Thailand (Part 2) and Singapore...

After the tropical delights of Koh Pha-Ngan, we had a very travelly day, heading back to Surat Thani by boat, then taking a very interesting bus journey to Phuket. Interesting, because the bus driver touts for passengers every mile of the way, beeping anyone along the way who appears to require a lift, then packing as many passengers on board as possible, stacking children 3 high sometimes as and when required.

We had a nice few days on Phuket, with the obligatory trip to Koh Phi-Phi (allegedly the most beautiful place on earth, and where 'The Beach' was filmed). Phi-Phi was devastated by the Tsunami on Boxing Day 2004, and this means that the island is a bit of a building site and also VERY full of tourists. Still, it is a beautiful spot and the reef snorkelling there is top-notch.

After Phuket, we flew to Singapore to meet up with my mate Dave from uni. He and his family (June, Peter and Susie) were absolutely fantastic hosts to us during our week there. To start with, they took us on a luxury weekend to Pulau Sibu, a tropical island off the coast of Malaysia, where we ate, drank, snorkelled and sailed to our heart's content (OK, I may have had some issues with sailing, capsizing my little boat, twice!). We were also pampered at a luxury health resort, taken out for a fantastic Chinese meal and shown round the sights of Singapore, including the bizarre Merlion (Singapore's mascot, the head of a lion and the tail of a fish!), Sentosa island (with its' beaches overlooking supertankers coming into the harbour), and the undeveloped centre of the island, with its' jungles full of monkeys, monitor lizards and bush babies amongst others.

Dave's dad Pete said to us one day that Singapore is somewhere you either love or hate, but I'm not so sure. I think it's OK, but I don't think I could live there. It's very tidy and ordered (graffiti artists are flogged here if caught, no kidding!), but it's not really my cup of tea. Speaking of which, you'd have to be a tea-totaller here as the beer is fearsomely expensive!!

After saying our farewells, we left Singapore for Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia, where we are now. Our coach up here took 6 hours, but we were in the lap of luxury every mile of the way, in huge electrically-reclinable armchairs (not seats!) with individual TV's showing a selection of movies. All for a paltry 15 quid.

Today we took in the Petronas Towers (up until recently the tallest buildings in the World), as well as Merdeka Square (where Malaysia declare independence from in 1957), some nice parks and the odd mosque or two.

Next stop is the Cameron Highlands, where Clare can drink herself silly on the locally-brewed tea and I might get a spot of golf in.

More soon

-Si