Koh Phangan Island, Thailand

PART ONE:

Our journey to Koh Phangan was the easiest so far. It only took us 45 minutes. Which is brilliant. When we got to the island, there was a nice lady waiting at the pier looking for people to stay at her hotel. We decided to check it out. What a lovely resort Sea Breeze Hotel is. Our room was lovely with nice views of the sea. We even had a swimming pool which I really enjoyed. The views from the pool were spectacular. It overlooked the beach and all the surrounding mountains. Even the staff couldn't have been nicer. We became quite pally with a guy called Mo who was a waiter in the hotel restaurant. A really nice, quite guy. They even had two cool, talking parrots who were so cute and funny. The two of them kept on saying 'hello', 'I love you' and 'bye bye', to name but a few. Truly amazing. We were in paradise. Due to the fact we arrived on the island in between the party season, it was very quite, with not very many people, and not much happening. It was probably a good thing for Jason who has been suffering from food poisoning from a doggy burger. He's in Thailand, it was bound to happen sometime. But he is a soldier and he will pull through, don't worry. I have to say, it is great having our own private pharmacist. Thanks Kathrin. But I think she will eventually turn us off chemicals and into using natural remedies only. Sure why not! With Jason not feeling like himself and the island being so quite, we really got to enjoy our little resort. We even managed to get our outfits and paint colours for the Half Moon Party which were really excited about. Sorry everyone, you will all have to wait to see the photos. One of the nicest things about the resort is the amazing views we had of the sunset. It was spectacular, so beautiful. As we move on to somewhere new, we can't wait to come back for The Half Moon Party!

PART TWO:

After being here only last week, it was time to return to the island for one of the greatest parties in the world, The Half Moon Party. While we all loved Phi Phi, we couldn't miss an opportunity to party in the jungle. Rather than staying in the same area as last time, we decided to stay somewhere completely different, so we swapped our luxurious resort for a hostel, The Beach Village. To be fair, it's really nice. There is a nice bar, pool and we're right beside the beach. While the resort is quite established, where we are staying is only new with A/C and a private bathroom. When your a backpacker, these things our so luxurious. The guys staying with us, Lucy, Liam and Donny who are all friends from London are really nice. We all went for dinner together to an authentic English pub, The Masons Arms. It was like stepping out of Thailand and into England. The guy who owns it is English and based it on his local back home, with even the food menu being the exact same. While we really enjoyed ourselves, It was a bit of a walk back which isn't great when your not feeling well, but it was worth it! Once again our hearts melted. At our resort are two tiny little puppies. They are so cute. Apparently someone left them there a few weeks ago. There is a real dog problem in Thailand, with dogs everywhere. We asked someone where we are staying, why they are all so skinny, even the ones who have good homes, and they told us the dogs have a diet of Tuna Fish. That cannot be good for them. The poor things! That evening I had died and gone to heaven. We went to a local supermarket and Kathrin, the Swiss spotted her favourite Swiss cheese, Gruyere and a nice fresh baguette. It would be rude not to buy it. So we bought it, and it was amazing. I was so happy to be able to have some strong flavoured cheese again. As my mother would say, 'It's tasty tasty!' Later on we all got ready for the party. Jason painted lovely designs on me and I did the same to him. I even managed to write something on the back of his head and when he found out the following morning what it was, he wasn't a happy bunny. I cannot divulge what it was (but if the price is right, PM me). The party itself was ok, the music wasn't great. Jason had a bit too much to drink so we left early. The taxi coming back was completely full and they managed to get another person in who had to sit on the floor. Only in Thailand! Kathrin and Donny stayed on and managed to have a really good night, with Kathrin promising to bring the party to the Alps. Should be fun, cannot wait. When Katrin and Donny got in, The Alps Ambassador was a bit drunk, but a happy drunk. Seeing if Jason was ok, she was told to 'Go F**k Yourself!' I think that must have been the highlight of the night. Getting her revenge, she then threw loads of toilet paper over him. It's how the Swiss retaliate, bless them! In our resort there is even a talking lizard who keeps on saying 'F**k you!' I didn't even know they could talk, but there you go. On a sadder note, it's time for us to say goodbye to mad Thailand. We have both had an amazing time here, but we will definitely be back. There is so much more we want to see. For now though, we face two days of intense travelling to Cambodia. I'm sure it will be worth it! We could get a plane and be there in a few hours, but unfortunately for me, Jason wants to experience the whole travelling experience, personally, I think he's getting his own back for what I wrote on his head last night, either that or he is just too stingy to pay extra for a plane ticket. Oh well, I guess we will all have to tough it out!

By Andrew

#halfmoon