Hey everyone, well so much for my two weeks lying on a beach! It all started out great but then turned into the holiday from hell, (aka Tina and I getting kicked out of our nice beach hut, then finding we'd been way overcharged, when we refused to pay they threaten us and tried to steal our stuff, all the other huts nearby were fully booked and it started to piss with rain....and I have to confess cried for the first time since I've been away.) However, all is looking up as have booked self into yoga retreat for a few days, all organic food, spiritual cleansing, herbal saunas and thai massages etc etc. Preparation for the crazy week of partying ahead of me with moon set parties and the uber even itself...full moon on the 14t h however 10,000 people are supposed to party on one beach seriously baffles me but never mind! Before I came to Kho Pangan, I was staying in Georgetown on the northern island of Penang just of f the Malaysian coast, I went there with the Lonely Planet recommendation that it was a great party town.....yeah right, rat infested hole more like. There were giant rats absolutely everywhere, in the restaurants, crawling over small children....where was the Pied Piper when you needed him?! Also attraction and sights wise in Penang there was very little, I met up with a nice couple from Bath, Charlotte and Zeph and we managed to do all that was on offer in about an afternoon- got the trinicular car thing up Penang Hill and visited the crazy Keh Lok Si temple nearby which was more like a theme park ride than a place of spiritual worship with all its merchandise stalls and gimmicks etc. The new hostel that I'd moved to was nice enough, (dead cheap R7 for a dorm bed and hot showers YES!) but apart from a nice Spanish guy, ( quite cute and studying film in Paris) and some very chilled out Kiwis the rest of the guys in the dorm were plain weird. One Swedish guy kept trying to chat me up even though I made it blatantly clear that he should leave me alone, also he kept so much food under his bed that after a while we got mice in our dorm scrurrying all over the floor and even worse.............COCKROACHES!!!!! Oh my god I completely freaked out! Booked what I thought was a nice aircon minibus to Kho Pangan, I knew ti was a long journey so it would be best to pay a little bit more to travel in "style". Except had to get the bus at 5am in the morning and having been to a street party the night before was still awake from the previous day. All was fine with bus until driver decided to run own local taxi service on the side...13 people in a 9 seater bus plus bags. Then the aircon broke. Also didn't help that the Chinese I'd eaten before decided that it was going to give me a very gippy tummy. Over fourteen hours later finally arrived dazed and confused at Kho Pangan. Then spent a couple of days slobbing on the nice beach until drama yesterday. So all is not always fantastic in paradise and to be honest I wouldn't object to going home right now I'm so tired of being ripped off and treated just like a walking pound sign! All I went is a nice beach hut on a nice beach where I can get some peace and quiet for a change! Sorry about the rant but I'm missing you all! Spec. you Miss P, don't worry have not forgotten about you and most definitely miss our gossips, (trouble brewing on the horizon as looks as though with UCAS situation may really have to go to Durham now with he who is dead to us forever.....another thing to add to my worries!) Anyways, enjoy the new photos all! Jo xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx