We've Moved !

We've moved all of about 200 meters up the beach.

Our new gaff
Tiled flooring, how very up market
Complementary water and bog roll! I can hardly believe it.

Still only 500bht per night.

To top it all off, the new place is about 100 meters closer to my hammock tree.

Here's a view from the hammock.

It's all got a big hectic

NEWS FLASH!!!!

It's warm and sunny on the island

Day trippers come and go

One of the local cats had some kittens...Ahhhh cute

There was a toad on the doorstep...not so cute.

I own a hammock. It has broadband and everything

Gobby Bird

In the absense of freedom. This bird thinks it's a rooster disguised as a mobile phone.

Matt escapes to Blighty

Matt left us on Koh Phi Phi today :(

Under 12's Devon connect 4 champion plays some kid....And wins, but not without having shouted "cheat!" at least once.

Surely with a backpack on at least one hand would be free to carry a Chang Beer

That's more like it

Now I'm on safely on the boat, can you pass that beer back to me?

That's better

A Blast from the Past

Matt (Stuttard) arrived here on the 16th September - how mad !! Sadly Joel leaves Koh Phi Phi on the 18th & Matt the 19th....it will then be just the two of us on our desert island.

Matt with a grin
Matt on a boat
Joel about to leave the island :( ...

The sadness was short lived as the sun came out.. woo hoo
that'll be a bay then
There's fish in them there waters

Koh Phi Phi - I may be some time...

12th September we caught the ferry from Krabi to Koh Pi Pi Don where Joel had been staying with his brother Mark for about a week.
Joel meet us at the ferry pier & after a quick chang we caught a long tail taxi boat to Hat Yao Long Beachand this is where we have been ever since!!!We have rented a 500bht a night wooden beach bungalow with seaview. Not sure if or when we will leave here. It's so beautiful with what appears to be mainly day trippers visitng these lovely white sands. The snorkeling off our beach is great, we have seen black nose sharks which is a first! We've also been on a few snorkelling tripsby local long tail boat, one of these was around Pi Pi Leh where the beach was filmed. We saw a huge puffer fish here which was amazing!
We have also been to Ao Ton Sai a number of times to shop for supplies, eat at our favourite thai eatery, and drink at the Apache Bar.

Rabies update, and flying to Krabi

We caught the train back to Bangkok to pick up our backpacks, and get a taxi to the Queen Saovabha Memorial Institute / Snake farm to have our 3rd Rabies/ Jap Encephylitis.
No time for resting as we caught a taxi straight the airport with the hope of gettinga flight south ( as the southern train sevice was still out of action until the following day!)
Our luck was in....after trying all the airlines we booked seats on the last Thai Airways flight to Krabi.
Two hours later & we were checked into JJ Mansions Ao Nang ....phew!!!! A long 24hours!!!!

The view from our JJ Mansions room

The Beach.

Monkeys mayhem in Lopburi

2hours or so in Lopburi was long enough to hunt down the playful (pretty distuctive) macaque Monkeys & eat our umpteenth Pad Grapow!!

No monkeys here

No monkeys here
monkey on a wire
I think we're in the right place now
More Monkeys....

As it goes, there were hundreds of 'em. They tend to hang around and steal cameras from the tourists and annoy the locals. We saw one catch sight of himself in the wind mirror of car, and then break it off to show his mates... Cheeky monkeys

Bangkok Fly By

5:30am Bangkok Hualampong Station

Just enough time for a pot noodle... hmmmmmm
Before heading off to Lopburi for a 3 hour journey to see the macaque Monkeys at the San Phra Kan

Overnight traing to Bangkok

Jenny the early stages of a 13 hour traing ride to Bangkok
Me, going slightly off the rails
Rice....Nice
Cling wrapped pad grapow, and additional tasty treats
Chang beer !

Mixed Emotions in Lampang

We arrived in Lampang which is considered "the last paradise in Thailand" by some locals... erm ??? we're not so sure. More of a backwater of wholesale ceramics, white goods and stainless steel stoves.

The view from our room which we were to use as launching pad for the elephant conservation centre the following day.
After a fully ponchoed wander around the streets we did stumble upon a little restaurant for a much deserved pad grapow (a bit salty) and chang beer.
The View up the river
On the bus up to the Elephant conservation centre
Lunch at outside the conservation centerThis baby elephant was 'adopted' by the big female.
With an arse the size of an elephant, you use a lot of paper BOOM BOOM!

if you squint, you can see a mahoot riding an elephant bareback.

Although the proceeds from the conservation centre go to the care of elephants and to the elephant hospital (noble indeed). It's not hard to wonder if the same could be achieved without having to offer tacky tourist elephant rides and shows. I would much rather think that people would support the conservation without wanting to see an elephant paint, play instruments, and walk along a path with a family on their back.

Needless to say, we visited the poorly elephants and products of the breeding programme, but didn't watch any shows, take any rides nor bought any paintings.

Although we did buy some elephant dung paper, It's shite.... BOOM BOOM