October 2003

Week 26: Wednesday 1st to Sunday 5th October

Guess what we did today? Yes, you’ve got it we went to the beach during the day and got drunk in the evening. To make things interesting we also hired a banana boat and make complete fools of ourselves, falling off every 30 seconds until we realized the trick is to turn into the corners. We also had a very enjoyable BBQ dinner at one of the many quality restaurants along the beach. The various meals are displayed on a boat and you pick your choice and it gets cooked.

We left Samet and got a bus to Koh Chang, about four hours away and close to the Cambodian border. When we had booked our tickets the previous day we had made sure that sure that the price included the taxi to the pier, the boat to the mainland and the boat to Koh Chang. When we arrived at the office the lady insisted that the price was for the bus only. After much discussion and frantic phone calls we got our way and the lady begrudgingly agreed to pay for the taxi and the boat. When we arrived we checked into a bungalow called Cookies and spent the rest of the afternoon getting familiar with our surroundings. Whilst the beaches on Chang are not quite as nice as Samet, it is still exquisitely beautiful and it is a bit more developed with a wide variety of nice places to eat. The island even has ATM’s. We had a nice meal and then went to Sabay where buckets are more expensive but seemingly stronger than those in Samet.

Friday was spent chilling on our verander on the beach. We went to a restaurant where the menu is printed on scrolls. It’s a relaxing friendly place where you sit on mats on the floor. They also have a set of instruments at the back. After a few drinks, Matt couldn’t resist the temptation to play the bongos and entertained the crowd with a virtuoso exhibition. At the end the entire restaurant rose to their feet and gave the percussional genius a standing ovation. Everybody agreed that it was the greatest musical moment of all time and that Matt was quite simply a ‘bongo God’. There are rumours that word has spread to Michael Viner,he of Incredible Bongo Band fame and a contract is being signed and sealed as we speak.

We hired mopeds and went of to explore the island. Zoe was on the back of Matt’s bike and Fran was on the back of Richard’s. There are some scary moments when the first part of the ride involved going up a severely steep incline, but made it back on the flat open road unscathed. First stop were some waterfalls which involved a perilous trek to get to. A fallen log was utilized as a river crossing and another part required wading across a very slippery stretch of rocks in the water. After a swim we got back on our bikes and zoomed off again. We got to a nice quiet area and stopped for a rest. Fran decided she would like to learn how to ride a moped. Richard clearly and carefully talked her through the various functions of the bike. He put the bike into first gear and explained to Fran that if the throttle was not to be turned as the bike would start to move. Before he could finish his sentence Fran decided to see this put into practice and gave the accelerator a good old try. Fran and the bike shot off at an almighty rate with Richard desperately trying to pull them back. Everybody was shouting “Let Go! Let Go!” but the more Fran panicked the more she pulled the throttle and she raced away like Evil Kenevil on acid. The situation was no longer funny, Fran was hurtling uncontrollably at what seemed like breakneck speed and showed no sign of stopping. The bike took a sudden turn into some swampy earth and finally Fran was thrown to the ground, the bike crashing closeby, narrowly missing the collapsed body of Fran. Rich ran to her side and we all stood in shocked silence until Fran rose, shocked but miraculously unhurt, covered in mud and a few minor cuts. Fran will not, under any circumstances be going anywhere near the controls of any motorized bike again. When we had all recovered from this scary event we slowly drove off to another waterfall. We stopped halfway for a bite to eat and the rains started pouring. About an hour later the rain stopped and we carried on. This waterfall was a little more remote than the others and involved a trek through the rainforest. When we got there Liam and Matt were thrilled to discover that one can swim right into the fall of the water and get an absolute pummeling by the force. It was great fun and made for a fantastic back massage. That evening we headed to a bar to watch the Bluenoses get thumped 3 – 0 by Man U. It was their first loss of season and it was greeted by cheers the Man U contigent and of course Matt and Phil the resident Villa fans. As the solitary Blues fan Rich cried into his beer.

We spent a lazy day on the beaches, sunbathing, swimming and playing Jenga. The highlight of the day was seeing a fantastic storm, complete with a tornado out to sea which at one point looked like it was coming dangerously close to the beach. We had dinner in a lovely tree-house restaurant which does really lovely pasta,served by an equally lovely lady boy. Villa took on Bolton and Matt and Phil felt they were unlucky not to bag all three points, as of course they were sure Villa had been the better team.

Week 27: Monday 6th to Sunday 12th October

On our last full day on Chang we decided to go a little further a field and joined four fishermen on their boat. The excursion, organised by Tigers den bar, meant that we spent four hours off the West coast of Chang dropping lines into the shallow waters. On top of that we would get a meal cooked on the boat consisting of the fish that we caught. We left at lunch and headed out to sea ad stopped at a spot we hoped would be swarming with fish. The four of us were handed rods that were baited with fresh Squid, Zoe and Fran opted for a basic fishing line instead of the rod technique. The fishermen demonstrated the basic technique by catching a few small pink fish, they did it so effortlessly we expected to catch at least a dozen each with the time we had. As it happened the rods didn't seem to be the way forward as it took ages to get a bite. In the mean time Zoe was pulling them in by the minute, fishing is obviously one of her hidden talents. Four hours of wind and rain later we enjoyed some delicious fish, fried to perfection by the skipper, knowing we had caught the fish made them all the better. Getting back to dry land proved a little tricky as the heavens had opened ad Chang was in the middle of one of it's daily storms. The wind was strong and the rain relentless as we tentatively changed from our fishing boat to a smaller boat that would ferry us back to the beach. We made it back drenched to the bone and took shelter in the Lions den when we worked out the final fish count. Zoe came first with an impressive 11, Matt got 7 ( with help from the crew ), Fran - 4, Liam and Phil - 2, Bringing up the rear was a miserable fish count of zero, none, zilch, was the hapless Richard, oh dear. After the rain had stopped we all went out for meals separately. Rich and Matt went out with their girlfriends', leaving Phil and Liam to have a romantic meal for two ( that's how rumours start )

Tuesday started early for us as we were returning to the capital for the girls flight the following day. One taxi, a boat, a minibus and ten hours later we arrived at Khaosan Road in Bangkok, just how Phil wanted to spend his 25th birthday! We checked into our rooms and went out for a birthday meal. Now, on your 25th you would expect someone to want a nice sophisticated sit down meal. Phil on the other hand chose a Big Mac Meal with coke! We returned to Gulliver's for a few beers before moving on to the infamous PPat Pongarea of Bangkok. For those of you that don't know, PPat Pongis an area of the city that for years has been associated with sex industry. Now a days it is quite a tourist attraction, similar to the red light district in Amsterdam, but with hundreds of shops and stalls. Phil had decided to go to one of the much talked about sex shows for his birthday, it's part of the Bangkok experience. The show was very disappointing for the amount of money that it cost. We wont go into detail, all we will say is, the girls looked less than enthusiastic, even the ones in possession of ping-pong balls, ,musical instruments and cigarettes ( I know now why they say women shouldn't smoke when they are pregnant ). We left feeling glad to have experienced it but a little disappointed at the quality.

Today was when the girls flew home, so not to much was done apart from do some shopping and play pool. Once all the good byes were over and the girls were safely on there way Rich and Matt returned in time for a swift few at Gulliver's and then a party at the Garden bar before bed.

We had a bus booked to Thailand's party island, Ko Pha Ngan at 6pm so we checked out and dumped our bags somewhere safe and then went in search of a bowling alley. Our destination was Siam Square where all the big shiny shopping malls are. They are dotted around and connected by elevated walk ways, making the cityscape resemble the city scenes used in futuristic films. We eventually ended up at a mall called the World Trade Centre and made our way to the 7th floor to throw balls at a triangle of skittles. It turned out to be pretty cheap ( 60p per game ), so we had three games and even invested in some 'Major Bowl' socks, we looked ridiculous. We were back with our bags by five thirty ready for our 6pm bus. Like most tourist transport in Thailand we had to wait. After an hours wait we found out that there wasn't room for all of us on the bus, so we had to wait another one and a half hours for another. We passed the time chatting, drinking and kicking a ball about, then eventually we boarded a really nice double decker.

Apart from an hours stop in the middle of nowhere waiting for another bus, at about 4am, the journey went smoothly and was even entertaining thanks to two Norwegian guys who must have drunk enough alcohol to knock out a heard of cows! We arrived on Ko Pha Ngan at 2pm and caught a taxi to Pokemon Bungalows, Bizarre name but nice and cheap. There we met Carl, Russ, John and Adam, the lads we had met in Samet. After a long and arduous journey we needed some sleep to prepare for the long night ahead,celebrating Liam”s birthday at the full moon party. Fed, watered and rested we were ready to go mooning, so we got in the back of a pick up and made the precarious journey to Hat Rin on the South Coast. Once there we purchased a bucket each. A bucket being a mixture of Sang Som rice rum, strong Red Bull, coke and ice, finished off with a few straws. These things are cheap but lethal, drink to quickly and you end up missing parts of the night. Buckets in our hands we strolled along the beach, it was 11pm and already heaving, boats were arriving and people poured off them and onto the beach. People were sitting drinking and chatting on beach mats while music blared out from several beach side bars. The farther we walked the more people there were and drum and bass merged with house, then house with techno as we passed the different bars. The four of us, plus the other four lads and four others we had met earlier at the bungalow, sat drinking and chatting for a while, watching as more and more people arrived. It didn't take long before we moved on to one of the many dance floor, we chose Orchid as it was playing some classic drum and bass and showed off our dancing skills. The rest of the night consisted of much the same, moving along the bars, checking out the music and of course a couple more buckets. As the party is so huge (we were told 8000 people) it was hard to keep together and to find each other once you had separated. As a result all of us, at some point during the night, spent a fair amount of time combing the beach for a familiar face. In the end we made our own ways back to the huts once we had had enough of dancing, drinking or just farting about looking for a friend! It was light by the time we got back so sleeping wasn't to easy, especially because the sun was heating up our rooms to an uncomfortable temperature. All of us had an excellent time, a real experience, it was just a shame we got split up so much on Liam's birthday. Still, we would't change anything about the night, apart from the memory loss.

As you can imagine by the time we had all made it out of bed we weren't exactly full of energy and wanting to do anything strenuous. So a good portion of the afternoon was spent doing absolutely nothing. Rich and Matt were brave enough to ride into Thong Sala, the nearest town, but apart from that, chatting and eating with the other lads, nothing was done in the day light hours. In the evening however there was a decisive England football match to be watched. So we made the short trip to the across the beach to the next bar to watch it. It wasn't a classic match but England drew 0-0 with Turkey, which was enough to ensure our qualification to the 2004 European Championship Finals. By the time football was over it was time for bed again, this time at a more appropriate hour. Hopefully we would be more energetic tomorrow.

We hired some motorbikes on Sunday so we could get a proper look around the island. We set off for one off the main waterfalls, as on most of the Thai islands the main attractions are the waterfalls, especially now during the rainy season. A 20 minute ride later we arrived at the falls, they weren't the best we had seen, but still a nice refreshing dip was called for. There was a nature trail that takes you through the tropical rain forest, but it was far too hot and we obviously weren't up for that sort of activity. We got back onto the road and headed North around the island to have a look at the coast and whatever else we could find. We eventually stopped at a small beach resort called 'Salad Beach'. It was quite a rough steep track down to the beach and both Matt and Liam fell victim to the steep ruts and fell off there bikes. We had a drink at the beach before heading back. On the way up the track it was Phil's turn to loose control of his bike, he did a wheelie and chucked Liam off the back of the bike! That night was England's first match of the Rugby World Cup, so we found a telly and watched them crush Georgia, not a bad start for the tournament favourites. We then headed to Thong Sala with the other guys to a bar called Long Shot (complete with a replica of the FIFA World Cup). We played drinking game, which caused great amusement amongst all of us. We were pretty loud so it was lucky the bar was empty. We moved onto the pool table and started a competition. In the end Adam was the victor with none of the four on tour performing particularly well, probably something to do with the alcohol. We continued to play pool and table football until 3am when we got a taxi back to Pokemon. We had all had a good laugh and went to bed and collapsed.

Week 28: Monday 13th to Sunday 19th October

After a lie in we grabbed some food in Thong Sala before settling into a game of beach volleyball. It was the last night Carl, Russ, Adam and John were going to be around so we went to Long Shot for for a few games of pool, but as they had to be up early the next morning for a bus it was going to be an early night. Matt and Rich on the other hand went to Had Rin beach, and whilst everyone else was enjoying a few sociables they rediscovered the buckets, and quite literally crawled home.

Today was another lazy day on the beach. We waved the others off and concentrated on eating and drinking on the beach. We were kept amused by our host's son and Grandmother who constantly run around the place following a ridiculous routine of the little boy running off only to be pursued by Granny waving a stick behind him. Eventually she would catch him only to dispense a whacking with the branch for no apparent reason, before allowing him to run away before the whole farcical process was repeated. We played a little football with junior and this seemed to buy the poor chap some much needed relief from the horrible old woman who seemed to be the bane of his life. After a while though the boisterous little tyke would give one of us a kick in the shins and we’d go running to Granny to tell. In the evening we went to Had Rin for a few drinks and passed out on the beach.

Today we were to leave the party island of Ko Pha Ngan and move to another party island Ko Samui. We were staying in the Chaweng part of the island. Samui is much larger than Pha Ngan, is the third largest in Thailand and much more developed. We went out that evening and visited a little place called the Red Lion, an English style pub complete with football memorabilia and copies of Viz on the walls. Afterwards we went for Whoppers at Burger King where we met a bunch of Chelsea fans who were more drunk than us.

After a day shopping around the bustling streets of Samui we headed to "Tropical Murphy’s" a typical Irish theme pub with the cheesy chirpy Irish motto ‘A little piece of the Emerald Isle in the heart of Samui’ only tonight the Four on Tour weren’t there to make friends. After months of pitting our pool skills against each other we got the chance to show the world what we can do in the ‘Tropical Murphy’s Pool Competition’. The fear was obvious on the faces of the other competitors as the Four Pool Maestro’s strolled nonchalantly into the smoky upstairs arena and paid their entry fee. There were a few nervous glances around the bar as everyone wanted to avoid an early clash with one of the Four on Tour. There was a healthy jackpot of around fifty quid and we there to make sure it went home with us. The draw was made. First match involved Liam. His opponent Rick was dragged kicking and screaming to the table, desperate to avoid the inevitable first round exit that awaited him. Unfortunately Liam’s game wasn’t at 100% and the other guy managed to fluke the match. Much to the surprise of everyone there one of the top seeds had crashed out. It was up to Rich to restore Four on Tour pride and he did so with a comprehensive hammering of the much fancied Paddy. Round 2 awaited him. Phil was the next up and with the atmosphere similar to that in the crucible during the 1985 Davis Taylor final, the pressure got to him. Although he missed a couple of shots, his opponent, Roger, was lucky to get through with a completely undeserved victory. Matt approached the table. His performance was nothing short of flawless. His safety play a joy to watch and the potting sublime. He cruised to victory, his opponent, Dom, speechless. Round 2 and the last 16. Rich was at the table before he knew it and he just couldn’t miss. His opponent Paul was put to the sword; Rich was in the last 8. Matt’s second round match was a close call and it was only down to some astonishing flukes, that Robert, managed to edge him out. The Quarter Finals came and Rich was up against a formidable challenger, Tall Paul, a six foot something body builder who didn’t like to lose. Rich on the other hand was the last surviving Four on Tour player and the other three were in his corner, he couldn’t lose and he didn’t. Rich was in the Semi’s his place in history awaited him. He had the toughest of the draws, up against Graham, an amateur snooker player from Ireland who regularly racked up 100 breaks. Before the semi’s Rich had sized the other semi finalists up. A fat Hungarian who he knew could cause him no problems and another guy of an equally poor standard. He knew if he could overcome the mighty Graham the money and the honour was in the bank. Rich played like a pro and nothing could touch him, but lady luck was not on his side and after a tremendous pot the white rolled in. Graham had two shots and he put all his snooker talent to full use. Rich never got back to the table. It was a true clash of the titans and Graham had the first chance to clear up and he took it. The final was an average affair with the big Hungarian succumbing to Graham. But all was not lost as the balls were racked up for the ‘killer’ competition which had a prize of around thirty pounds. You have two lives, and you can pot any ball. Miss a ball and you lose a life. The competition was fierce and soon the also-rans were dropping like flies. From an initial 17 we were soon down to 10 with most the Four on Tour still in. Then it was 4 with Rich still standing. Would the spectators get to see a Four on Tour Champion? The final 2 and it was a sharp shooting local guy up against Rich, who had 1 life to his opponents 2. There was no love lost as the Thai challenger sacrificed a life to pull a dirty trick on Rich leaving him seemingly without a prayer. But with the skill and determination only the Four on Tour can show he potted and left the Thai stranded. He took his shot but he knew he was beaten. He missed and Rich took the kitty much to the delight of the crowd. Justice had been done. A memorable evening of competition had led to the crowning of a Four on Tour champion. We celebrated in style with some of the other players at Benny Kings in a Karaoke lock-in. We went to bed knowing that pool history had been made.

Today we decided to rent a jeep and see some of the island, the main highlights of the trip were some incarcerated Elephants, some great waterfalls with plenty of diving opportunities and a visit to Tesco's. After the previous nights pool frenzy we couldn't help but have a few more frames that evening after which we had an early night as we had an early boat to catch the following morning. The rain that night was the worse we had encountered so far, and a couple of leaky roofs didn't help matters.

We awoke to find the road outside our bungalows had become a river. The 20 minute journey to the port became a one hour trip due to the island being so badly flooded. Eventually we made it off the island. At the port on the mainland we boarded a bus which took us and two others 100 yards down the road before leaving us by the side of the road. Another bus picked us up but wouldn't accept our tickets and wanted more Baht from us. As we wouldn't pay there were some frantic exchanges which resulted in the driver calling our company to rendezvous with this coach and pick us up. Why we had been dropped off previously remains a mystery. From Derek Tour's world HQ in Surat Tani we got a bus to Hat Yai. Hat Yai is a bustling town swamped with importers and exporters and traders of all kinds doing business. Most overland trips from Malaysia to Thailand and vice versa go through this town, which although not right on the border, has a distinct border town feel about it. We watched England beat South Africa in the rugby world cup which was the start of a great nights entertainment. Hat Yai's nightlife is centred around live music; bands singing old classics by people such as Phil Collins, The Eagles etc. The beers were flowing and the Four on Tour were pleased to find out the band encouraged 'audience participation' which this evening meant Matt busting a groove on stage.

We were booked on the 0900 Minibus to Penang, Malaysia. The journey went by slowly as the Four felt the effects of the night before. We arrived at the Malaysian border and were through in no time, slightly bewildered by the lack of checks by a nation so strict on smuggling. When we arrived in Butterworth we took the ferry across to Penang with the bridge, the longest in South-East Asia, in the background. Georgetown was our final destination at around 3pm. A reasonably large town with a diverse cultural background it was to provide ample opportunity for some interesting culinary delights in the next few days. Tonight though all eyes were firmly focused on an event back home in Birmingham, the Birmingham City / Aston Villa derby. Rich was confident that The Blues would continue their good form of the season. Surely they would carry on from last seasons double over the old enemy with a comprehensive victory tonight. Matt and Phil on the other hand were sure Blues were about to come down to Earth with a bump and were just as confident the Villains would grab all three points. Unfortunately the match failed to live up to the pre-match hype, which for us had been running since we left Birmingham six months earlier, and finished 0 - 0. With little to say about the match we went back to the hotel and sat up until late and polished off a bottle of JD.

Week 29: Monday 20th to Sunday 26th October

We arose late as is the case on most days and had an enthralling day on the Internet, catching up with friends and family from home. Liam and Rich went off to the docks to see if they could find any ship companies willing to whisk them away to the land of Oz. The first few companies laughed in their faces and said it was not possible. After a while they found a company who said if they come back tomorrow they could talk to the boss who should be able to sort us out, result! Liam and Rich returned to the hostel and met up with Phil and Matt. After a bit of a rest we ventured out to Little India and had a stunning curry and a load of extra side dishes. This meal was a little special as it was served on banana leaves instead of plates and we had to eat the meal with our hands. Cheap, tasty and different, a perfect way to end the day.

Phil, Liam and Rich woke early on Tuesday and headed to the shipping company to meet the boss and discuss the chances of getting a ship to Australia. When they got to the office they were told a strange story about the boss being involved in a car crash and that they couldn't get us to Oz anyway, so yet another dead end. Meanwhile Matt had gone to an orphanage that his brother used to work at, to give them a few presents and to see how the kids were doing. When we all met up we went to book a bus to Singapore for the next day. We then got a bus to the bottom of Penang hill and then got the funicular railway to the top. It was the railway's 80th birthday and was still running smoothly. The views at the top were very impressive and there was also a very colourful temple up there. On the way home we walked past a hostel called the Hard Life hostel, which was ablaze, the fire brigade were in the process of putting the fire out but the building was very badly damaged. Earlier in the day Matt had suggested we go there for a drink in the evening, good job we didn't.

We rose early and got on the coach to Singapore. This wasn't just any old coach, this was a Konsortium Bas Ekspress and it was the best coach we had been on with airline style reclining seats and plenty of room. After a care free journey to Singapore we checked into a hostel and had a quick walk around before we turned in for the night.

After a bit of a lie in we wandered into the centre of Singapore for a look around and to look for freighter companies to see if there was any chance of getting to Australia by sea. We were told that no ships take passengers, so after that bad news we went for a walk through China Town and round a few shops before heading back to the hostel. In the evening we went to Little India for a meal and found it heaving with people as it was Divali and the festivities were kicking off. We had an authentic Divali meal, which consisted of flat bread and lots of dips, a very tasty meal. After this appetising meal we went for a few games of pool before bed. The pub was a definite no no in Singapore as it is so expensive.

Due to a lack of funds Rich and Liam had finally given up hope of getting to Australia overland. Meanwhile Phil and Matt had decided to get a boat to Indonesia and then travel through the country and try to get a boat to Oz from there. Liam and Rich went to get flight tickets from STA travel but found that it was closed. Instead we all met up and walked to the harbour to see the Merlion, a half lion, half mermaid statue with a flume of water cascading from it's mouth. In the evening Matt and Phil decided to splash out and went to the famous Raffles hotel to enjoy a Singapore Sling in the Long Bar - not a cheap drink at 18 Singapore Dollars each, about 8 GBP - but well worth the experience.

Most of the shops were open again on Saturday, so Rich and Liam headed to STA and booked their flights to Sydney. When they had finished we all got a local bus to the border with Malaysia, went through customs, Liam managed to pass over without being searched this time. Once we got into Malaysia we picked up a coach headed for Kuala Lumpur. The coach wasn't as good as the one we caught to Singapore but comfortable all the same. When we arrived in Malaysia's capital we made the short walk to Chinatown and checked into a cheap hostel. Once settled we did what we normally do in a new place, went for a wander and got some food on the way. Around Chinatown are hundreds of market stall selling things like DVDs and football shirts, all at rock bottom prices (well, as long as you haggle). Liverpool were in action that night so we found a place with a screen and had a few cold ones and sat back to enjoy the football. Once the game was over we made our way back to the hostel and checked out the rooftop bar, it can get pretty lively up there and the views are pretty good too. We spent the rest of the evening drinking and chatting to the other guests in the hostel before getting some sleep.

On Sunday we made the hour bus trip to Batu caves, a huge cave network used as a Hindu temple, it is one of the most important Hindu worship sites in Malaysia and is pretty elaborate. After a very impressive audio guided tour explaining every detail we returned to the city and watched England beat Samoa in the rugby in the Bulls Head. As we weren't going to be in Kuala Lumpur for very long we decided to sample the night life of the city, so we went in search of some bars and clubs with Russ and Helen who we had met the night before. A few beers later we ended up in a place called the Beach Club, a very expensive establishment, but the music was good and we all had a dance and a very good time.

Week 30: Monday 27th October to Sunday 2nd November

We checked out of our hostel and after a bite to eat walked to Menara KL, a 421m high communications tower that graces the Kuala Lumpur skyline. We went up to the observation deck at 276m from where you can enjoy a splendid panoramic view of the city and the surrounding area. The audio tour, which is included in the ticket price is very good and explains that Menara is the tallest concrete tower and the fourth tallest communication tower in the world. Although the famous Petronas Towers are taller, the KL Tower is on a hill, giving it that added ‘leg-up’. Afterwards, we walked a couple of km to the Petronas Towers but could not go up as it was too late, so we browsed the exclusive clothes shops in the attached shopping centre for a while before catching a metro towards Merderka Square which is at the heart of colonial KL and is ringed by historic buildings. The mock-Tudor Royal Selangor Club was a social centre for KL’s high society in the late 1800’s. Opposite the Square is the impressive Abdul Samuel building which was formerly the British Secretarial Building. After a couple of games of snooker and a stint on the www it was time to catch our Super VIP Deluxe overnight bus back to Thailand.

We arrived the Thai border in the early hours of Tuesday morning and wearily went through Customs and Passport Control. At about 7.30am we arrived at Hat Yai and quickly organised a bus to take us to Krabi on the West Coast, from where you can get boast to the islands of Phuket and Phi Phi. Matt and Liam nipped off for a traditional Dim Sum brekkie (Hat Yai has a large Chinese population) and were treated to a rather raunchy karaoke video, which would have been quite entertaining had it not been so early in the morning! We we’re raced to Krabi by a seemingly deranged mini-bus driver and arrived at about 2pm. 30 minutes and a short taxi ride later we we’re on the ferry to Ko Phi Phi, a place we had heard was one of the ‘must see’s of Thailand. On the ferry we met James, and English lad who works in Reggae Bar, one of the islands most popular nightspots. James confessed to being the complete authority on the island and said he could find us some cheap accommodation without a problem. As we approached the island and got our first views of the tropical paradise we all agreed that it was simply great to be back in Thailand. When we got of the boat, James rushed off ahead and left us in with his friend to guide the way. After a 10 minute walk through narrow paths packed with people, market stalls, cafe’s bars and travel agents, we met up with an out of breath James again who had a couple of accommodation offers for us, which all were sure to make him a tidy commission. We opted for the cheapest one, Harmony and checked in. There was a bit of a dispute over the price, which was higher that quoted by James, but when we turned round to ask him he had mysteriously disappeared. Anyway, all was resolved amicably. We took a walk down to the beach and met up with Carl, Russ, Adam and John. After a chat about the previous two weeks we arranged to meet later for some grub and a reunion/celebration drink. That evening we had a slap up meal at Chilli’s then went to the famous Reggae Bar where our old favourite, Samsong Bucket’s, were the order of the day, and when the deal is 2 for 1, you’d be mad to turn them down! At 10.30 everyone trudged upstairs to where they have a full-size Thai Boxing ring and have a fight every night for your entertainment. The fight was good fun, but it soon became apparent that some of the moves were more akin to American Wrestling than real Thai Boxing. After the fight, the disco kicked in and, fuelled by the free buckets everyone received at midnight we danced the night away. Matt fell asleep in a chair in the bar, exhausted from the previous night’s lack of sleep and woke up confused and dazed and returned at 9am with more than few mosquito bites to show.

We woke up late and spent the day wondering around the town, marvelling at the sheer beauty of the island and lazing on the beach. We all met up in the evening and started the night off in Reggae Bar, before moving on to Apache Bar, a popular hangout on four levels then finished the night off at Hippies, a chilled out beach bar where you can lie back and sip a cool lager at ease. Hippie’s is open 24 hours a day and none of us were in any rush to retire so we stayed there until the early hours.

On Thursday we all met at JJ’s, an English pub that does an excellent breakfast and even tastier Pie and Mash with gravy. After gorging ourselves on some home comforts we needed some exercise so organised a 6-a-side footy match. Four On Tour plus Josh (a friend of our Samet and Pha Ngan friends Anthony and Sharon) and an American took on Carl, Russ, Ad, John and a couple of others. The game was fiercely contested and Four On Tour were trailing 0-3quite early on. However, we fought back and after an hour’s play the score finished level at 7-7. Our day of sport continued a little less energetically with a few sociable games of snooker. The evening was again spent at Reggae’s and Hippies.

We spent Halloween daytime doing our separate things. Rich went snorkeling at Phi Phi Ley, the smaller of the two islands that make up Phi Phi and where ‘The Beach’ was filmed. Liam went up to the viewpoint, which boasts superb views over the whole island. We all met in the afternoon for more football. As a special treat for Halloween the Reggae Bar put on a special ‘Tag-Team Thai Boxing Match’. Which started off with two teams of two, but ended up with an everyman-for-himself brawl, culminating in the referee knocking everybody out in four swift moves! At midnight there was a hilarious Wet T-Shirt Competition. An enhanced blonde (who we later found out to be from Birmingham) looked very upset when she was beaten into second place by a ladyboy!

We all headed to JJ’s on Saturday to watch the Rugby. First up was Ireland v Australia. As well as it being an excellent game, we were kept amused by a loud and animated Molly from Ireland who was intent on doing her best to wind-up the Aussies in the bar. Apart from lounging around on the beach, eating and drinking and patronising the usual establishments, there’s little to say about the rest of the day.

England v South Africa was the highlight of Sunday. Another good win and even better celebrations; we won’t bore you with the details! Sunday is the day of rest after all!


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