George’s Adventure

Wednesday 15th November 2006

On Friday 10/11 we set off on a ferry to Koh Phi Phi from Phuket Town. At the ferry port they gave us yellow stickers to indicate that we were getting off at Koh Phi Phi Don.  There are two islands that make up Phi Phi.  The ‘Don’ island as I like to call it is the bigger of the two. When we arrived it was hot and sunny but raining slightly.  It seems that the rainy season is just coming to an end but still it rains a bit in the late afternoon.  Plenty of time to catch some rays in the evening though.  When we got off there was caos, people are everywhere.  Instead of trying to get us into a tuk tuk, here they just want you to stay in their hotel or get on their boat.  Mayhem.  Eventually we found a guy who took our luggage and we followed him on foot through the various stalls and shops to our resort.  The man in charge tried to tell us that there were no rooms available but since we had already paid I put up a bit of a fight and he backed down.  When we got to reception they booked us straight in.  We even got air con, a mini bar and a TV when we had only paid for a fan – bonus!! 

The beach was about a 2 minute walk from our room.  Beautiful sand and warm water which we swam in every day.  On the second day it rained in the afternoon but we still swam and played frisbee in the rain.  In the evening the place is fairly relaxed and quiet.  The most excitement culminates in fire shows. We managed to see three just walking from one bar to the next.  I am now sick of fire shows. 

I had two massages while I was on the island. One with oil and one with Janine next to me which was just a thai massage. I am still a bit achey but it was great.  Thai massages are very different to the ones we are used to back home. 

Yesturday we got the ferry back to Phuket and then a plane back to Bangkok. 

Thursday 9th November 2006

Arriving in Phuket was surprisingly easy.  We had arranged it so that we got picked up from our hostel in Bangkok and transfered to the airport where our flight was with Bangkok Airways (‘Thailand’s boutique airline’ dont you know!!).  We got given noodles on the plane they were great.  Anyway, we got picked up at the airport too which took all the hassel of sorting out a taxi for ourselves once we got there.

We are staying at ‘Sandy Beach’ on Patong beach in Phuket.  ‘Sandy Beach’ is about a two minute walk to the beach.  It’s great.  We have spent most of our time just lazing on the beach.  The most taxing thing is saying ‘no’ to various thai people who try to sell you all sorts of things from fruit and ice creams to sarongs, tops and wooden elephants.

Muay Thai boxing is big here.  We got to go to our first thai boxing match.  The atmosphere was amazing.  We were right in the thick of it with all the thai men waving their hands around and getting all excited with their betting.  So much fun.  We saw 8 matches ranging from young boys right through to the big boys with one girl fight in between, which i didnt like (something about girls fighting like men that isnt right).

Today we visited Phuket town.  We got a bus from the beach front which costs 20 baht.  The bus takes an hour but its much cheaper than a tuk tuk and quite an experience being packed in like sardines in the bus.  Phuket town itself is pretty much non existant and a bit of a let down for us.  There is supposed to be some good portuguse architecture here but we werent overly impressed.

 

Monday 6th November 2006

We arrived at the new international airport in Bangkok.  Last time I visited they only had one part which everyone flew into.  Now they have a part for domestic and a part for international.  We queued ... [Continue reading this entry]

Wednesday 1st November 2006

Well our last day in Sydney and we have managed to cram in a trip to Bondi beach where we checked out the beach, had some fish and chips and then we caught the bus back to ... [Continue reading this entry]

Tuesday 31st October 2006 Melbourne feels chilly. I think i have literally stepped into a fridge when i get off the bus. Melbourne is a bustling and vibrant city that is bigger than Adelaide but not so big that you cannot ... [Continue reading this entry]

Saturday 28th October 2006 On Tuesday 24/10 my adventure to The Grampians and The Great Ocean Road began.  I had decided that this part of the Australian coast was something that I really wanted to do and Janine wasnt too bothered ... [Continue reading this entry]

Sunday 22nd October 2006 The first thing noticeable about Adelaide is that the temperature is undeniably cooler than what we have been used to in Central Australia (outback). It gets cold in the evening, a bit like our summer evening's at ... [Continue reading this entry]

Thursday 19th October 2006 Yes, I have finally made it to Adelaide. I have spent almost a month just travelling in the outback - it feel like an eternity - but it has been fun.  On Tuesday 17/10 we got picked up ... [Continue reading this entry]

Monday 16th October 2006 We left for our 3 and a half day Uluru trip from Alice Springs on Thursday 12/10.  The day before we had spent getting all our stuff ready for the trip and having a look around Alice ... [Continue reading this entry]

Wednesday 11th October 2006

We have now arrived in Alice Springs from Darwin.  We left Darwin on Sunday 8/10 after an early start of 5.30am to meet the bus.  The fact that we didn't leave and the bus didn't pull up ... [Continue reading this entry]