Chumpon & Hua Hin, Thailand

Steve and Denise headed to the airport from Kanchanaburi, whilst we stayed another night there with Jim & Barbara before catching the train south to Chumpon. A cockney, we head met on a train whilst traveling south on the same line a few weeks earlier, had raved about a beach,
Hat Tha Wua Laen, just north of Chumpon. "F^R%&g Beautiful mate", he wrote us loads of tips, places to eat, drink and stay. It sounded perfect and was. Jim & Barbara had a room with a balcony and sea view in a posh hotel with AC ... whilst we stayed in a simpler place just down the road.

It was a nice small resort, popular with mostly Thai's, and some ex-pats, with a beautiful long beach. We had great food at 'Paul's', Jim even eat Ostrich. There was some alright live music at a beach bar up the road. It was a great place to chill out, read, eat, drink and do nothing.

We had 4 nights in Chumpon then headed to Hua Hin for a few nights there. Which was perfect for Jim & Barbara as there was at least two good Fish & Chip Shops. We also had some great food at the restaurants in the night markets.

We met a lady in the street who was making pop up cards, we designed a card with her which we used for our wedding invites.

Kanchanaburi Province,Thailand

Hell Fire Pass, Kanchanaburi Province,Thailand, originally uploaded by Nice Logo.

We got an early morning taxi over the river to Bangkok's Noi Station aka Thonburi (Thonburi was briefly the Thai Capital after the fall of Ayutthaya), and boarded the slow, bare bones, local train to Kanchanaburi Province.

Part of this railway line was built by World War Two Allied Prisoners of War and became known as the 'Death Railway'. We rode the line across the infamous 'Bridge over the River Kwai' to the end of the line at Nam Tok Sai Yok Noi , where we turned around and headed back to Kanchanaburi town. It's a beautiful journey despite its sickening past.

We payed our respects at the Allied War Cemetery and visited The Thailand-Burma Railway Centre.

We hired a car and driver for a day and visited the beautiful Erawan falls, the moving Hell Fire Pass and Hin Dat Hot springs.

We had some great rooms by the river at Sam's House, which had just been renovated and looked great. It was a pretty spot and not too many of the Karaoke boats, popular with Thai tourists, seemed to pass us here but the frogs were bloody loud!

Kanchanaburi is a beautiful place. We had a great time chilling out with the folks. There were some good restaurants. We had a lovely meal at Apple & Noi's, and I asked Jim for Karen's hand in marriage, to which he answered "About bloody time too!"

We had been secretly engaged for a while, I had proposed to Karen whilst we were in Egirdir, Turkey. We were keeping it a secret until we had decided more about plans, dates... We still hadn't got exact plans but said we plan to have a simple wedding with a big party this summer.

We had many a toast!

Links

http://www.hellfirepass.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burma_Railway
http://www.seat61.com/Kwai.htm
http://www.samsguesthouse.com
http://www.tbrconline.com/

Back up to Bangkok, Thailand

Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho, Bangkok, Thailand, originally uploaded by Nice Logo.

We were then back up to Bangkok, like a Yo-Yo, where we met Karen's parents - Jim and Barbara. We had a few more days in Bangkok visiting the reclining Buddha at Wat Pho, The Royal Palace and other sites along the river jumping on and off the excellent public ferry.

I could see Jim was missing some simple no fuss English food. I passed him a note, in an envelope, which read something along the lines of "We've been informed that a British Citizen is in need of some proper British food, please find enclosed details of a suitable establishment, 'Oh My Cod' which serves the finest British Fish & Chips". Glad to be of service - M15, British Secret Service."

Jim loved it ! Karen also enjoyed their mushy peas!

Andaman Coast & Islands, Thailand

Long Tail Boat, Ko Phi Phi, Thailand, originally uploaded by Nice Logo.

It was a long journey from Pai to Krabby and we did it all in one go!

Bus to Changmai, Rickshaw to Train Station, Train to Bangkok, Change for Train to Surathani, then Bus from Gulf coast to Andaman coast, where we get dropped off in some random shady place on the outskirts of town, frequented by hookers. We try to get a rickshaw into town - the driver was pissed, after we protest, we eventually get a guy who said he wasn't drunk but can't drive, still he drove us to a hotel in Krabby town. 36 hours after leaving Pai. We checked in and headed to the cool roof top restaurant, to enjoy some well needed Chang and Green Curry. Ahhhhh!

The next morning we caught the ferry to Ko Lanta island. A beautiful journey with views of the stunning Andaman islands.

We stayed in some nice beach huts, just off the beach on Ko - Lanta. We met Sinead and Kat from Ireland and American girl who were also staying there, it was nice place to hang out with its own bar, restaurant... and a crazy stoned Greek guy.

Just up the path on the road was a lovely cafe/ restaurant, with some of the best Thai food we'd had. I joked 'you'll have to show us how you make that and the girl said OK, is tomorrow good? So I went back and cooked us Tom Yam Pak (Spicy Sour Vegetable Soup), Gaeng Kiew Wahn Pak (Vegetables in Green Curry), and Mussaman Pak (a nutty spicy sweet dish with potatoes, veg, coconut), with their guidance, then Kaz came up with Mum & Dad and we all tucked in! Bostin' !

We went to a pretty lively 'reggae beach party' which local legends 'Job to do were playing at. Do - Dooo Doo ....

ChangMai and Pai

Hot Tubs in Pai, originally uploaded by Nice Logo.

Changmai was great, we had a lovely day walking around the ancient city and temples, and had some amazing food in a Veggie restaurant. But we fancied being more in the country and mountains so we headed to Pai on a small crowded local bus.

Pai was lovely, still on the tourist map but super chilled. We stayed in some bamboo huts over the river across the rickerty bridge. It had beautiful views of rolling hills, banana trees and lovely sunsets.

We done some lovely walks around Pai and went on an Elephant trek, Mum and Kaz even went in the river to bathe with them. Mum loves Elephants! as anyone who's visited their house can tell, she has Elephant pictures, models... everywhere. The family at the Elephant camp had some hot tubs we soaked in afterwards. Another perfect day!

From Pai we done a trek out to some villages around Sappong, staying with a family in a homestay . This area has many different ethnic groups which have kept much of their individual cultures, the largest of which is the Karen people. Our guide was an amazing cook! and whipped an amazing feast. After dinner, washed down with local rice wine, we were 'invited' to an impromptu market that had been set up for us, right out side the house. It was all clothing and crafts made by the village women and most of it was lovely. We brought some gifts including a cute hat for Maisie and Mum brought more Elephant themed goods.

Links

http://www.karenpeople.org/

Bangkok, Thailand

Tuk Tuk, Bangkok, originally uploaded by Nice Logo.

We had a couple of nights back in Bangkok with Jamie and Ellie, before they flew home. It was so sad to see them go after an amazing trip together. A few days later my Mum & Dad - Steve & Denise, came out. It was so great to see them again! We had a couple more nights in Bangkok, exploring the city by river and Sky Train. We then caught the train north to Changmai.

Ko Tao Island, Thailand

Ko Tao was beautiful we had a day out on a boat going around the small island, stopping for some amazing snorkeling along the way. The nightlife was more relaxed than Ko Pha Ngan but there were some great bars along the beach front where we were staying.