Koh Lanta
Spent 9 days here recouping and enjoying our last bit of time in Thailand. It is a very beautiful island and very chilled. Have seen some of the most beautiful sunsets.
Spent time doing exercise, reading, sunning, swimming and eating. Before dinner we would often go for a run along the beach and on one evening at the other end of the beach were two beautiful elephants – it was very cool.
We spent one day on a snorkeling trip to Koh Rok (Koh Rok Nok [outside] and Koh Rok Nai [inside]). We had a lovely day. Got to go on speedboat there and back which was fun. Snorkeling off the boat saw lots of cool and colourful fish and some awesome coral. Had lunch and a rest on Koh Rok Nok – which is a national park area (people can camp there) and has a very nice little beach. After we headed back out for a little more snorkeling before heading back to Long Beach.
Had a night out on the beach – Mojitos and tacos ahoy!!
Cocktails on the beach
Now heading for a last flying visit to Sangklaburi to catch up with David and the post-ten Mon students before heading back to the UK – Sunny Lincoln beckons…
Pics @ Photos/Koh Lanta
Training in Muay Thai with Tiger from 16 January to 16 February 2010.
Well the first day was quite a shocker for my body – skip rope, running, sprint punching, jump knee and more – followed by Muay Thai technique, followed by shadow boxing, followed by pad work with trainer, follow by heavy bag work, followed by sparring, followed by 200 jump knee, 100 forwards kicks, 100 elbows, three loops round the mat on the toes thrusting knees in the air, followed by 300 sit ups and 100 push ups and stretching. On our first day we did this 2.5 – 3 hours training twice (once in the morning and then again in afternoon. Needless to say the next day I was sore – had trouble walking properly and sitting up was very painful… but after a couple of days my body started to get used to it 
Me and some trainers (Dang [without his stick] on the left – main beginners instructor)
I did get picked on a lot by the beginner head trainer, Dang, always being asked to go up front and then everyday being asked to demonstrate the knee ups (and explain the consequences of letting your heels drop – the stick – stay on your toes!). After two weeks I was moved to intermediate. A lot less cardio but more technique (and no stick).
Done some private sessions with trainer Yod, great stuff – you get one hour of pad work with a trainer – good cardio and great for learning technique.
High Kick
Upper Cut
Did manage the beach one afternoon – Nai Han. The umbrellas did spoil the splendor of the beautiful beach somewhat – but they were much need to avoid being BBQ’d!
Steve at Nai Han Beach under his Umbrella
As the cardio was reduced somewhat in the intermediate class I thought it would be a good idea to do Body Fit (bootcamp combat conditioning). This is at 7am for 1 hour before the Muay Thai class starts. It is intense! Lifting tires over your head and doing squats, lifting tires and throwing them, various twisting/push-up planks, planks with weights, hard jumping exercises, kettle-bell exercises, core exercises with weights… I could go on. Well it certainly warmed me up for Muay Thai. Exhausting stuff and I did manage to drop a tire on my head – doh! But it is a great work out – one that I have grown to love (hope to carry on with it when at home).
Also had a go at Krabi Krabong (weapon fighting) with swords (sticks ). It is really hard but very interesting. I reckon it would take ages to get really good. A lot of different movements to get used to – one needs to make the sword an extension of the arm.
We also went out for night on the town at Patong. It was strange being in such a busy place after being out in the stix for a few weeks. Bangla Road was as expected – lots of tourists, working girls, fliers for Go Go bars, sleazy bars, men with lizards, touts, lots of shops yada yada yada. We went for a delicious Indian dinner at Kohinoor with Clayton and Conrad, wondered round a bit, went to a couple of bars, played some connect four, before heading to Tiger Discotheque for a dance, was really good fun and they played Faithless Insomnia… result.
On 13 February (our last Saturday in Phuket) was the monthly BBQ Beat Down. Food, beer and fighting. It was really exciting to see our fellow trainees in the ring putting into practice what they have been learning. We also got to see some MMA (mixed martial arts) fights. Mainly lots of grappling on floor and blows to the head.
Texas’ fight – they both did very well
Food update – well we have eaten lots of curries, lots of rice, lots of tofu. We did find some nice veggie restaurants. One serving amazing seaweed and tofu “fish” – it really was like eating a piece of BBQ’d fish, how do they do it! The Thais have mastered food on stick and we found a veggie option – potato spirals with paprika (very yummy)…
It has been a great month in Phuket – its was pretty tough in places but has been a great experience and its been good to learn Muay Thai and get in better shape. Our last weekend here (Valentines day) we wondered down to Chalong Pier to soak up the beautiful scenery. Just one last Combat Boot Camp to go before heading to Koh Lanta.
Not too fund of being punched in the face but Muay Thai training is indeed good fun and we have met some really lovely people.
More pictures:- Photos/Tiger Muay Thai – Phuket
Tiger Muay Thai website – http://www.tigermuaythai.com/
Tiger Muay Thai on Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/pages/Phuket-Thailand/Tiger-Muay-Thai-MMA-Training-Camp-Phuket-Thailand/87650205356?ref=mf&v=wall#!/pages/Phuket-Thailand/Tiger-Muay-Thai-MMA-Training-Camp-Phuket-Thailand/87650205356
12 January 2010 arrived in Kuala Lumpur for a Thai visa run.
My very first impressions was (again like Mumbai) – reminds me of London – though unlike Mumbai there are no double decker red buses – it’s just it was raining lots when we arrived but I discovered after all it’s not really like London. It’s stopped raining now.. its hot, has some very cool shopping malls, a fab China town, the Patronas Towers, a great travel system (monorail/LRT) and so far seems pretty hassle free.
Apart from visiting the Thai embassy just been wondering round really (the Golden Triangle area), went out for a few drinks round ‘town’ on Thursday – went to a Thai club and then to Over Time where we happened to see a band play which was fun and drank some German beer “Starker” – rather nice – before wondering home singing GnR songs Got tickets to see Avatar in 3D on Friday – cool CGI, popcorn, nachos and 3D (which is awesome by the way). Flying back to Thailand tomorrow…
One of the few pictures of the Patronas – really need a hair-cut… of some sort!
photos/KL
RnR
We spent Christmas in Kanchanaburi. We went hunting for a roast potato and we found a roast potato! Found an ex-pat bar serving full roast for Christmas dinner. Result… tucking into mash potato, stuffing, roast potatoes, carrots, broccoli, cauliflour and last but not least onion gravy was great… had forgot all about English stodge! We then went to a couple of other bars, drank mojitos and played pool with ladyboys… all in all a rather unusual Christmas.
Buses – I don’t want to travel on one of those again for quite some time. We had a day in Bangkok before catching the bus to Cambodia and back for a visa run. The company actually did a very good job, they were really organised, getting all the papers ready, organising lunch, having DVDs to make the journey a little less tedious and we were back in Bangkok by 7.30 p.m. We then headed straight to Koh San Road to catch our bus to Koh Tao. Not so organised. Hundreds of people were also trying to get the bus to down south. Needless to say it was a bit hectic. Our bus left at 9.10 p.m. and arrived at Chumphon at around 4 in the morning. We then got the ferry to Koh Tao and arrived at 5.45 three hours before we expected…
When we tried booking accommodation several weeks earlier everywhere was fully booked. We were forced to stretch the budget.. am I glad?! …spending a couple of days over New Year at Seashell resort, it’s so lovely to have a big beautiful room with a balcony and all the mod cons! After the 2nd we will be staying somewhere a little more modest but that does boast a whale skeleton and hightop views of Sairee beach. Bye bye hot shower, you will be missed and you four poster!
Koh Tao is beautiful. A lot has changed since I came in 2003. Then there was only a handful of resorts (mainly diving orientated) and a couple of bars. Now bars and resorts line the beach. But thankfully they are low buildings made of wood and blend nicely into scenery of palm trees. And there are so many restaurants and shops in the little ‘villages’.
We had a fun New Year… starting the night at a really good Indian restaurant. We had lovely samosas followed by Rajma, Aloo Mutter, Bindi Bhaji and rice.. soooo good! And some mojitos of course.
Then we wondered up and down the beach, it was very chilled. Ended up at a bar called Maya, listened to some cool music, watched fire dancers and watched the fire lanterns drifting up and away
The weather is great, the water is beautiful, the pace is relaxed… so spending some time snorkeling and swimming and chilling, kayaking and exploring. And we are going to try our hand at some Muay Thai…
Happy New Year for 2010
pics Photos/Thailand
I love Sangklaburi
Sangklaburi really is a wonderful place. It’s a little sleepy town, but very very beautiful. The lake is lovely. It’s got a nice little market, which is really interesting to walk through, all the food stalls and fresh fruit and veg. There is also a 7-11 lol, but they seem to be everywhere in Thailand!
One morning (15th Dec) whilst I was buying breakfast (usually chickpea wrap and veg samosas…yum) from the market I saw there was a parade! It was so random, hundreds of children were participating; a brass band (who wore straw hats), sports teams wearing their kit, another band with children playing big drums accompanied by children on glockenspiels (the ones they use for parades that rest on the hips), and some really young children 4-5 years old dressed up in pretty frocks (one group was REALLY dressed with way too much make up on). Anyway it was pretty cool to watch. We think it might have been a parade for some school sporting event. Pretty random for 8am on a Tuesday!
There are so many great little quirks I love about this place; the fact that at around 6pm there is aerobics out front of the hospital – run by an extremely enthusiastic Thai with a cool head-band; the street signs are painted on gold fish; and the street lamps are shaped liked dragons.
Oh my goodness, one day (20 Dec) I saw a fluffy monkey jump into the basket of a woman’s scooter and take her bag of fruit
Teaching in Sangklaburi has been a wonderful experience (albeit extremely nerve-wracking, hard work and tiring). We worked in a very small school for Mon post ten (post high-school) students. The students are extremely hard working and motivated 
I was so nervous on my first day but they were all so lovely and made us both feel very welcome. I got to watch Steve teach for the first time and I must say I am very proud, what an excellent teacher! The students also make the most excellent lunches David from New Zealand is the only permanent teacher in the school and works extremely hard. Teaching 6 hours a day, five days a (week when there are no volunteers). On 20 Dec we all went on an outing to Songkalia – a short drive away, where we had a picnic on wooden rafts on the lake’s edge and then we all went swimming, was great fun! Wednesday 23 Dec – fun day for Christmas, with games, Christmas card making (all ESL focused of course) and The Muppets Christmas Carol film
We are leaving Sangklaburi on Christmas Eve – heading back to Kanchanaburi in search of a roast potato and to celebrate Christmas… before doing a quick visa run before the New Year.
HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE – HAVE A WONDERFUL NEW YEAR!!!!
More pics to be found in ‘Thailand’ folder on the ‘Photos’ page
Cannot believe we have been in Thailand for over a week already. The people are truly welcoming and friendly with smiling faces everywhere.
First stop was Bangkok. We were only there for a couple of days and headed straight for Koh San Road for cheap lodging and good tucker. Found a great vegan cafe called Ethos, serving lasagna, meatballs, Thai food, choc fudge cake and apple crumble to name but a few dishes we sampled. Koh San Road is a buzzing place where all the backpackers hang out. It has a fun vibe. We managed to catch some locals into their folk playing Johnny Cash on the guitar. Fab with a Singha beer.
After three nights we headed to Kanchanaburi, 3 hours west of Bangkok. It is very pretty, with backpackers flocking there too being right by the River Kwai and all. This was just a flying visit on our way to Sangklaburi (but we’ll be back to Kanchan for Christmas).
Three hours north/east of Kanchanaburi is the sleepy town of Sangklaburi. It really is a pleasure being here. Its nothing like Bangkok, very laid back, no vegan cafes but plenty of tofu
Sangklaburi is the last village before the border with Burmese, it is situated 230 km northwest of Kanchanaburi Khao Laem Dam on from which the temple tip of the old flooded Sangklaburi soars. It really is a lovely place. We are staying in a rented house on a typical Sangklaburi street, only on our street we have the police station and hospital too!
Pictures of Sangklaburi/Thailand so far are in the Photos page found in Thailand folder.
November 2009
Well not a lot of sight seeing done – the CELTA was very very intensive. I had to teach simple present tense on day 2 (’they’ eased me in gently!). The first two weeks I taught pre-intermediate adult learners and the last two weeks upper intermediates. When not teaching, we had lectures about teaching, wrote four assignments and spent lots of timing preparing for lessons.
Midway through November Mumbaikas feared a cyclone was on its way – luckily for us it did not hit Mumbai – but some towns in India were flooded. One night I was awoken by what sounded like a waterfall outside our bedroom window – it was raining… lots. The next day the heat and blue skies returned (even in the cool season (now) Mumbai averages 30 degrees).
For some mid-course stress relief we decided to go to the cinema to watch 2012. The Regal cinema, just at the end of our street, is an old art deco film house, with very high ceilings, balcony seating as well as the stalls and had venetian curtains that were raised up to reveal the screen. The place was packed. Before the film started there was the usual ads and trailers and then the Indian flag appeared and the national anthem was played, we joined everyone standing for this.
2012 was the perfect film to see. Over the top, catastrophic, cheesy, end of the world stuff that had the audience laughing and clapping. And when the British actor (playing an Indian scientist) said his lines in Hindi the audience was tickled pink). Amused – we wondered what he had said!
Nearing the end of the course coincided with the anniversary of the 26/11 Mumbai bombing of the Taj Hotel and the shooting at Leopold Cafe. Both 5 minutes from our hotel. Some us went for celebratory drinks at Leopold cafe, the waiter who served us experienced the horrors of 26/11 first hand. Very sad. And then we walked around the Gate of India just by the stunning and very posh hotel that is the Taj Hotel.
After meeting the nicest people on my course, dropping 4kg, two melt-downs (where I was about to quit), nerves and sleepless nights – finally passed CELTA with a B Pass!
- pics added to photos folder CELTA -
Well, we expected Mumbai to be very busy and very polluted. We thought it would be packed with people, bustling and crazy. Maybe because of where we are staying or where we have visited, we have found Mumbai to be a whole lot less hectic than Delhi.
We are staying near Nariman Point, which is the business district and is really nice. It is clean and very modern. Nearby is park called the Oval Maiden where people always seem to be playing cricket and overlooking the Oval is the Rajabai Clock Tower, which is not unlike Big Ben!
Some parts of Mumbai remind me of London – the theatres, the greens, the cricket, the big red buses and double-deckers. Walking along Back Bay (the stretch of water leading to the Arabian Sea) toward Chowpatty Beach makes me think of Manhattan Island NY with all the skyscrapers on the horizon.
Scratch the service and move further a field and you will see the great divide between the very rich and the very poor, where whole families are homeless.
I like Bombay and I think it will be a good place to study (classes start tomorrow 2 November 2009) eek.
Also Bombay is very very hot, even though we are meant to be entering the cooler seasons!
Some photos of Mumbai in the India – Rajdhani Express and Mumbai folders in the Photos page…
27/28 Oct-09
Rajdhani Express Train to Mumbai
We were in the very first coach in the very first compartment with large seats/bunks for just the two of us – traveling in style…
We were given bottles of water, glasses of pineapple juice, towels, pillows, sheets, soap, thermal jugs of tea and coffee (with cups and saucers). We were given snacks of sarnies, chocolate, cashew nuts, dessert, vegetable samosas and later for dinner we had: Starter – vegetable soup and bread roll, bread-sticks and pickle; 2nd course – salad, steamed carrots, peas, runner beans, macaroni and some vegetable bake type thing; 3rd course – bindi masala (bindi is okra), palack paneer (but we had to decline as paneer is cheese – palack is spinach), rotis (x2), daal and mix vegetable rice; and dessert – strawberry ice-cream (again we had to say no as do not eat any animal products – gutted!) But to be honest we were fit to burst anyway. Needless to say we didn’t need that extra large lunch we had before checking out of our Delhi hotel and really shouldn’t have eaten al those Oreos while waiting for the train to depart New Delhi!!
After dinner a man came round with a dust-pan and brush and swept the floor. The main conductor/porter, who was big smiley man with a large moustache and laughed a lot, bid us sweet dreams and we made our beds – I was on top bunk and Steve on the bottom.
The train departed from New Delhi at 16.30 so we only got to see a little of the country-side before sunset – mainly trees and fields/farmland. The Rajdhani Express takes 16 hours to Mumbai (rather than the normal 24 hours), it is very quick with no other stops other than Mumbai.
The sunrise over the countryside was very pretty. We were brought the morning paper (The Indian Express), mango juice and for breakfast we had cornflakes (cunningly we brought a small carton of chocolate soya milk), banana, vegetable cutlets with a bread roll and tea and coffee. Again we had to say no thanks to the omlette.
On the subject of veganism – we have been trying to avoid dairy, saying no to paneer, milk, eggs etc, but a lot of the food in India is cooked with and contains ghee (clarified butter), so although we try not to eat dairy we know the ghee is probably there somewhere. India has many “pure” vegetarian restaurants, but this means that they do not serve egg.
We thoroughly enjoyed our trip on the Rajdhani Express train to Mumbai, albeit we were in 1st class A/c
Few more pictures in the Photos folder – India Rajdhani Express to Mumbai…
24/25 Oct-09
We left for our “four hour” drive to Agra - it took over an hour just to leave Delhi! When waiting at the traffic lights sometimes there are vendors selling snacks, water, coconut slices, magazines etc – today someone tried to sell us a fake beard and moustache Well we were on the road for over six hours and pretty bushed by the time we made it to our hotel in Agra. At 11pm the singing and drum banging started, about the same time I was attacked by mozzies, which kept us awake all night long. So we watched films on HBO and defended ourselves against the many many mosquitoes sneaking into our room, until it was time to leave for the Taj Mahal at 5.45am.
Well was the Taj Mahal worth the arduous car journey and sleepless night? By golly YES!
One of the most magnificent sights I have ever seen – it really is beautiful. A large white marble palace, which took 22 years to build and 20,000 workers, commissioned by the Emperor Shah Jahan in 1632 during the Mughal empire’s period of greatest prosperity. Shah Jahan was griefstricken when his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, died during the birth of their fourteenth child, so decided to build the Taj Mahal in her honour.
All around are are expertly and beautifully decorative flowers that were created by applying stone inlays and carvings into the white marble. In the dome there are replicas of the tombs of the Emperor and Queen’s tombs (the real ones are below the dome). The main dome also has an amazing echo! On the other side of the Taj Mahal is the River Yumuna, where it is said that Shah Jahan wanted to build a black marble palace like the Taj Mahal – but alas his son wanted to rule so had him imprisioned…
We also visited the workshop of the relatives of the architectures who worked on the original Taj Mahal, they are still creating the most beautiful marble and stone inlay objects!
Right back to Delhi for a nap…
Photos in the India album… as soon as I have created it.