way at junctions - suddenly the pilots deep, well spoken voice filled the sterile air conditioned cabin; “…the local time is two-fifteen, erm, outside temperature is currently eleven degrees and overcast with, erm, light rain…” Light rain. Drizzle. It ...

The thick fog blanketing the skyline of India’s vibrant capital city had us touching down almost thirteen hours later than scheduled, including a brief, unplanned diversion to Jaipur for refuelling. We arrived to find that our thoughtfully prearranged pickup had long since got bored and b*****ed off and all two of the ATM’s in the airport were out of order. Well, more accurately, one was out of order and the other simply didn’t like our card, or us, or ma...

The short flight to Singapore was an eventful one as we found ourselves seated next to an overweight Singaporean with a withered right arm and an extremely loose tongue. Max, we learnt, is happily married to a Chinese woman with whom he shares a young son of 10 months. He enthusiastically informed us that he bathes three times a day but his wife, he added, whilst shaking his head in disbelief, only once. His dark expression left us in no doubt that this was noth...

Located a half an hour drive from the tourist hotspot of Krabi and just up the shoreline from Au Nang, the family run Pan Beach Resort was secluded, natural, and most importantly, reasonably priced. In essence, everything that Ko Phi-Phi was not. Entering the resort from the quiet, leafy approach road, the area is carpeted with a green, well kept lawn. Either side stand a row of spacious, tasteful wooden bungalows that subconsciously guide the eye down towards t...

Thanks largely, to the 1997 hit movie, The Beach, my vision of Ko Phi-Phi was one of a tropical paradise. Of un-touched golden sands, emerald waters and rolling hillside carpeted in dense vegetation. Scarcely populated and unspoilt by the world. One of natures remaining jewels. The reality of modern Phi-Phi was, disappointingly, somewhat different. Stepping from the ferry you will find yourself greeted by dozens of expensive hotel and guesthouse owners, all eag...