Noon Image: 15 Nov 2015

As it is

Like it is

We were sitting at breakfast. The young (Belgian) lady who owns the hotel came over to speak with us. She commented that we would be staying a long time, to which the Silver Vixen replied that she will be tired of us by the time we leave. 

Without missing a heartbeat she replied "Oh no, I like old people".

Guess that's us told then. 

Do not disturb

After a hearty breakfast and, for the Gorse Fox a trip to the gym and a subsequent swim, we had another dreadful day of sitting by the pool in 31C temperatures whist sipping on cool drinks and deciding on what to do for supper. Cousteau-cub was out on the boat filming the dives, and the Coventry Hobbit had much of the day to himself. Both came to join up with us, late afternoon.

As the evening approached we heard about the trouble at Gatwick, but were able to get an update from Urban-cub - who, of course, is in the midst of it and getting full briefings on the situation. 

Relieved by first hand news we headed for The Drunken Sailors where we enjoyed some fine food and, perhaps, the odd glass of cool and refreshing elixir. Whilst there, we saw Tad and resolved to pop in and see him at The Bad Penny - when we get a chance

It would be wrong to sign-off without the obligatory sunset photo.

Noon Image: 14 Nov 2015

Ambition

We heard from Urban-cub (isn't Skype wonderful). Less than 6 months into her new job she was asked to apply for a promotion. Assessment was this week and it seems that she has got it.

Very proud of our girls.

Golden hour

Back at the hotel it was the golden hour (or Happy Hour if you must!). The Gorse Fox, Silver Vixen and Cousteau-cub sat on the verandah and watched as the sun put on its display across the Andaman Sea.

Noon Image: 13 Nov 2015

Marketing

It was a clear bright start to the day and the Gorse Fox enjoyed a nice breakfast before wandering down to the gym for 25 mins on the treadmill, then enjoyed half an hour in the pool with the place to himself. Cousteau-cub joined us late morning and we decided to wander into Kantiang for lunch.

Leaving the hotel we passed a family of monkeys on the driveway. This baby was clearly very happy clinging on to its mum. We stopped of at Scubafish for a chat, then carried on round to a open-sided thatched hut which was a roadside restaurant. Lunch was simple, cheap, and excellent costing about £6 for 4 of us.

After lunch it was looking quite thundery so we grabbed the car headed up to the market as Cousteau-cub wanted some supplies. It was only 7km but by the time we got there, the rain had started.

The market was an incredible experience - fruits, fish, meat, clothing and,of course, street food.

Once a programmer...

The Gorse Fox was planning the agenda for the holiday. It goes something like this:

/* Program for vacation */
Call Init;
Call Travel("LHR","NiceHotel");
Command "Check-in"
Do day = 1 to duration
bedtime = "no"
Do until bedtime = "yes"
Select
When thirsty then Get_beer()
When hot then dive_into_pool()
When tired the doze()
When hungry then eat()
When fidgety then walk()
When inquisitive then goDiving()
When late then bedtime = "yes"
Otherwise do nothing
End
End
Call Travel("BKK'","Home")
End

Init: Procedure
Command "Pack Suitcases"
duration = 365
End /* Init */

Travel: Procedure
Parse arg airport myhotel
Command "Drive" airport
Command "Boardflight"
Command "Watch films"
Command "Eat_Drink"
Command "Disembark"
Command "Drive" myhotel
End /*Travel*/

Now this is just the first draft and needs to go through extensive testing.

Noon Image: 12 Nov 2015

Noon Image: 11 Nov 2015

Long Day

It was a long day travelling. Once at Bangkok we had to wait for a couple of hours for the onward flght to Krabi. Then we picked up the car and headed south. We had some long waits at the ferries, but the journey was trouble-free.

We checked in to our hotel. We have a lovely room with one wall which is entirely glass and looks out over the pool and the Andaman Sea. After a shower to freshen up we spent the afternoon by the pool catching up with Cousteau-cub. When the Gorse Fox started to feel drowsy he dropped into the pool for a swim and managed to keep going.

Travelling

In the air at 12:44 with 5673 miles to go, cruising at 37000 feet at 608mph. Currently we are over the Netherlands and the route seems to cross Germany, Denmark, Poland, Lithuania, Belarus, Russia, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar and then into Thailand. It's not totally clear which borders we cross between Russia and Pakistan... but it looks like a load of stans.

The A380 is very comfortable and we have got bulkhead seats with acres of leg room. The plane has 506 seats, but we only have 165 passengers on board today, so it's very relaxed. The food was lovely. the Silver Vixen commenting that it was the nicest aeroplane meal she has had.

1620
Have just watched Mission Impossible Rogue Nation; great fun and easy viwing. It's dark outside and we are up at 39000 feet crossing the eastern coast line of the Caspian Sea. Speed has dropped to 575mph over the ground. There's 3600 miles to go and it looks like we'll cross of Afghanistan then Pakistan.

1948
Flying over Lucknow in Northern India. Rested but not slept. 1460 miles to go.

2358
Sitting in the terminal at Bangkok waiting for our flight to Krabi. The journey, so far, has been an absolute pleasure, indeed I would rate it among the best ever for comfort, and ease of  travel; completely stress-free. When we arrived, it took a little while to get through immigration, but nothing compared to arrival in New York (or worse still Sao Paulo).

Noon Image: 10 Nov 2015

Slick

It was a very quick jurney up to Heathrow last night. All the places that Gorse Fox expected tail backs were completely clear. We checked in to the hotel and by 1900 were sitting down to dinner with Pistol Pete and Urban-cub. It was a lovely evening and an opportunity to celebrate Pistol Pete's and the Silver Vixen's upcoming birthdays.

This morning we were dropped off at the refurbished T2. Gorse Fox is very impressed with the slick way in which the baggage drop and the security screening worked (though obviously it wasn't as slick as Urban-cub's Gatwick system!). Within 5 or 10 minutes f walking through the door we were processed and wandering along to the shops and the Lounge. We have an hour or two to kill now, but it is warm, quiet, and comfortable - with plenty of food and drink available, so it's no hardship.

Impressed

The Gorse Fox is impressed with some of the online facilities now available for travellers. Among other things, it looks as if it reduces the check-in time at the airport. Having said that, Gorse Fox has never been a brink man and will still make sure that we have plenty of time to spare.

Noon Image: 9 Nov 2015

Ridiculous

The Gorse Fox is up. In fact he's been up for an hour now, and awake for a couple of hours. Ridiculous time of day to be up and about when there is no reason to start early. The Gorse Fox can only assume his brain is beginning shift timezones. (This is all very fine if this is balanced at the start ad end of the day, however, he seems only to have changed the morning).

Jasper, the cat, is most confused by Gorse Fox's presence whilst it's still dark.

Prep

The day was spent preparing for the forthcoming trip. Down-selecting clothes, force-fitting suitcase, briefing neighbours, cleaning and generally getting ready. The Gorse Fox remembers how quickly he used to pack when still working - he has obviously got out of the habit. Somehow, it seemed much more pedestrian this time.

Noon Image: 8 Nov 2015