Thailand- top-middle-bottom

It's been a week or so since our last blog and after spending 4 days in a crazy Bangkok getting tucked up by Tuk-tuk drivers, insect salesman and hoteliers we left on the overnight train to Chaing Mai in the North. The train journey was good, less privicy but nicer toilets than the Indian trains plus you can booze on them which gives them an obvious advantage in our eyes!

We spent a couple of days looking around the town and relaxing before our three day trek. We weren't sure what it would exatly entail, we probably should have guessed by it's name that a fair amount of walking was involved but we didn't. It got pretty hot too (about 40c and not a lot of shelter) we were in a group of 9, a New Zelander 2 Israel's and the rest we're Brits. The whole group got on really well......except one, a girl from Morriston would you believe, she went to school with Steve P, Cooper and Mctaggart Rachael Johns?! ring any bells, bit of a pain in the arse typical Morristonite (other than the people we know from there of course!) the rest were a great bunch and we've already made plans to meet up with some of them in Oz. We were treated to a local homemade liquor called moonshine on the trip, bonkers stuff we have the recipie so when we get home we'll give it a go although it's illegal the buzz you get off it is worth the risk! We also got to do a bit of elephant riding (again not that great they didnt seem to like it one bit) and bamboo rafting which was brilliant, we're both covered in cuts and bruses from ambushing any dry people passing at the end, those poor families!

After 5/6 days in Chaing Mai we got another overnight train to Bangkok, after one night there we got the overnight bus to Ko Phang nang with the help of a ferry. The journey from start to finish took 18 long hours, and it didnt help that we were sat behind a snooring middle aged man (with his Thai bride) who took snoring to a whole new level which he started about 5 minutes out of Bangkok. It's the longest and most uncomfortable journey we've had since we've been away and wont rush to book another bus thats for sure.

Ko Phang nang is beautiful, the place we are staying at has a great bar/pool/beach front location and its great to see a beach again after about 4 weeks of travelling about (its a hard life we know) we havent seen a lot of the island yet but are planning to do that once it cools down later (Ant)as i've sunburnt myself, you'd think we'd be used to it by now but it must be in the British genes that sunburn (under any circumstances) is a given.

We have the full moon party tommorrow night, 5000 people raving on a beach I bet it will have nothing on the 'Swansea bay' parties of 2 summers ago eh?!

Will post again after that......probably a few days after, once fully recovered.

Photos seem to be a no-go but we're still trying, we dont look very different, still as beautiful as you remember us!

Toodledo, Anthony and Tania.