HO CHI MIHN

HCM is a bit insane to be honest, it seems to be half the size of Bangkok with twice the people, and everyone seems to be in a huge rush. The traffic here makes New York City look like Bellingham, with each step off the sidewalk feeling like a well rehearsed dance, narrowing missing sudden death by inches. It all seems to work though, and after about a day, the frogger-esk nature of crossing the street becomes a bit more natural. Two pieces of advise; have a few beers to loosen up and follow a local across the street, the older the better. They seem to know what they're doing.

T N P

After discovering Paul was on Ko Phangan we rerouted a bit and headed to the gulf, and I'm very glad we did. This is by far my favorite place in Thailand, and it was great to see a friend for a few days. We'll be here for a few more before we head off to Vietnam.

K O P H I P H I

Ko Phi Phi turned out to be everything that was promised; beautiful and slightly insane. It's really a small Cancun, with fire shows and drunk 19 year olds every 3 feet. But none the less it is beautiful, and we rented a kayak for a few bucks an hour and found a smaller much more isolated beach that was awesome, and complete with a few Thai guys sitting in the shade selling beer out of a cooler. We also went diving, which was really great, though I don't have much for pictures.

B E A C H

We made it down the coast to Ko Lanta and have been here for a few days, it's of course lovely, though it does feel a bit like a retirement home. We rented a motor bike yesterday and cruised around the island, which is enormous, finding cool spots to stop and swim and have a drink. Getting down here is no small task, so we stopped in the jungle to break up the trip, treating our self to a nice place with a pool and an elephant trek. Pictures to come later of all that... Now we're heading to Ko Phi Phi for a few nights, which though we know will be a bit insane, as it's one of the most popular places in Thailand, promises to be beautiful and well worth the trip. It's also our 6 year anniversary today so we might just have to treat ourselves (yet again) to air-con and a dinner that's more than $6.

L E A V I N G B A N G K O K

B A N G K O K

We've been in Bangkok a few days and are shipping out this evening, on an overnight bus headed for the south. One thing I didn't count on was how many more tourists are here in the high season, and the train sold out, which sort of sucks, as it's about 900 times more comfortable, but oh well, we press on. So far all we've really done is eat, drink and get massages, which is fine by me.

Bangkok hasn't changed much since my last visit, still great street food, cheap shopping and people trying to sell you a custom tailored suit every 10 minutes. It's a great place, though not being able to escape the heat (aside from internet cafes and massages) makes us ready to move on and get some fresh air.

W H Y H E L L O !

Holy radio silence batman!

I've been crazy busy lately getting ready for our trip, so the normal lunch break posts have not been happening. Even the after work posts have been a no-go, as all the last thing I want to do after work is look at a screen. BUT, it's all worth it as we're taking off in 3 days! So hello again, and goodbye! See you in Thailand!

photos by yours truly