The not so secret life of Richard Read

up's and downs

2006-01-31T00:44:00.000Z

hey, its been a while I know...i went to Toronto to see the gorgeous Ashley, I love it there...great city. She's due move here in March thats only 7 weeks away...scary! and the time will fly by...scarier! but I am looking forward to it so much. The daily goings on of a long distance relationship are NOT fun, timezones suck, MSN leads to misunderstanding and if it wasn't for Skype I'd never speak to the girl! I'm counting down the days till she arrives (it's 48 in case you were wondering).

I finally started to realise that my current "career choice" isn't actually what I want at all and the fact it's been a big part of my education and life since I was 16 makes it very hard to let go sometimes. However I am now 22 and my life has changed alot, I have new goals and dreams i want to follow, I dont know all of them yet, but as many people have said "You're still young" and although I dont always believe it...the fact is they are right. So now I enter a rocky period of change....I have to bite the bullet and say "I'm leaving" then find something called "a job" to keep a roof over my head and food in my fridge while I find out what "it" is.

I'm not going to say the prospect fills my with joy all the time, because to be frank...I'm scared shitless.

Ashley is my lifeboat though...she keeps me focused and makes me so happy when I am with her that with her as my sidekick (I secretly call her "CanadaGirl") that I'll be just fine.

Last weekend I went out and took some pics...for the first time in months I felt the creative sprit in me jump out and I ended up with some pictures I'm really happy with. Take a LOOK

ch-ch-ch-changes

2005-10-05T22:23:00.000+01:00

what is going on? really everything is changing and i seem to be getting dragged along......i just read that my favourite breakfast DJ has been poached from my favourite station the wonderful XFM and now i'm left to decide what i'm gonna do. Do i follow the DJ to (in my opinion) a less good albeit national station or do i stick with London based XFM which (again in my opinion) plays the best god damm music of any station i've heard.....maybe i'll just be a fickle bitch and learn to use my presets?

OK, i know this isnt anything major in the whole grand scheme of things but since i got back i feel like so much has changed and i always depended on the little things that never change to just give me a little reasurance.....like good music and a good host.

since i started back at uni and joined a new year group i've made some really great new friends but i feel a little cut off from those i used to know.....some i've just grown apart from and after my summer away i can see that some people were never going to be "life-long" friends, but there's still a few people i know i wont see as much anymore and that kinda makes me a little sad.

Another big change is Ashley starting her new job this week, which is good, but it also means that we wont be speaking as often as we used to....the time differance and the fact we both have busy days now are both to blame and its just another obstacle in our relationship (its bad enough shes in another country!), but i know at the back of my mind that if we can get through this period until she moves here in feb/march 2006 that we will emerge a stronger couple and thats already starting to show.

This week the new freshers arrived at Southampton and as i walk around i see their bright little eyes and fresh livers all keen to start the new uni adventure.....that seems so long ago now for me...i've changed in many way, inparticular since returning from thailand and i'm starting to see a bigger picture.....it looks exciting.

a sad day

2005-10-04T10:49:00.000+01:00

hi, i was planning to write a new blog recently....a lot has been going on lately, i'm back at uni now and loving it....despite the huge workload i have, i'm going to canada at christmas to spend it with Ashley and she is planning to move here in feb/march next year but that has all be totally blown away by the news that Ronnie Barker had died.....i'm really upset. those who know me know i have a passionate love for all things comedy and in my opinion one of the greatest comedy performers was Ronnie Barker and now i'm totally gutted. a excellent writer and wordsmith my childhood is full of memories of watching repeats of the Two Ronnie's on UK Gold and u just have to watch an one of those "top 100....." style shows about comedy to see how great he was and the infulence he has had on today's comedians. i dont really have much else to say except i'm really sad that britian has lost one its greatest performers.

R.I.P RONNIE BARKER 1929 - 2005

back in blighty

2005-08-29T00:24:00.000+01:00

so i've been back just over a week and a half now and sometime thailand keeps slipping away into a dream like memory. my flight back was 11 hours of uneventful eating, drinking (thank god EVA air provide as much free booze as you want.....even when landing!) and watching films.....cant remember what they were but one had bernie mac and that guy who's in there with demi moore and it was ok.

i will admit that i totally over slept the morning of my flight and woke up 30mins before my taxi was due.....hence a quick spray of AXE and a swig of mouthwash and i was on my way out of the door.

arriving back was a surreal experience.....London (a city i love) seemed strangely dull and boring and nothing for the next 5-6 days seemed right....i slept funny hours, played a lot of PS2 and watched my pirate DVD from KSR.....not to mention going cold turkey over my cravings for street meat at 3am.

so now i'm just wondering what i'm gonna do?....well ok so i know what i'm doing....back to the bank on the 30th for a month or so and then back to uni to finish my nurse training...dont get me wrong i'm excited about my return to uni but i think i left a bit of me behind in Bangkok during my rush to the airport (if anyones in Rm 408 at the four sons village have a look for it, ta) and i realise i wont be the same again.....i spent almost 3 months in a sensory daze.....my time in Asia has truely been amazing and so have the people i've met along the way.....especially Ashley as well as putting up with me for the entire trip she's crazy enough to want to put up with me longer - Xmas in Canada is already on the cards for my next trip - for me she enhanced this experience so much by letting me share it with her. I love her very much for that.

to end this part of my journey i'd thought i'd list a few of my own personal highlights in no particutular order:

- khao san road - love it or hate it....i did both....but in the end i couldn't have more love for that strange mixed-up road by the river it has everything you need and everything your trying to leave behind.

- Angkor temples - totally the most breath taking place i have ever been in my life still words cant describe the sense of awe and calm that overcame me as i entered the inner court yard of Angkor Wat....it must be a wonder of the world!

- street meat - could be chicken could be beef? who care its 100% tasty especially with a little sweet chilli sauce on top.

- pad thai and spring rolls - the new kebab! post-gullivers drinking wouldn't have been the same.

- chiang mai - my first destination after arriving in bangkok and still my favourite....very laid back and an amazing mountain backdrop....not to mention the best pineapple i've tasted.

- phi phi islands - amazing scenery, amazing people...after all they experienced in dec 2004 i feel proud to have met these people and helped the local economy in some small way with my tourist bhat.

well this is the end of my journal for my time in thailand and cambodia....a big thanks to everyone who has been reading and leaving comments.....i'll be carrying on blogging mainly for my own benefit but also for anyone interested in what i'm up to now and my trip to Canada this Christmas and New Year.....i also have many more photos to add to my albums from the islands so keep your eyes out for that in a week or so.

Richard

back in BKK for one last time

2005-08-15T10:41:00.000+01:00

left krabi a week ago......Ashely and I forked out for 2 plane tickets from krabi to bangkok....it was so worth it....the bus down from bangkok took 15 hours - the flight back took just over an hour! which got us into bangkok just before midday a great time saver and gave us extra time in bangkok. so for the last week we've been chilling out and doing some major shopping.....we hit MBK again....twice, as well as returning to the night market near lamphini park and of course the various shops and stalls around the KSR. this time however we used bangkok's public transport system, namely the skytrain (BTS) and the underground (MRT).....both these systems are under 10 years old, in the case of the MRT its less than 2 years old....both were modern, clean, user friendly and a great way to get around...not to mention the views from the skytrain were amazing

i've also changed my return flight back to the UK bringing it forward from the 30th to the 17th this is due to a number of reasons mainly the fact i'm very low on money, i've done all i want to do and Ashley is leaving on the 16th and i really cant imagine staying in BKK for 2 weeks on my own it just wouldnt be the same......so i now have just over a day and a half left here in thailand....i have such mixed emotions right now....i'm sad to be leaving this amazing country and yet i'm looking forward to getting back to the UK and re-starting my nurse training at Southampton university. my time here has been an experience of a lifetime i've seen so much and met and seen so many people i will never forget my time here or the things i have done.

still its not over just yet so time to enjoy my last couple of days here in bangkok...............

all at sea arounf koh phi phi

2005-08-06T07:01:00.000+01:00

went on a boat tour the other day around the islands of koh phi phi.....after getting up rather early Ashley and I headed to the pier at tonsai bay and along with approx. 20 others we boarded a boat were given snorkeling equipment and off we went!

Our first stop was a small bay on the main island of Phi Phi Don (koh phi phi is actually 2 island phi phi don - the main island with accomodation - and phi phi ley - a smaller island with gorgeous beaches, coves and caves) here we spent 30 minutes snorkeling and we saw all kinds of tropical fish and coral reefs....some people were throwing bread to the fish and it was amazing to see so many fish converge on the food!

next we headed to Bamboo island a small island just north of phi phi don en route we heard one of the crew call us over we rushed to the front to see a small group of dolphins swimming next to our boat and jumping in and out of the water it was so beuatiful to watch. At Bamboo island we had a lovely beach...sadly we never made it to the beach! i order to reach the beach you had 2 options....swim or canoe....Ashely and i decided it would be fun to canoe but what we didnt bargin for was the fact that A) we're totally bad at paddling and B) Ashely and I dont excactly balance out well in a small canoe.....needless to say we soon capsized and were thrown into the sea! after a bit of a panic we managed to flip the canoe and get back in.......again we quickly capsized and this time we were quite a way from the main boat (the tidal current was strong).

one of the boats crew came to our aid and Ashley took the canoe on her own back to the boat.....i got a lift with the guy from the boat....we both arrived back on the main boat tired and a bit shaken. in the whole commotion I lost my towel to the ocean and one of the crew joked that the dolphins had it now (i wonder if he had read The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy!?)

after lunch we were about to head for phi phi ley when the boats engine decided to stop working! we spent half and hour bobbing up and down while the crew fixed the engine and once it was fixed we headed for phi phi ley.

we arrived at a place called lohsama bay and again here we could snorkel or we could swim a short distance to a small cove which lead to a area called Maya bay.....we chose to visit Maya bay.

Maya bay was the location used in the film The Beach...based on the book by Alex Garland and it really lived up to the fictional beach in the book/film.....it has been the most beuatiful place i have visited in Thailand so far.....clear blue water and golden sand surrounded by huge cliffs to form a bay....sadly we didnt get half as much time there as we would have liked and as we had to swim there we couldnt take our cameras :(

once back on the boat we slowly passed pi-leh bay and the Viking caves in orded to get some photos.Finally we head back to the pier....we were tired and I was towel-less but overall we had a really good day.

Need to Phi Phi

2005-08-01T04:46:00.000+01:00

hey, i arrived on Koh Phi Phi a few days ago...this island is so amazing and beuatiful.....sadly reminders of the tusnami back in December are all to apparant many guesthouses and shops are still not running as they were before....repairs are still being carried out and volunteers are still working hard clearing and helping.....it obvious that this area will take a long time to recover.

the actual main area of Phi Phi is very small indeed and everywhere is only a 10 min walk....we're staying in a lovley hotel...recently refurbished after December.....it very nice and i have TV again.....yay

the weather hasnt been too great though and are attempts to hit the beaches have twice been stopped by the rain :(.....still there's lots to do and we're trying to look into a day to phi phi lay...this is a small island with no hotels but lovely beaches.

i'll be adding some new photos soon so keep watching!

feeling krabi

2005-07-25T11:26:00.000+01:00

left Bottle beach and koh phangan island yesterday....headed for Krabi on the other side of southeren Thailand. to reach the main land took a ferry back to suranthani, this took 3 hours and was really relaxing ride with the cool sea breeze and hot sun. after arriving we had a 2 hour wait before a small coach took us the 2 and a half hours over to Krabi......now we're just getting our bearings and plan to head to ko phi phi in the next few days!

Sadly koh phangan wasn't all i'd hoped for...mainly due to my injured foot, which is still playing me up, stopping me from doing a lot of the things i would have liked to have done...still i had a very relaxing time....managed to find, buy and read the new Harry Potter book (OMG what an ending!) and chill out om the beach a little.

Now i'm just looking forward to seeing the area around Krabi and ko phi phi.

i'll keep you posted!

bottle beach.....shattered

2005-07-19T06:29:00.000+01:00

Arrived on bottle beach an hour after leaving tong sala..... we checked in to a gorgeous little bungalow and go to check out the amazing sight that is bottle beach.......two hours later i slip, fall down some steps and badly twist my ankle/foot.....so i spent two days lying in bed with my foot raised and wrapped up unable to walk and only a 3 minute walk from a gorgeous beach straight outta a movie.....finally yesterday the swellinf went down enough for me to hobble to the dining area and get some food.

Ash has been so fantastic....getting food and drinks for me i'm so glad she was with me otherwise i'd have been screwed!

so now i'm back in tong sala on a quick supply run (snacks for me....ciggies for Ashley) before i hobble back to bottle beach and re-start my secluded beach paradise dream....hopefully this time without any accidents!

island hopping

2005-07-15T05:05:00.000+01:00

hello, i'm now on the island of kho phangan....spent the last week in kho samui enjoying the gorgeous weather and the even better food!

went out once to soak up some rays and got burnt! spent the next 4 days applying after sun i'm fine now though.....it was Ashley's birthday on the 11th we went out for a meal with Nicola and Emma (they've now moved on to krabi) i had the best italian food since i was in Cambodia!

our room in kho samui had a mini fridge and so we decided to save money by buying our own food and drinks......they have Tesco out here! its so weird....we all went to Tesco and got bread and cheese for sandwiches, cans of drinks and cake it was all very Famous Five....except i had lashings of real beer, not ginger.

now Ashley and I have arrived on kho phangan....the ferry only took 25 minutes and we landed in the town of Thongsala....sadly i have a stinking sore throat and so i'm holing up in my room....with cable TV, its so good they have a channel here called Star World that shows Friends, The A-team, the Simpsons and......Little Britian! so i'm happy while i take my anti-biotics (no doctor needed you just buy them!) and gargling with mouth wash.

the down side is i cant enjoy the fantastic food on offer....there's a large ex-pat community here so the place is full of "english" pubs....i had beans on toast yesterday for the first time in 6 weeks.....it was so good!

anyway tomorrow we're heading to Bottle Beach a small secluded beach on the north of the island...its really isolated and can only be reached by boat! so i doubt i'll be able to go online at all.

i'm really looking forward to cutting myself off from the outside world for a bit.

so please keep your comments comming and i'll catch up with you all soon!

beach bum

2005-07-08T08:55:00.000+01:00

we left Bangkok at 6pm on Wednesday and after a fairly decent 12 hour bus journey we arrived at a small ferry port...we sat around for 2 hours as the ferry didnt leave till 8am! while we waited we were approached by a man who told us about his beach resort....he had a photo album and the place looked really good and clean....he also provided transport there and if we didnt like it we could just say so and go....win-win

Finally we got on board and begun the 3 hour ride out to the island of koh samui....the journey went without a problem (i.e no throwing up overboard) and the view was beuatiful as we passed smaller islands. we arrived and quickly found the man who led us to a nice air-con minibus the ride was about 20 minutes and the resort was just as nice as the photos so we decided to stay. its right on the beach front and is a short walk from the various bars and resturants. later once i was sorted Ashley and I went to find some food and we splurged (in thai terms...it actually only cost me about 5-6 pounds!) on a really nice beachfront resturant

this morning i awoke and went to check out the beach while Ashley checked her e-mails....the beach is made of fine golden sand and the sea was warm and lovely.

I then sadly learnt about the awful attacks on London the previous day....i read online about it and later got a thai paper (in english) which had more information. it really brought me down today.

well thats about all thats happened so far...i'm off to get a tan :P

beach bound

2005-07-06T11:19:00.000+01:00

Spent the last few days being a lazy sod in bangkok and planning the journey down to the beaches....i leave in about 40 minutes and the total journey time is gonna be 15 hours - 12 hours by bus and 3 by boat!!! i'm really not looking forward to it, but i know it will be worth it in the end.

i'll be writing a little less from now on as i think the internet service on the islands are expensive and lets face it i can only write so much about clear blue oceans and golden beaches before you all get fed up! but i will write when i can!

photo update time!

2005-07-03T11:23:00.000+01:00

hey....the pics from Cambodia are now up and ready.

just click here and go to the Cambodia folder.

let me know what you think

Richard

Bangkok and new balls

2005-07-03T06:21:00.000+01:00

back in Bangkok (again!) while we sort out how we're getting to the beaches of the south....we returned from cambodia on the 1st taking the same bumpy as before I felt it a lot more this time though and it feels like my stomach has only just caught up!

not done much the last couple of days except veg out and watching the tennis....i've been explaining it all to Ashley and now she's more into it than i am! we watched the women's singles final live last night (that sounds weird!) and i fear i've made a monster :) we've already made plans to watch the men's final.

we were both disapointed that BBC world weren't showing any on the live 8 concerts and we madly ran around the KSR area trying to find a guesthouse that was showing them...but sadly to no avail (DONT FORGET TO VISIT THE MAKE POVERTY HISTORY WEBSITE AND GIVE YOUR SUPPORT)

Now i'm just sorting out my bits and bobs and finding out the best and cheapest way to get to the south and the islands.....its looks like the best bet is a 500bt bus and ferry the only problem is it takes a total of 15 hours!!!

well thats all i have to say for now....i have my Angkor temple photos on CD now so i will upload them later today and post again when i have :)

Indian Read and the Temples of Angkor :P

2005-06-29T07:05:00.000+01:00

so cambodia entry part 2......

we woke fairly early the next day and after breakfast we enquired about the temples....for 8 USD (US dollar) we hired a driver, a fantastic guy named Tee and a tuk-tuk to take us around...we left and headed for angkor.

our first stop was to buy our passes....there are 3 passes on offer a day, 3 day or 1week pass....we got 3 day passes and this cost us 40 USD. we were quickly issued our passes and Tee drove us to our first temple....Angkor Wat.

this is such a hard entry for me to write as i cant describe just how amazing this whole area is.....i have so many photos and once i'm back in Thailand i will upload as many as i can for you all to see the wonder of it all.

Angkor Wat is the most beuatiful and amazing sight i have ever seen...to call it a temple is an understatement its grand design is truely something to behold....built in the mid 12th century it only took 33 years to finish and it totally blew me away....we spent at least 2 hours exploring the area and climbing to the very top of the temple towers....firstly to reach the main entrance you have to walk across a bridge over a moat and from here you can see the outer walls as well as the three main towers rising through the center. we headed through the main door way and into the inner section.....i was truely overcome by a strange sense of calm and tranquilty as i walked through a viewed the inner area for the first time...we explored the area full of fantastic hand carved walls and images of both a hindu and buddhist nature (the hindu images were the older as that was the main religion at the time angkor wat was built....buddhism came later on) and eventually climbed to the top of one of the towers....the view was amazing (just wait for the photos) we also spoke to a monk who was in the tower he spoke a while of his studies and life....he couldnt touch Ashley but was ok to shake my hand (not touching women is part of his life as a monk) at the end he asked if we could contribute to his studies.....i felt a little strange as it was my understanding that monks could not ask for anything including money but i gave him 2 dollars anyway....its hardly gonna break the bank!

finally we left Angkor Wat feeling so overcome with emotion, it so hard to describe how i felt. we found Tee he drove us to to the Bayon temple area.

To get to the Bayon temple we had to pass through the South Gate this again was a spectacular sight a huge gate flanked on each side by two rows of stone statues that line the bridge we crossed. the gate itself towered above us and the top half was a huge face set into the stone we walked through and once again tee was waiting for us and we carried on to Bayon.

Bayon is like a maze of stairs and rooms and you are never alone.....due to the fact there are over 200 faces set into the stone walls and pillars.....once again words can't really describe this place, we spent a while exploring the various levels and i took some really nice photos.

next we visited two smaller temples this were a lot more quiet and i spent some time sitting inside mainly to keep out of the harsh sun (it was really starting to affect me!) but also it was nice just to sit in peace and think about where i was......it doesn't quite sick in that you are sitting in or walking around a 700 or 900 year old structure....i wonder how many of todays great buildings will still be around in 900 years time?

the next temple we visited was Ta Prohm.....this really was movie stuff (infact this area was used in the film tomb raider)....this temple had long been forgotten and so many areas now are invaded by huge trees and their roots as well as walls and structures damaged by time.....this was so amazing....i'll post one photo that just shows how huge the trees are! this was the most fun every time you thought there was nothing more to see u'd find a little pass or doorway and it would take you deeper into the complex....we got lost but we really didn't care it was fun.....we soon found are way back and for the final time Tee took us to our final destination...sunset at Phnom Bakheng.

we arrived to see a massive group of people coverging on the same place and we weren't surprised to learn this was the most popular place to view the sunset.....and rightly so! the ruins of Phnom Bakheng are at the top of a steep hill and to reach this we climbed the very dodgy unmade path to make matters worse so was everyone else and the way the path was meant that you had to keep moving to find the best footing. i was so worn out by the time i reached the top that i nearly cried as i saw the temple for it to had 4!...yes 4 set of steep narrow steps to climb.....we found a short cut yo bypass the first set but we had to scale the last 3 and again the shear volume of people made this difficult, on the way back a woman fell down 3 or 4 steps! thankfully she wasn't badly hurt but it goes to show just procarious the steps were...you can imagine how it was for me and my size 12 feet!

well the view at the top was stunning we had a full 360 view of the surrounding area, as well as the sunset. it was a great end to a tiring and eventful day....i'm sure the photos will bring this entry to life.

bouncy bouncy fun fun fun...the road to siem reap

2005-06-29T06:00:00.000+01:00

hello from cambodia....this entry will be in 2 parts as it so big and even i dont know where to begin...so i'll start with my journey from bangkok to siem reap.

we woke at 4.30am and after my mandatory half and hour of rolling around not wanting to get up i finally did and got ready for the long trip ahead....Ashley and I have left are main packs in bangkok and we pack our smaller packs with a few esentials for the 4 days we'll b in cambodia...we left our guesthouse at about 5.30 and after picking up a few snacks and water at 7-11 we jumped in a taxi to the Morchit bus terminal....our destination Aranyaprathet at the thai border with cambodia and our crossing point...the ticket cost 139bt and we left at 6.50am it took about 5 hours to the border...this time we weren't the only westeners we were joined by a danish couple thor and lien....the 4 of us decided early on to share a taxi from the thai border town of poipet to siem reap.

most of the journey was pretty uneventful towards the end as we neared the border we picked up 5 or 6 cambodians and carried on...about 15mins later we hit a military checkpoint and a lone soldier came onboard and like before on the trip between sukhothai and bangkok he checked everyones ID and our passports....the cambodians had no ID and we ordered off the bus...it was very strange and a little worrying to see this...i dont know what happened to them.

we reached Aranyaprathet bus terminal and the 4 of us got 2 tuk-tuks to the border crossing....the border is a real hive of activity....touts offering taxis and buses, people selling various items and a lot of thai's crossing the border....this was a little puzzling as i wondered what all these thais were doing crossing on a monday afternoon.....we joined the line to depart thailand and waited to get our exit stamps out of thailand...this happened with no problem....we then left and made our way toward the cambodian visa station....for our entire crossing we were joined by a cambodian trying to help us with the eventural aim of trying to sell us a ride to siem reap....we werent having any of it. at the visa station we were given a form to fill out..again a tout helped us and offered various rides to siem reap....form and passport in hand i went up and paid the 1000 bt (about 15 pound) visa fee...ten minutes later i had my passport and newly issued visa.

inbetween the thai and cambodia border is a strange little area...a no-man's land and here we discovered why so many thai's were leaving......casinos.....gambling is not legal in thailand and so thanks to a little loophole theres nothing to stop thai's leaving thailand and taking a short walk to the no man's land where large sprawling casinos are and letting them waste there money there.

another short walk passed the casinos lead us to the cambodian arrivals desk and here, after filling out another form, we were given out enrty stamps into cambodia we walked out into poipet......the contrast between the glitzy grand casinos and the dusty unmade roads and run down buildings of poipet is disgusting...i was shocked to see this and yet wasn't that surprised...i'm not cynical but i am a realist and this is just another example of how money and greed rears its ugly head.

Poipet isn't the nicest place to be...even at 1 in the afternoon and the 4 of us decided to get out ASAP and head to siem reap....we were led to a carpark full of toyota camry's, camry's seem to be the only type of car in cambodia....its mainly motorbikes or huge HGV's, and we were told it would cost 1500 bt for the ride....having done our research we knew this was a rip off and tried to bargin...the crowd of men around us weren't having any of it so we walked away then a driver came up to us and offered the ride for 1200bt...it was the best offer we'd had and we took it. after we loaded bags into the boot we set off. we were all hungry and our driver knew of a good resturant about an hour away and we let him dive on.....the roads in cambodia are a mix of smooth (rare), bumpy (fairly common) and super bumpy pot-holed (very common) and add to that the non-exsistent road laws (basically the faster you go the more right of way you have) it was shaping up to be an interesting ride. after an hour and a quater we finally reached the resturant and had a quick lunch befor heading of on the final 2-3 hours drive....this was bumpy and pretty uneventful...apart from when we came across a damaged bridge...this is common and we were very lucky that it was only a 20min wait before the bridge was "fixed" and we were on our way...sometimes the bridges can be out for up to 2 hours!

we also came across a recent motocycle accident and watched in shock as the injured unconcious man with gashed bleeding knees and arms was picked up and sandwiched between 2 guys on a motorcycle before they drove off to the nearest health centre.....i felt useless. sadly motorcycle accidents are very common here...so much so....tourists are no longer allowed to rent motorcycles anymore.

finally tired and weary we reached siem reap and thor and lein took us to a guesthouse they had stayed in once before 2 years ago....the drive through siem reap was shocking....we passed huge grand hotel after grand hotel and again i saw what money and greed does....sadly most of these hotels are not owned by cambodians but either rich thai's or huge multi-national companies and when i think of the dusty red roads and miles of fields as far as i could see on the ride over as well as the odd run down village with children in tatty clothes...it makes me sick.

we reached our guesthouse...which was down a small road and we were able to get a twin room without anyproblem....after i had a shower and a quick dinner i watched a little TV in the guesthouse common area and then went to bed early.....ready for the next day and our trip to the temples and ruins of Angkor.

photo update

2005-06-26T11:35:00.000+01:00

hey...i've just uploaded some more photos...these are of my day at the chaing mai cookery school and of my time in sukhothai and at the sukhothai historical park!

just click here

A few days R and R

2005-06-26T04:16:00.000+01:00

Well ehat to report about the last few days...went to the bangkok night market the other night with my friend vincci who's teaching english out here for a year, she's canadian too (i seem to be devloping a habit here! lol)...we met up with her friends all of whom are teaching at various places in asia....we had a meal...me and 6 women....i know what your thinking, being with 6 women for dinner is great but the shopping afterwards.....well thats not so good.....luckliy it wasnt for too long and we all ended up in a food court ordering drinks and watching the awful thai singers doing bad covers of westeren songs...still it was entertaining.....what wasnt so fun was the taxi ride there from KSR we hit the bangkok rush hour traffic and our 25 minute ride took 2 hours....yes the traffic really gets that bad here sometimes!

we've also discovered that for a mere 50bt a time we can watch films in our room...which is pretty cool and if you dont want to pay 50bt well you can just wait and see what someone else has paid for because the films are shown in all the rooms with TV....we also have BBC world which is comforting to watch...last night they showed Top Gear which was cool....plus they have been keeping me up to date with all the glasto news.....after seeing the rain they had there...i'm glad i came here.

we today were sorting out all our last minute bits before we go to Cambodia tomorrow.....its a very early start and i doubt if i'll have net access out they...so my next post maybe be in a week or so when i get back from Cambodia with tales (and photos) from Angkor Wat!

please keep leaving comments or just say hi....not only is it good to hear from you all but i'd really like to know just whos reading my journal and what you think about it.

back in BKK

2005-06-22T19:05:00.000+01:00

we left sukhothai at 11.45 on a 2nd class government bus....the ride was pretty uneventful, except when the bus got pulled over into a police checkpoint and two police officers came on board and checked everybodys ID. Ashley and I were at the back and when the officer arrived he asked to see our passports...which we duely gave him....he looked over them for a while and asked what are names were but that was it.....still out of the entire 6-7 hour boring bus ride...it was kind of exciting!

arrived back in Bangkok early evening time, both feeling tired and fed-up we piled into a taxi and went to KSR.....not much has changed, except everyone seems younger than before...maybe its because i'm more travelled around thailand then before or maybe it just because all the schools, colleges and unis have finished for the summer and all the gap year kids are out in force...either way...this is only a brief stop maybe 2-3 days, Ashley was feeling pretty unwell earlier and she dosent want to travel until she feels better....she did perk up after a banana pancake with chocolate sauce though!

anyways...thats about it....next stop is cambodia and that should be a bit more exciting!

brief stop in sukhothai

2005-06-21T14:30:00.000+01:00

well what a mad 24 hours we've had...left chiang mai yesterday afternoon at 5.30 we jumped on a government bus to sukhothai it was great there were only 10 passengers on a bus with 48 seats i sat next to the emergency exit...not because i'm paranoid....no no...i just wanted the tons of leg room and lets face it in a country where i tower over most of the men i need it! we set off and were soon on the main road to sukhothai....the journey was a little bumpy and i was slightly worried about the drivers love of the accelerator pedel but we made it to just outside sukhothai in time to see a beuatiful lightning storm....with each random flash the countryside and rice fields were illuminated by and errie purple glow.....of course as is common with lightning it soo began to rain...just as we arrived in sukhothai and boy did it rain!.....we dashed off ashley took cover while i grabbed our packs from the luggage hold and we sat down to get our barings....and keep dry.

as soon as we sat down we realised that the bus stations was pretty empty and the were no signs of any taxis or tuk-tuks...it was 10.30pm and we had arrived in sukhothai....the smallest town i've been in so far with a population of 25,000 all of whom seemed to go to bed just before we arrived.....the only guy who came up to us was a disabled man and he pointed to his tuk-tuk.....now i use this in the loosest of terms it was more like a moped with a park bench stuck to the front....we decide to look for something as little less deathtrap and a little more...well not a deathtrap....well we looked high and low and without any luck pounced on the only other westerner in the place....a scottish guy who was really helpful...but we still had a slight transport issue.....in the end we braved the bastard child of the moped and bench...well it was certainly an experience....we went to the guesthouse the scottish guy had told us about only to find it closed...the disabled driver shoved a piece of paper in our face and it was prices for another GH...well it was now half 11 we were wet and poor Ashley was looking a little fed up.....we gave in and let him take us to the garden house GH...well what can i say...we ended up in a twin room which could barely fit one bed let alone two!...no A/C....the hardest matresses ever and a chorus of bugs, frogs and dogs....i liked it...Ashley didn't...bless her she a big city girl and little shacks and bugs just aint her style...but well it did for one night but it was very cramped and the two of us with all our stuff just didnt fit...we moved 2 doors down and wow what a contrast....its the nicest guesthouse we've been in so far.

so on today....well sukhothai like i said is a small town with a pop. of 25,000 the main part of town is a long road with plain buildings and shops on each side...and thats pretty much it! (ok thats a slight use of "artistic license"...but its not much more).....the main attraction is about 7 miles down the road...sukhothai historical park....the ruins of the first capital city of Thailand...or Siam as it was back then....established around 1240...its an amazing place to explore....Ashley and I jumped on a local bus...again a loose term but for only 10bt we rode out to the entrance....once there we hired a couple of bikes and of we rode we spent the next 4 hours cycling around the 70 square KM site admiring the ancient temples and statues of buddha.....it was so beuatiful and i took some amazing photos which i will upload as soon as i reach a decent pc back in Bangkok. to walk amongst the ruins was like reaching out to the past....i felt the crude stone walls and wondered just what life was like here for those early siamase....the city itself only remained capital for 200 years...a small time in comparison to other places...but it is still and important part of Thai history and many things started here remain today throughtout thailand.

Tired and worn out....we returned our bikes and caught the next "bus" back to the new city. we move on tomorrow back to Bangkok for a quick stopover before heading off to Cambodia!!!

Masterchef....well almost!

2005-06-20T09:03:00.000+01:00

hey, so yesterday i spent the day on a Thai cookery course with the prestigious Chiang Mai Thai Cookery School, while Ashley and Nicola went shopping (a lucky escape methinks!)...i arrived at their office in town just before 10am and was presented with a glossy cookbook that contained all the recipes that are taught....they offer 5 courses..each one covers a different aspect of thai cooking....i took the 1st course which covers the basics of thai cooking.

in the morning we were given a run down of all the basic ingredients used in thai cooking by Sompon Nabnian....the owner of the school, which was the first cookery school in chiang mai and is often considered the best. Sompon was so passionate about what he was talking about and gave his lesson well and with a good amount of humour and fun. We covered a number of herbs, vegtables and chillis used in thai cooking as well as different types of rice and noodles....as well as being told what they were i learnt when they grow, how best to store them and how long they last. this took about an hour and then we went on to cook our first dish of the day!

Thai Hot And Sour Prawn Soup (Tom Yam Goong) was first up and this was a simple dish of fish stock boiled up with vegtables and prawns.....first we watched Sompon prepare the dish and then after a quick taste of his we went to our individual cooking stations and made our own....the trick of thai cooking is to prepare all the ingredients first, which took 2 minutes!, and then cooking them , which took even less time...it was amazing in under five minutes i had made a bowl of delicious soup and we all took our dishes up to the eating area to devour our creations!

Next up was Thai Style Fish Cakes (Tord Man Plaa) again we watched Sompon and then tried it out for ourselves....this dish consisted of minced fish with fish sauce, vegtables and flour all mixed together and then placed into hot oil for frying..i got 4 cakes out of my mixture and again we ate them...along with a fantastic thai dipping sauce Sompon had just made in front of us...again this took less than 10 minutes to prepare and cook...although we took a little longer to eat them...i didnt want them to finish!

for lunch we made Green Curry With Chicken (Gaeng Kheo Wan Gai) and Thai Fried Noodles (Phad Thai)...both popular thai dishes in the west and again we ate them for lunch along with some rice and a drink....over lunch i chatted with the other students who came from all over the world....it was great to meet so many people from other countries who all shared the same interest in cooking and thai food.

After lunch...guess what....we cooked some more! and ate it!.....the afternoon session was taken by the other school instructors all of who spoke excellent english and were just as friendly and knowledgable as Sompon was, next was a minced chicken salad and we ate this with slices of ice cold cucumber....it was an amazinf combination of spicy chicken and cold cucumber.

finally the day drew to an end with desert....and simple dish of Water Chestnuts With Sugar Syrup And Coconut Milk (Tab Tim Grob)...again this only took 10 minutes to prepare and was a light refreshing end to the day!

i got myself a cookery school apron to use when i get back home and try out these recipies.....i had a great day and only wish i could have taken part in the other courses offered, but i'm leaving chiang mai today and heading off to sukhothai and the historical park nearby.

check out the schools website for more information at : http://www.thaicookeryschool.com/

Richard Read is Ray Mears.....kinda

2005-06-18T15:15:00.000+01:00

Wow what an amazing day i've had, today i went on a one day trek into the area surrounding chang mai....i was up at 6.30 (half an hour in bed not wanting to get up...as per usual) and Nicola, Ashley and I were picked up around 8.30 in a small air-con minibus and after picking up the rest of our group....kelly and matthew from canada and sonia from the US we set off...i felt rough all the way there mainly due to the minibus and the bendy roads it travelled along at dodgy speeds and the fact it was way too early in the morning.

we arrived at our first port of call about an hour and a half after leaving and were greeted by the most beuatiful fews of rice paddys and mountains, after walking up a small slope we came to our first activity...an elephant ride...i paired up with sonia and we climbed up on to a platform and waited for our ride the others had already taken off and our elephant was still being made up to take passengers....eventualy sonia and I jumped on and off we went, it was amazing and a little scary at some points as the elephant lurched forward and we held on to our seat for dear life we caught up with the rest of the elephants and brought some bananas to feed him, if u thought i was greedy...u should see an elephant eat and eat and eat! we walked on a little further and enjoyed the views from high ...we went on for about 30 mins...i think! (i really didnt take much notice of the time ) and finally we arrived at the end and jumped off at another platform....i cant describe how amazing it was and despite the jerky ride i wouldnt have missed it for anything.

we re-grouped and out tour guide, a very friendly thai, led us down a path into a hill village of the Karen tribe...we learnt there are two Karen tribes the famous "long-neck" Karen and the "regular" karen...this was a regular village...we walked around and the guide showed us a typical house/hut...it was very humbling to imagine 5/6 people living in a small place like that...we were also shown some Karen women at work weaving scarfs, bags and dresses for tourists to buy....i felt a bit bad wandering around like a tourist and i tried to remain discreet, i was happy to learn that the thai government recgonises the tribe as "Thai" now and that now they have the same rights as thais..despite originating from burma....they also had the right to vote, but that has only been for the last 5 years!....this tribe was in its 4th generation of living in the thai mountains.

as we walked some children came running up and were selling necklaces of little seeds and beads for 10bt each...i brought 2 and gave one to Ashley, I wore the other. I also watched a group of boys making bows and arrows to play with. the children have access to education now, but hey its saturday...so no school!

we jumped back into our minibus and drove into a national park area...from here we walked down to a waterfall and had the chance to take photos...it was really stunning and a beuatiful sight...a small bamboo bridge lead over the river and took us up to a small shop hut next to the waterfall...we stopped for a drink and chatted to the shop owner and he spoke excellent english...he told us all about his life. he had been running the shop for 3 years now with his wife we were amazed to learn he had spent 1 year at UCLA and 2 at Cambridge university completing his masters....it was great to think that such an educated man had given up a life of speed to relax and live by a waterfall without electricty and sell cans of coke to tourists.....part of my envied him.

carrying on we walked through the national park for another 20-25 minutes admiring the stunning views and eventually arrived at another hill tribe village we spent less time here and again look at a typical house...i spent 10bt and practiced my hunting skills with a traditional crossbow all made from local wood and resources....i even did pretty well and hit on target a few times!

back in the bus and off to lunch...we stopped and had a massive lunch of...soups, egg fried rice and more of the delicious thai pineapple and watermelon.

after lunch we drove down to our final activity a gentle bamboo raft down river...or so i thought! we arrived and were led down to the river boat to get on the raft we were split into two groups of 3 was with Nicola and Ashley and the girls got on first and sat down and then as i went to sit i noticed there wasn't anywhere! then a huge bamboo rood was given to me.....i had to push the raft along from the back while a thai man steered and pushed from the front!

now these bamboo rafts are the most stable vessels and as i stood at the back it sunk slightly into the water getting my bare feet wet and making the bamboo slippy! you can se where this is going? about a minute in...still shocked from the fact i wasn't just gonna sit and relax...we moved past a huge group of tourists waiting their go and i lose my footing and fall in the river....IN FRONT OF EVERYONE! well that was bad enough and i got back on wet and carried on.....man it was the biggest work out! not only was i having to push this bloddy thing along but i had to avoid low tree branches, rocks, rapids and it was 35 deg. C!

ok......so after a while i started to enjoy it despite a few wobbly moments and i didnt lose my rod like matthew on the other raft and really it was fun and made me feel all Ray Mears which was cool!

we rafted for about 30 mins (again...not really looking at my watch....more worried about falling in!) and finally....thank god....reached the end.

tired and exhausted we had a quick drink and piled back into the minibus for the trip back to chang mai.....i have to say its the best day i've had so far (except for maybe my birthday) and i wont forget it in a hurry.

i have lots of pictures and some have already been uploaded! so go check them out here!

dead bugs and ladyboys!

2005-06-17T06:35:00.000+01:00

was woken up yesterday by a slightly upset and fed up Ashley...the guesthouse we were in was really starting to get to us and after the fumigating the day before the court area was full on dead cockroaches and stuff.....really not very nice...we have just moved again and are now staying across the hall from Nicola and Andy in a much nicer room and it 200bt a night cheaper than the last place!

talking of them, we met up finally on wednesday evening and the 4 of us went out for dinner. we went to the garden resturant not far from the night market and the food was delicious...after we went to watch a free amature thai boxing match it was at the end of a row of bars and we sat outside one of the bars and had a drink or two....while we were watching Ashley took a photo which caught the attention of a little thai boy who came running over and wanted to see the photo she took...he was so cute...we had a connect 4 game on the table and he started to put all the counters in the rack...i played along with him. i'm guessing that his dad or brother was one of the thai boxers, as the boy was show us his boxing moves and trying to punch me, and he left soon after the fight finished.

one thing that was a little worrying was the fact that everynow and again little children would come up to us trying to sell roses or flower necklaces....it was even worse to see their parents just out of sight pushing them to sell stuff.

i made a quick dash to the 7-11 and when i came back there was a rose on the table....it had been given to us by someone while i was away....Ashley, Nicola and Andy were all egging me on to go give the rose to a ladyboy in another bar across the way and well who am i to turn down a challange....i wandered over rose behind my back and walk up to the ladyboy the others had picked i gave it to her and she was very happy i got a big hug, the others were laughing their heads off. anyway i decided to stay in the ladyboy bar and have drink with her...it was really cool actually she told me about her time in Bangkok at the calyspo stage show and how she wants to travel to europe and london...it was kinda sad because she said how it was unlikley as it was very expensive...it reminded me how lucky i am to have the chance to travel around. nicola and Ashley came over and took photos of us...you can see one on ashleys photos page *cringe*.

i left after finishing my beer and went back to the other who were just laughing, it was funny because we were all a little drunk, but i had a good chat aswell which i found really touching.

so back to yesterday, well it wasnt really that exciting we wandered around for a bit and in the evening went back to cafe de siam (AGAIN) and the night market....it was better this time as it was busier and i wasnt hasseled as much.....i brought a really nice white cotton shirt...its so light and really nice in the hot weather here in thailand.

photo update

2005-06-16T08:30:00.000+01:00

hey kids...richard has added some new photos.

they are from my time in Bangkok and my birthday night out with the gang!

just click here

rich

relaxing on the river!

2005-06-15T11:40:00.000+01:00

Today i had a bit of a lie-in and woke at about 11 to the sound of a huge lawnmower or something! i peeped oput the window and i saw this guy (i presume it was a guy) with a gas mask on smoking the entire complex with bug spray or something! which is a little bit worrying as i thought just how many bugs are there here! Ashley totally freaked out and to make things worse the was a dead spider in the bathroom....Ashley will tell you it was the size of shelob in lord of the rings...it wasnt but i humour her ;)

after an early lunch we headed down to the river ping after walking down the most dodgey dirt road we came out at the riverside and proceeded down to the little boat tour jetty......for 300bt we had a 16KM round trip up the river it was so beuatiful as our little boat chugged along Ashley and I were the only passengers...i got load of pictures of life on the river bank....i'll post some soon! at the end of our first half we moored outside a little thai herb garden and our boatman became our tour guide...we walked through at he showed us the different plants and fruits used in thai cooking...they even had a small rice paddy....at the end of the tour was a little seated area and we sat down and were brought a soft drink and some watermelon and pineapple.....i cant tell you hopw good that pineapple was! it was the most delicious, juicy, succulent pineapple i have ever tasted....it just seemed to melt in my mouth...infact most of the fruit and veg here is so nice....its locally grown and not massed produced like back home and it really shows in the flavour!

after the fruit we jumped back in the boat and sailed back...the thai people who live by the river are so friendly...many of them waved at us and smiled from the bank....i felt such the tourist though!

as we walked back to our guesthouse we passed the cafe de siam again and i suggested we stop for afternoon tea and cake (ok thats totally english and i never do it at home but since i've been abroad my national pride has come out a little) so we sat down and ordered tea and i had a cake....half way through this couple walks in and Ashley says "i know that guy!" so as they get a menu and g to sit outside Ashley says hi and it was someone she knew...a guy called Mike also from Canada...for once i was outnumbered 3 to 1 and to make it worse i'm sitting there drinking tea in the afternoon.....i think the english tourist board should pay me for that sterotypical display! :D it was such a strange thing to watch and Ashley was totally freaked out by it not that i can blame her! it was nice though as i know she has been a bit homesick and i keep meeting british people all the time.

Nicola and Andy arrived yesterday but i still havent been able to track them own...i think i might wander up to their guesthouse later see if they are around.

tonight Ashley and I are gonna go to a bar and watch a free thai boxing show that takes place in the evenings...should be really cool. i'll let you know how it goes later

a few photos

2005-06-14T12:33:00.000+01:00

hey everyone...i've managed to upload a few photos of my trip to my yahoo photo accout....hopefully if you go to :

http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/nurseman_uk/my_photos

you will b able to see....i will be adding a few more over the next few days!

rich

western day!

2005-06-14T05:56:00.000+01:00

After breakfast yesterday i got Ashley a club sandwich and took it up to her...she was feeling rough after her little vomit-fest over-night....so i left her to it and went down to the lobby to watch a film...she finally re-appeared an hour or so later...feeling much better and suggested we go out get some munchies from the 7-11....we decided to have a "western day" no thai food for us.

we walked down to the shop...stocked up on crisps, snack and pepsi....i had a mars bar (they are sooooo tiny here, like 2 fun-size stuck together!) and we carried on our walk around chang mai...we headed down to where the night market was held, the contrast is amazing....the stall were all empty...some were being moved around by guys on motorbikes....i spotted a subway across the road and suggested that as it was western day we should have a sub....i had the nicest italian BMT (footlong of course) and it cost me 180 bt (thats 2 pound!!!).

we walked for a bit longer and eventually came full circle back to the road our guesthouse was on.

later on it rained for the first time in chang mai (not ever i just mean since i got here but you knew that....right?) and ashley and i decided to plan a few things to do over the next few days...we looked at going on a river cruise and we also want to go on an elephant trek and stuff.

we also decided to change where we were staying and found a place just across ther road...its so much nicer a lot more central to shops, pubs and resturants plus we have TV again...yay! (not that i watch it all day. but its nice to have some background noise sometimes). we moved this morning

Ashley has got me making a note of all my outgoings now..shes been doing it since she arrived..i even have my own little book to write down what i spend and shit...i know it makes sense but its so organised!! and me and organising...yeah i know!

anyway its only lunchtime here and i sure dont want to waste the afternoon..otherwise i'd have nothing to write and you'd have nothing to read!

keep leaving comments and stuff...i really appricate it :)

Markets and mozzie bites

2005-06-13T05:37:00.000+01:00

Been in Chang Mai for a couple of days now...its much more laid back and less hetic than Bangkok and I like it here.....sadly Ashley had a bad night last night and was sick....so shes taking it easy today and i'm her little bitch getting her water, food and the like....not that i mind the sooner she feels better the sooner i have my travel buddy back! :)

we spent our first day here just chilling out and walking the streets of Chang Mai...we had lunch in a really nice place called Cafe De Siam and watched the monks across the street as they went about their daily task at the Wat (temple) . Later that day we went to the famous Chang Mai night market, the roads are filled with stalls selling all sorts of clothing, bags, lamps, shoes, DVD's and ornaments. personally i really didn't like it at all....at almost every stall we passed we were asked to look at what was on offer ...it was so off putting and i'm sure if we weren't pounced upon at every stall i would have actually stopped and looked....at one music stall a thai woman stood two paces behind me as i browsed the racks of CD's and everytime i moved along to the next rack....she would follow.....i really didn't like it. Ashely on the other hand really enjoyed the markets....i think there was alot more on offer for the women in terms of fashion and she brought a couple of pairs of trousers for 180bt!

Again i got to sample some nice food at the food court (ok really i dont just eat here...even though it must seem like it!) and while we ate some traditional thai dancing took place on a stage in front of us...it was very beuatiful and ordered...with very well timed and precise movements carried out in unison by the 3 dancers.

the mozzies are a lot more active here in Chang Mai and i've been pretty lucky as i havent been eaten alive like some people although my feet have been biten a couple of times over night!

so overall i'm enjoying Chang Mai its very relaxed our guesthouse has a lobby bar area with cable TV and serves an ok menu of food and drink....it relaxing to sit there of an evening and watch a movie. We met a couple from the UK on our first night John and Jo and they showed us to the market last night....i feel a bit bad for Ashley though as we have really only met people from the UK and i hope she gets to speak to a few of her fellow Canadians before the trip is up. :)

Arrived in Chang Mai

2005-06-11T08:51:00.000+01:00

After a horrible last day in Bangkok, which involved me checking out at 12 and having to kill 9 and a half hours before my train in which I felt ill, left my camera in the KSR starbucks for a good 45 minutes before I noticed and thankfully managed to get back, Ashley and I finally got on our train to Chang Mai...only to find somebody already in our seat! argh! thankfully it was a minor problem for us (not for them though)...we opted for a 2nd reclining seat...and luckily i had plenty of leg room....i loved the journey...there's something really relaxing about travelling by train...although i dont think Ashley would agree with me! she didn't have the best time. i did manage to grab a few hours sleep here and there and by 7am it was light enough to see outside and WOW what a view, the second half of our journey was travelling through some gorgeous mountainous countryside and i got some really nice pictures (as did Ashley).

upon our arrival we were both tired and in need of a shower.....we tried to follow the advice of our guide book and call a guesthouse from the station to arrange a free pick-up, however thai payphones dont seem to be the easist ones to use in the world and after several failed attempts we gave up and gave in to one of the many guesthouse reps that tout for customers at Chang Mai station....the rep arranged a tuk-tuk for us, this was our first ride in one and it was really nice and felt a lot better than the Bangkok tuk-tuk rides looked. we were taken to the royal guesthouse and got a twin room for an amazing 200bt a night!!! okay so its on the 6th floor there's no lift and the shower has one setting ---- cold! but it seems really nice and we have an amazing balcony view of the mountains in the distance.

well thats pretty much all i have to see about Chang Mai at the moment as i've only been in 3 hrs but i keep you posted!

Last day in BKK

2005-06-10T06:09:00.000+01:00

Today is our last day in Bangkok...we've checked out of our hotel...and are leaving tonight for Chang Mai....yes you heard me....after siting down and working a couple of things with Ashley...we decided it would be better to go to Chang Mai first and head into Cambodia later in the month....to be honest i'm kinda glad as it means i wont have to worry about extending my visa in the south and i get to spend a bit more time in Thailand....hopefully seeing something better than the bright lights and traffic jams of Bangkok.

Yesterday Ashley and I went to MBK (i just cant stay away from that food court!!) and also went to the Discovery Centre which i missed on my last trip to siam square...Discovery is very different to MBK, full of designer stores like Diesel, DKNY and Calvin Klein....I had a quick look but I didn't stand a chance in hell of being able to afford anything...i guess somethings dont change no matter where you are.

Again in MBK i was reminded how alien i feel sometime surrounded by the local population...a prime example was when Ashley and I were getting a lift and a group of schoolgirls joined us...they were looking and us and when i smiled at them they started giggling, which was funny and awkward at the same time, it just made me think though about how it must feels for minorities back home when they are vastly outnumbered in their community.

The taxi ride back to KSR was a nightmare....we hit the rush hour traffic (the non-rush hour trafic isnt much better) and were sitting for ages without moving....at one point Ashley got out our map to figure out where we were with out much luck...a couple of minutes later we broke free of the jam and realised we were only a 5-10 minute walk away needless to say we jumped out there and then and walked the rest of the way!

well i'm gonna wrap up now....it 12.30pm and our train isn't for another 9 hours! and without a hotel room we dumped our bags and are planning to take it easy before our 12 hour train ride!

Next stop Chang Mai

P.S you can see some of Ashley's photos here. They are pretty much the same as mine. :)

All change

2005-06-08T16:04:00.000+01:00

Ashley arrived yesterday night i met her at the airport...it was strage to see her reaction to KSR...that was me only a week ago and already i'm an "experienced" KSR resident.

Nick and Scott left this afternoon heading for the southern beaches....which just leaves lil' ole me as the sole member of our little group that met a week ago in Gulliver's...but hey that's the way things go around here....we all have swaped emails and i'm sure we will keep in touch.

i spent today with Ashley i took her around KSR and showed her the sights and sound before we headed of to the grand palace...a 15 minute walk from KSR...all i can say is that it is the most amazing, colourful place i have been in Bangkok so far....built in the late 18th century its very much a sign of how important the thai royal family is to the country and its people....i cant quite describe it....its beuatiful, extragavant and finely detailed.....i have lots of photos so once i get them off my camera i'll see about posting some online.

One thing that did strike me was how peaceful it was despite being surrounded by busy main roads...we walked around for a good hour or so and i felt totally cut off from the manic, noisy streets of Bangkok.

Ashley and I are leaving on friday for Cambodia and to be honest i can't wait...Bangkok is a lovely city (from what i've seen) but KSR is very much a westernised place...alive 24hrs a day, its brash, bright and loud...which has been fun...but i'm ready now to move on to some places a bit more traditional.

Birthday in Bangkok

2005-06-07T08:22:00.000+01:00

So, yestersday was my 22 birthday and it started in good form with drinking from midnight till 5am with our little band of Scott, Nick, Andy and Nicola....we were also joined by Jonny, Brian, Sarah and Geraldine all from Ireland who we had met earlier in the day....i climbed into bed about half 5 and slept till 11...had planned to go to wat po with the others but it just wasn't going to happen....instead i spent the afternoon wandering the streets and taking some photos...i ended up by the river and got some lovely shots....i've been taking quite a lot of photos lately...i find it so relaxing just walking around taking pictures. i headed back to KSR after a few hours, picking up some delicious fried chicken on a stick (yeah i know food again!).

Nicola was still out when i arrived back so i took the chance to use the rooftop pool my guesthouse has chatted to a couple from manchester Heather and Niles...who had both just quit their jobs to go travelling around the world for a year, Thailand was there second stop having flown in from India.

When i went back to the room Nicola was back and was already getting ready for my birthday night out (as well as stressing out of the packing she had to do before she left for cambodia this morning)...i had a quick shower (i have 2 a day at the moment....the heat is nice but is very humid) and got ready to go...i went to meet the guys in the usual place, i still dont know what its called but we just call it "Andy's bar" as Andy is staying in a room above it, but i was the first there so i sat down and watched the film that was being played of the wide screen tv, its just one of several places along KSR that shows films all day long - mainly they show films from the last few years but i've also seen a couple of current films like the new star wars being shown - i started chatting to a fellow brit called elisa from surrey and listened to her as she explained where she had been.

Nick and Scott arrived with my first "present" some..........fried baby grasshoppers!!! everyone watched as i opened the small plastic bag and pulled out a nice juicy one and popped it into my mouth....it was very crunchy...and had been seasoned in something that actually made it ok, but i think its safe to say i wont be buying them as a snack, once Nicola arrived we headed to La Casa - an italian resturant on KSR - i invited elisa along also....she joined us a little later after dropping her bag off. i had fried squid rings in chilli, garlic and lime sauce to start and a massive lasagna for my main...it was so nice and that plus two beers came to under 500bt!

next stop was gulliver's (again!) but we got diverted as a large thunderstorm was getting under way.....and as the rain started to fall heavily we went to another bar...austins retro bar....a much more chilled out affair with a good mix of music from the 80's and 90's...it was here i got my second prezzie a bottle of samsong...a killer thai sprit...i couldnt even find the percentage, but i tell you its strong. we stayed for a beer or two and headed of to gullivers (this time unhindered by the rain)...i stopped of at at my room to drop of my samsong and when i came back the guys and elisa had brought a helium balloon each and standing in a row took a gulp of helium and started to sing "happy birthday" like chipmunks...i swear it was the funniest thing ever!!

we got to gullivers and stayed until closing at 1am...we drank, had a laugh and ate some more grasshopers! it was a fantastic birthday night out and also our last big night as a group, both nicola and andy left today for cambodia.

finally...................

i want to say a big thank you to everyone who sent me birthday wishes....i have to admit i was feeling a little homesick yesterday and missing a lot of friends who i would normally have spent my birthday with....it was great to hear from you!

i also want to wish everyone good luck with impending exams or if they have already happened i hope they went well (espically all you southampton nursing peeps!)

hey! hey! MBK

2005-06-05T14:49:00.000+01:00

spent today doing two things...first i played nurse (i think i got the hang it) to nicola who after going out till 4am last night was a bit silly in deciding to sunbathe at 10am for an hour or so....she wasnt well at all, very dehydrated so i got her to bed gave her some re-hydradtion salts and left her with 3L of water to drink...thankfully when i got back she was much better if a little groggy and burnt.

secondly i took a trip to siam square...the shopping capital of bangkok. after a fantastic taxi ride with a great driver (he chatted for ages about his time in singapore, how good the king of thailand and the queen of england are and how bad bush is - i like this guy - going to war for oil and money) i arrived relaxed and ready to check out the shops. its not hard to miss the two biggest shopping malls, there's the discovery centre and MBK, i ended up in MBK as it was nearer and i was totally blown away....9 levels with everything from clothes and household goods to cheap electrical stuff and even several cinema's a massive food court and resturants....you name it MBK most likley has it.

at first it took me a little while to get used to the lay out of the place....the escalators up and down and very cleverly placed so that you have to at least walk around half the shop floor before you get to the next level, so once i got the hang of it i just browsed the various shops and drooled at the resturants. then on the 6th floor i discovered the food court! oh my god i've never seen so many types of oriential food on offer......basically imagine a huge row of individual little booths each one serving one type of meal e.g beef noodle soup.....you exchange cash for coupons, i got 300bt worth and was given 3 100 bundles consisting of 30,10 and 5bt coupons....then u just grab a tray and fill it up with whatever you fancy.....i embraced the thai tradition of over ordering (come on it's me!) and ended up with a tray full of rice, spicy chicken, beef and the nicest roast duck ever....and out of my 300bt coupons...i spent 80bt! i couldnt believe it...a feast for just over 1 pound...as for my left over coupons...there is another booth that refunds your cash....its a perfect system. the demonations of the coupons match perfectly the price of the meals so you always have the correct amount...this allows for a quick transaction and man do you need it....the place was packed with people, families and the odd westerner all eating a variety of food.

after eating i headed further up the floors.....everything above the 6th was dedicated to entertainment and fun.....cinemas, resturants (as if the food court wasnt enough!), bowling and video games.......i watched groups of thai children played interactive touch screen games (much to their own amusement) and played on a few shoot-em-up's before leaving.

as i walked out the gorgeous sun and blue skies were gone and a thunderstorm had taken its place....its the heaviest down pour i've seen so far and i took shelter under the entrance and got chatting to a girl from newbury who was staying just off the KSR.....this is what i love you just meet people so easily.....we joined forces briefly and got a taxi back to KSR for 100bt (in heavy rain taxi refuse to turn on the meter).....by this time the rain was at its heavist and the khao san road had become the khao san river! everyone took shelter under umbrellas, stalls or in bars and in the short time it took to reach my hotel i got totally soaked and as i crossed the road the water was ankle deep!

tired and wet i arrived back....once dry i took out a small box of Dunkin' Dounts i got from MBK sat back and enjoyed.

shoulder to shoulder

2005-06-05T07:22:00.000+01:00

No matter where you go in the world...there is always an irish bar or two and KSR is no different...i was planning on having a quiet night last night...i walked along and around the KSR area and took a few pictures of the place. Then as i was walking i bumped into scott and nick, a couple of guys we met in gulliver's two nights ago...they were just on their way to get some food and i took them to the popcorn bar where nicola and i had had our first chang beer the night we arrived....the guys picked up some pad thai (fried noodles with veg and egg) and some spring rolls and we sat outside had a beer and they ate...as we finished it started to rain lightly (the rain here is warm and surprisingly refreshing) and we decided to head back to KSR...we ended up at our new "regular" the silk bar and had another drink and a cocktail....nicola and andy walked past not long after and we called them over, they planned to go to siam square to see a film but ended up being taken to some resturant by a dodgy tuk-tuk driver (ok so they are all dodgy but you know what i mean)...they told us how they had a massive meal with chicken, prawns, rice..the lot and how it had cost them just over 2000bt!!! (approx. 30 pound) which is just crazy!

we had another drink in the silk bar and we all moved on and ended up in this irish bar called "originally" shamrock's irish pub.....it was rammed, well it was a saturday night, and we had just enough time before it closed at 1am for a drink, naturally it was packed full of people celebrating the lions win earlier that day. we left there and headed for another regular of ours only to find it was closed...or so we thought...as we got nearer we saw a man sitting behind the shutter and he let us in....and went round the back for our first lock-in...i didnt stay for long but i had enough time to get whipped by scott at a game of pool!

i'm really settled here now....every day i've ventured out further and yester lunchtime i went right out of the way and found a street food stall serving local families there lunch....phrasebook in hand i just about managed to order some lunch, i had a rice and chicken dish, and i sat amongst the locals feeling rather proud....if not a little quiet (my conversational thai amounts to "hello" "thank-you" and a smile)

water water everywhere....I should really drink.

2005-06-03T10:04:00.000+01:00

So learnt lesson number 1....when in Thailand drink drink and drink as much water as you can...especially if u plan on have a beer or 7...like we did last night. Nicola and I went to Gulliver's a very nice bar at one end of the Khao San Road and we had a fantastic time...ended up meeting some people from home, as well as some Thai students out celebrating a birthday....sadly I ended up paying for it today, I had the worst hangover ever! (I felt like I was 14 again) I spent most of today lying in my dark air conditioned room...listening to virgin smooth 105fm....its the only english speaking radio station I can find and it plays some pretty good music....still dint help the fact how dehydrated I have been the last few day....so now i'm drinking water like a fish and I feel so much better for it.

Tonight is our last night at the Khao San Palace...we're checking out early and are hoping to find somewhere cheaper just off the KSR. The Palace really is nice and the rooftop pool is lovely but I think we can find something just as good for a little less.

Anyway I'm off to drink more water and lie in my cold dark room again.

hello from Bangkok

2005-06-02T14:04:00.000+01:00

hello! well here i am in Bangkok...its so sureal..its just starting to sink in now that i'm actually here....my 11hr flight was bareable thanks to tricia and her 7yr old daughter chloe who i was lucky enough to be sat next too...we got on great and chatted for ages..they made the flight go by much more quickly.

after landing i met my friend Nicola from Dublin at the airport and we made our way by taxi to the famous Khao San Road...a strange mix of east and west...full of cheap room,cheap food and cheap beer...as well as backpackers from all over.

we got a twin room at the Khao San palace and split the 650bt a night cost between us.

this whole area is amazing! its such a overload for the senses...the place seems to change throught the day early this morning it was busy but quiet...a lot of ppl arriving and leaving...two hours later and the road is packed with people and all the stall holders are set up...selling everything from clothes to pirate dvd....by this evening the stalls will be closed and the bars will be full.

all day music is played from the various stalls and bars everything from techno to rock to thai pop. as you walk along the roads and soi's (side roads) your nose is hit by all the individual smells from food stalls,bakeries and bars...as well as exhaust from the taxis and tuk-tuk's.....i'm just loving walking around exploring the roads and trying not to get run over (the rule is cars dont stop for anyone except for the police - lol)

i so need a tan! i might as well have "new - boy" slapped on my forehead....i've already been stopped 3/4 times by tuk-tuk drivers offering a "tour" for 10bt.....these are the well know scams operated around here.....the "tour" will end up at some gem store or the like where you are offered an amazing price only to find you have been ripped off....its a sad part of the area, but i'm not falling for it.

anyways i'm off now to grab some lunch and explore some more.

2005-05-30T18:00:00.000+01:00

oh look....its yours truely. i should be packing but instead i'm just messing around with my camera....oops!

pack up your things and go

2005-05-29T09:51:00.000+01:00

Only 2 days to go now! I'm really starting to feel the excitment. I spent most of last night packing some of my stuff to see how its all gonna fit. I'm also feeling a little sad....have spent a lot of time saying goodbye to some very good friends, but I know they'll understand just how important this journey is for me.

Had my first major "hiccup" on Friday when an ATM decided it would helpful to eat my bank card while I was withdrawing some cash! I was planning to take that card with me to get cash out in thailand....that ain't happening now! Lucky for for me I have another account.....still its a massive pain in the butt, i really dont like juggling money.

Booked my coach up to Heathrow for Tuesday....its all getting so real now! I cant believe how quickly this has all come round!

well I have loads to do today so i better get a move on......my next entry will be from Thailand!!!!......i know!

10 days to go.

2005-05-21T10:00:00.000+01:00

whoa! is that all....no I can't believe it either and this is my trip....I know!

At the moment i'm in a weird frame of mind....i'm excited and apprehensive at the same time. I dont feel like i'm going away....I keep saying this but it hasnt sunk in and yet i'll be happily walking down the street and BAM this wave of excitment will just hit me like "yeah your going.....its real!" which is kinda cool.

Trying to see as many people before I leave, I feel its important to say goodbye to the friends that have been through this preparation with me since January....the fact most of them have put up with my obsessive-like rants about thailand is worthy of it.

I haven't been the easist person to be with this year...i've had many ups and downs, but a lot of people have stuck by me and I will never forget that.

So now I just have to ride out the next week and 3 days....knowing Ashley is in the same situtation as me is a comfort and neither of us can wait to go now. check out her blog

Finally, please go to the MakePoveryHistory website and give your support. just click that little banner in the top right hand corner.

Life, Death and Lost Baggage.

2005-05-15T11:06:00.000+01:00

So I've got my travel insurance now, it's the final part in my "things-to-get" puzzle, so i can now sleep easy in the fact that should I die before my trip I wont have to worry about cancellation costs (I slept like a baby last night) and if i'm taken hostage they will pay for a "friend/realtive" to fly out and negotiate for me.....i'm so glad my mum took that night class in political negotation! ;)

Really though it is a sign that i'm pretty much set for my little jaunt to SE Asia and I have to say i'm getting a little excited, i'm at 40% on the excitment scale.

A shot to the system

2005-05-04T18:28:00.000+01:00

Hey, so today i got my 2nd lot of travel vaccines, only one more lot to go before i'm immune. i was kinda hoping for some superhuman side-effects but alas none so far although i did eat 3 fruit corners in a row (that can't be good, i know)!

The thing is the jabs (and my throbbing arm) are a sign that my whole adventure is only a few weeks away and its really starting to get to me now....in a good way. i've been feeling so relaxed and excited everything is sorted (well nearly) and all i need to do is just save a little bit more and I'll be ready to go!

Yeah i have a few minor things to do but they wont take long. Then its just a case of saying my goodbyes and getting to heathrow on time (easy!).

Its the final countdown!

2005-04-29T22:15:00.000+01:00

OK so I may not have written in the last few months, but who really wants to hear about my tedious life in the world of temping...days are the same...work, save, spend a little...ect. but thats all going to change soon! In a little over 4 weeks I'll be flying out of London for the sights and sounds of Thailand.

Its strange though, i've been planning this adventure for months now...been working, buying little bits along the way, but I can honestly say it still hasnt sunk in that I'm going.....maybe it wont until i'm on the plane. i just dont know.

What I do know is that this will be an amazing experience.....it is mad to think this time last year Ii didn't even have a passport! now i'm jaunting off to the other side of the world...but it feels so natural, like it's what I'm meant to be doing at this moment in time.

Whats even better is that I've met People already to share these experiences with...in particular Ashley....she's Canadian (hey! its not her fault :P) and I truly think that she is going to enhance my time away. We're both going for similar reasons and agendas and yet our backgrounds are different, hopefully together we'll be able to exchange our individual views and feelings on the same things we see and do.

So now all I just have to sit tight for 4 weeks.....easy!

I love it when a plan comes together

2005-01-29T10:56:00.000Z

Thailand is getting closer and closer. i cant believe how quickly the weeks are going by!

I picked up my tickets last week, got myself a huge backpack, been reading my lonely planet like there's no tomorrow and generally being like a kid on christmas eve.

look out thailand....

2005-01-16T23:33:00.000Z

not written for a while..i've been a busy little bee..working my butt off and i've finally booked my flights to thailand!!! i'm so excited....and i feel a lot more focused to saving the money i'm going to need to travel around for 3 months and now i'm just counting down the days till i leave!! :)

out with the old......

2005-01-03T23:16:00.000Z

Its a new year! usually I make some half-hearted attempt to change my life..I last about two weeks then revert back to normal. I think its time for a change..a real one..a proper one...since moving to Southampton in sept. 2003 my life has changed so much...but I sometime feel that the surroundings have changed..not the person. well thats all gonna change....one of the reasons I took a year out from my course was to enjoy this new found freedom and I plan to use the time wisely.

So there we go....look out world..it seems that Richard is getting an up-grade....the all new improved Richard is on the way!

new year, first post, not much to say....yet

2005-01-03T00:15:00.000Z

Hello...so this is my first post..yes.I have no idea if this will be of interest to anyone at all but i'm not particularly bothered if it is.

In about 6 months i'm hoping to travel around Thailand and i hope this blog wil be like a little guide to my friends so they can see what crazy monkeyshines i'm getting up to. Until then i'm just gonna post about the things going on the ups and downs of my little world. I'm also a bit of a photographer so expect to see lots of my pictures on here also.

So there we......

2005-01-02T18:58:00.000Z

heres a picture i took one frosty morning last week..it came out so much better than i thought.

2005-01-02T14:33:00.000Z

pretending to be sober (31/12/04)

2005-01-02T14:32:00.000Z

Richard...the sophisticated drunkard (31/12/04)