Hi guys,

Sorry its been so long since we have done a blog but with meeting up with Em and Sarah we've been soooo busy!

When we arrived in Phuket town we met up with Em and Sarah and after a bit of confusion about where to meet we settled down in the posh hotel room they'd bought for us for that night for our birthdays, and then went out for a lovely dinner. Over the next few days we headed towards the coast for some beaching and swimming in Phuket, dodging the lady boy bars and getting drunk a few nights..

After a while this gets boring so we decided to head up towards Phang nga which is famous for its limestone casts in the water and mangroves. On the way, we made a pit stop at the Gibbon Rehab centre and National Park in Phuket, saw some waterfals and forests and stayed in a hotel on one of the noisiest roads around! The next day we flagged a bus down from the side of the highway just outside the hotel and road all the way to Phang Nga.

In the town of Phang nga we found a cheap little hotel that had a room with 4 beds making it very economical indeed. We stayed there for two nights while we did a day trip on a long boat to the mangroves and caves and the surrounding islands. See the photos its one of the most beautiful places we had all ever seen (even though the weather was cloudy). Included on the trip was a visit to James Bond Island where the scene with the bond girl coming out the water with the white bikini on was filmed. We explored the caves there and saw lots of bats, Sarah and Em bought some jewellery from the hawkers there, after poor Em got covered in pearls and bracelets by one of the sellers! We also saw a floating muslim village. On our way back on the boat we got to see a bautiful sunset gleaming behind the limestone casts. Ok so i went a bit overboard on the photos in this place i couldnt bare to delete any so sorry if it all looks a bit samey! That evening we walked down to where they were holding a fete for a festival where they float flowers down the river with a candal to send away all their bad luck from the last yea and to pay respect to the goddess of the river. This didnt happen that night but they had food stalls galore and what we thought was going to be a ladyboy fashion show, which then turned out to be a little girl beauty pagent where they were all caked in makeup like in America and it was all a bit scarey really....6 year olds do not need sex appeal people!

Anyway we scoffed our faces full of delicious Thai food and beer for about 2 pound each and then turned in for the night.

The next day we got the ferry over to a nearby island called Koh Yao Noi where we stayed in a peaceful wooden cabin with outdoor bathroom, our own beach and plenty of relaxing places to be. Em and Sarah were happy as larry until they found a big fat spider the size of their hand on the mosquito net while Em was under it! We were all a bit more careful at checking where we tread after that! We also saw hornbills, lots of huge crabs on the beach, millipedes were everywhere especially in the bathroom,and on the Sunday morning the day before we left i came up close and personal to a snake on the path, which i was later told was probably a cobra! It was more scared of me judging by the speed it moved but we had a moment where we just stared at each other and neither of us really knew what to do next! I felt very very VERY privileged to have seen one and to be so close! how cool is that!?

We spent our time on the island exploring different beaches either by kayak (Em and Sarah) or by motorbike (me and Dan), getting slightly too tipsy on cocktails and beer and eating glorious Italian food. (not all at the same time obviously!)

We were there for the full moon, as we had decided to give the full moon parties of other islands a miss, and we sat on one of the small piers overhanging the water in the moon light, drinking beer and chatting and watching the spring tides get higher and higher and higher until the waves starting crashing over our feet.

Sarah had a Thai massage on the veranda the next morning by the sea, and we relaxed on the beach for the rest of the day until happy hour when the cocktails started! oh dear...bit hungover the next day when we all had to get the 8 o clock ferry over to Krabi. Note to self, do not get on a ferry while hungover! It was all we could do to just keep staring at the horizon and keep the contents of our stomach down! When we arrived on land again we were miles from where we wanted to be so we got a lift in the back of a pick up. The wind and scenery sorted us out a bit thank fully, and then we arrived in Ao Nang. See next blog....