Contents:
2008 Travels
England - June 2008
Sweden - May 2008
Portugal - June 2008
Switzerland - May 2008
Germany - May 2008
Greece - April 2008
France and England - April 2008
Thailand - December 2007/January/February/March 2008
2007 Travels
England - June
Sweden - June (mid-sommer)
Greece - May/June
India - April/May
Thailand & Malaysia - January/February/March/April
2006 Travels
Thailand - December
Thailand - January/February/March
2005 Travels
San Francisco - December
Greece - June
Spain - May/June
France - May
India - April/May
Thailand - March
Vietnam - March
Australia - February
Thailand - January
2004 Travels
France - January
Thailand - January
Cambodia - February
Thailand - March
Sweden - March
Greece - April
Netherlands - May/June
1997/1998 Travels
UK
Thailand
India
Sweden
Greece
USA
Hey, send Spike an email at: nomadspike@earthlink.net
London, UK
Dublin Dave, my mate from Thailand, is due to arrive on Thursday and it will be good to catch up and spend my last few days in India with an old friend. Sunday, April 22, 2007 McLeod Ganj, India 
FINALLY CONNECTED! Yes, after 6 days of dealing with Indian beauracracy and the Indian mobile service provider Air Tel, I am finally connected to the internet via gprs on my laptop. It took 10 phone calls and two trips to lower Dharamsala to the Air Tel office but today my gprs service was finally activated and I worked out, through trial and error, the configuration settings for my Sierra Wireless 775 Aircard. Whoo hoo!! Am now sitting in my apartment, looking out to the Himalayas...and am online. The Wonders of Modern Technology!!Last night, in celebration of my newly acquired internet connection, I decided to eat at McLLo's, one of the few restaurants in town selling beer. While there, I bumbed into Xavier, the Swiss man I met on the bus to Dharamsala. He is working at the Norbulingka Institute and was in McLLo's with his boss, the assistant managing director and the founders of the institute's daughter. I joined them for some beers and we chatted happily into the night. They invited me to visit the institute this week and I may possibly help Xavier work on the institute's website as well as help institute some changes to their restaurant's menu... Sunday, April 22, 2007 McLeod Ganj, India Tonight, while having a beer and dinner at a predominantly Tibetan/Indian restaurant, an Indian bloke with what sounded like a Dutch accent, stopped at my table and commented "good to see someone rocking the casbah". Wearing my Thai Clash t-shirt, with skull and crossbones, I replied "Well, yeah, someone has to do it here..." 
Sitting in my studio apartment in McLeod Ganj, Thailand seems far far away and the stress of the restaurant is all but forgotten. Delhi was a bit of a blur...hotel taxi collected me at the airport, checked in the Chand Hotel in Paharganj, rather grimy but comfortable enough for a night. I ordered food from room service and slept. Woke early and took the new metro to Connaught Place to find the Airtel office, India's mobile network provider. While looking for the office I was befriended by an Indian guy who told me that Airtel wouldn't open until 10am and would I like to join him for a coffee. We walked over to a posh little coffee shop, Coffee Place, with an outdoor smoking area and AC inside. We chatted over cappucinos, he was working in IT programming income tax software. At 10 I found the Airtel office. The beginning of the nightmare. Apparently to obtain gprs internet service for an aircard you must show proof of residency and as I would be staying in McLeod Ganj, in the state of Himachal Pradesh, I would have to wait until arriving in HP. And I was told gprs is only offered as a post-paid service w/ credit card and fixed address. At that point I decided it better to wait...I checked out (was almost over-charged for my room service orders but when I told the guy I had calculated a lesser amount he didn't argue and I paid the correct price). I organized a taxi at the hotel to take me to the Interstate Bus Terminal at Kashmiri Gate. Or atleast I thought I did. The driver drove for 10 minutes and stopped at a local bus terminal near New Delhi Train Station, near my hotel. After consulting numerous Indians crowding round the taxi it was discovered he thought I wanted to go to Ashmeri Gate, not Kashmeri Gate. An additional 100 rp. Ok, we drive to Kashmiri Gate to the private bus operators and after more ppl look at my ticket it was discovered I had to go to ISBT...Interstate Bus Terminal. I did say that originally...but this is India. He dropped me outside the station, I carried my bags inside and found gate 6 for Himachal State Transport Company. Sat and smoked for an hour and a half and was directed to the Volvo bus to Dharamsala. For India, this was quite a luxurious coach with air conditioning and fully reclining seats. Sweet! Once we departed, I popped a valium and dozed off. Woke when we stopped for a meal break, bought a sandwich and smoked. Once back on the bus I took 2 sleeping pills and woke at 6am, almost in Dharamsala. Chatted with a Swiss man, Xavier, who was traveling with his half Thai 6 year old daughter and would be working at an institute near McLeod Ganj. In Dharamsala I got dropped at the jeep-taxi terminal and got a jeep up to McLeod Ganj w/ an uptight old English hippy and 2 Indian yuppies :-) Walked to my room at Sidharth Apartments, down the hill and several hundred treacherously steep stone steps. Woke up the manager who showed me to my apartment and he promised me my gas and cooker would be brought shortly. 36 hours later I had said gas and cooker along with a pot to boil water, and the added bonus of a pressure cooker. I slept til 1pm then walked into town to eat as I was ravenous. Had lunch and found a small Airtel rep who said he could get me service for my mobile phone (without a permanent address). He also agreed to sell me a second simcard for my aircard and a pre-paid phonecard for gprs access for one month. Stoked! Authentication of the gprs is meant to take 48 working hours (uh, oh...) and when I rang Airtel customer service today I was told it would be turned on tomorrow, Monday. In the meantime I've been using my laptop in internet shops and the connection is relatively fast. I then went and visited my Tibetan friend, Dhondup, a massage teacher and massage master. He and his wife invited me back that evening for dinner and we ate dahl, chapatis, salad and we drank lots of Kingfisher beer. Made an appointment for a massage for Wednesday, his next available date. His business is booming since he got into Lonely Planet and after people started finding the website I designed for him two years ago. Spent the last two days wandering the town, eating out and buying the necessary provisions to make my stay more comfortable...speakers for my laptop, kitchen basics and toiletries. The view from my apartment looks out over a valley surrounded by mountains and the snow-peaked Himalayas... Saturday, April 14, 2007 Chiang Mai, Thailand Spent yesterday wandering the streets of Chiang Mai during the first main day of Songkran, the Thai New Year celebrations. Wicked. Madness. Chaos. At Kad Suan Kaew shopping center there were three stages set up and I got stuck at one where a Thai Indie/Punk band were playing crowd pleasers. Cans of San Miguel beer were sold four at a time in a bucket of ice. I was thoroughly drenched. Constantly. And smiling a lot!!  Wednesday, April 11, 2007 Chiang Mai, Thailand Arrived in Chiang Mai on Saturday after a crazy couple of days in Bangkok with Boozy Suzy and the Norwegian Wood (Kim, Tron, Daniel, Marius & Johnny). Oh, and the Dominator, I mean Alaska ;o} Suzy and I had our second 'marital row' on the way home from Patpong in a tuktuk...hazy memories of her screaming at me, drunkenly beating on my thigh and jumping out of the tuktuk much to the amusement of the tuktuk driver. Of course I was sober, LOL. The next night we went to Gene Futon's new club "Club Whatever", and danced and drank with Note, Gene and Air. Fun! My last weeks in Chaloklum on Koh Phangan were rather frustrating (ie. dealing with the Thais) and dealing with the closing of the restaurant for the season. I originally wanted to close when I left but after Mark's insistence, we decided to remain open and have Tio manage and cook. Spent a week training her, teaching her recipes and the day before I was set to stop cooking and Mark take over running the restaurant, it was decided it would be too much work for them and we closed. Arghhhhh. But I spent some good times on the beach, and had fun hanging out with Dave, Suzy, Veronica and the Norwegian boys. I've gone ahead and rented my house for the entire year and have friends searching for a suitable subletter...so if nothing else I have the house to return to in December :)   All in all, the restaurant has gone well and I am pleased with the initial response to our food, menu and ambience. Of course it takes time and money to establish a new business but I feel certain that next season will be better than our first... Tomorrow starts the beginning of Songkran, the Thai New Year celebrations and Chiang Mai is the place to be. Everyone throws water on everyone else, using water guns, buckets, ice...let the madness begin!! Last night I went to a rad bar called The Drunk Studio. Think Mad Max. Tables, chairs, lighting pieced together out of old sewing machines, buses, iron, debris, motorcycles. Live rock music. Booze. Killer. I return to Bangkok on Tuesday night by train and fly to Delhi Wednesday morning. Then on to MacLeod Ganj and the Mountains... Wednesday, January 31, 2007 Penang, Malaysia 
Apologies for not updating the blog for over a month but The World's End has been keeping me crazy busy. The World's End is the name of the new
restauarant I've opened on Koh Phangan, along with my (mostly silent) partners, Mark and Fern from The Dive Inn dive shop. Where to begin...Lots of shopping, decorating, painting...we finally opened about 2 weeks ago and Boozy Suzy's been working for us serving tables and managing the front of the house. Interviewing potential workers has been a nightmare as most Thai's living on the islands speak a minimum of English and those that have any level of fluency either work in banks or have their own businesses. As The World's End is an international restaurant we need a server that speaks fluent English to communicate with the customers and myself...any volunteers?! Suzy has just returned to the UK after spending two weeks on the island and the plan is for her to return here in a couple of weeks and carry on as front of house manager/server. She's also been offered afternoon work selling dives to tourists from Mark for which she'll make a percentage of her sales and a free bungalow on Mae Haad Beach...she's chuffed!  Our one week anniversary of the restaurant's opening featured entertainment by Parker, a friend of Mark's. Think "Heineken enema". Don't ask...So, I'm over in Georgetown on Penang island in Malaysia for a few days sorting out my non-immigrant B visa (which I picked up this afternoon) and the next step is getting the work permit which is in the works... Leaving for Thailand at 5am tomorrow morning...I'll fill in the blanks of this chapter in time. Sunday, December 24, 2006 Chaloklum, Koh Phangan, Thailand Bangkok was a bit of a blur, getting over a pretty bad case of jetlag and battling with taxi drivers not wanting to turn on their meters. Spent most of a day trying to get my laptop's aircard connected to the internet and finally got it sorted at the AIS shop at Central World. The train down to the South was fab...Natalie, my "ladyboy" friend was serving in the disco dining car on the train and I met up with a cool bunch of people and consumed shitloads of Singha beer. Mark, from the Dive Inn, met me at the ferry and we had drinks with Jim and his mate Gary who had also just arrived on the island from Samuii. Mark and his wife Fern, who I had planned to work with as a cook in their diving school/pub suprised me with a new restaurant to call my own, two doors down from their diving shop and directly opposite Chaloklum Pier! If all goes to plan we hope to open in mid-january, after the holidays. Trying to decide on a name for the restaurant and best idea so far is "World's End" International Cafe & Restaurant. Ideas welcome!! I'm back in the old Thai-style wooden teak house I had rented last year and it's all cozy and warm. Need to buy some furniture to make it really comfy...an unwelcome expense but you only live once... Oh, and today is my 50th birfday...I am now officially an Old Fuck.
Since getting back to the island, I've been honing my culinary skills by cooking at the Dive-Inn on Thursday nights (for the weekly pool competition) and on Wednesdays and Saturdays cooking on the Dive-Inn's fishing/snorkeling/diving trips to Ang Thong Marine Park. The boat trip takes 2 hours from Chaloklum to the park and along with preparing the lunch for 10-15 punters, I get in some snorkeling and fishing, a few beers and lots of sea and sun.
One more week til it's time to return for one last weekend in Bangkok and then it's back to San Francisco...
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Mark, Fern and I discussed doing food at the Dive-Inn next winter and I may go into partnership with them on that. The idea is daily specials: Indian, Italian, Brit...the potential is definitely there as there is already a built in clientele from the diving school and the pub regulars.
Tomorrow my two month visa runs out so have to make the dreaded visa run to Burma to get a months extension. This entails the night boat to Surat Thani, a mini bus to Ranong and a boat to Burma. Then immediately back to Koh phangan. Next weekend I'm returning to Bangkok for a few days to 'clown' Dude Sweet, attend a hardcore show on the Saturday afternoon and possibly stay for a punk show on the Monday with Artimus Pyle, a Bay Area band, enroute to Australia. Then it's back to the island for another two weeks and the annual Temple Party near my house in mid-March...
Completed the final stage of my dental root planing and scaling and must return in three weeks for teeth whitening. Shopped at Chatuchak Weekend Market, with of course the ritual rest-stop at Viva Cafe. Checked out Chakran Sauna in the evening for some R & R and a taste of the Thais. Saturday night was Dude Sweet, a monthly indie club, that my friend Note throws at 'Speed', a little bar on Silom Soi 4. The music was 80's indie with a bit of punk thrown in for good measure, on two floors, and I met Gene from 'Futon', a Thai/Japanese/English band that Suede's ex-drummer Simon drums for. Had a blast and plan on returning for Dude Sweet in March in my Drunk Clown persona, Gropee the Clown. On Sunday, I had a phone call from Mou, who had been visiting Angor Wat in Cambodia and she was in Bumrungrap Hospital in Bangkok for surgery on her leg which had been infected by a nasty spider bite. She needed toothpaste and a phone card to contact her insurance company back in the UK so I taxi'd over to see her. The hospital was top notch, reeking of money, with a McDonalds and Starbucks in its lobby (sic!) and once I was sure she was being well looked after I got a taxi back to my guesthouse, packed and checked out. My train was departing at 6:20pm so headed to Hualamphong Station in the pissing rain...once aboard, I settled in then found the dining car, the same carriage as on my previous train journey south to Surat Thani. Chatted with an interesting Australian girl, Michelle, a television producer of sorts, had a few ice cold Singha's and enjoyed the surrealism of the journey in the disco car. Arrived on the island around 1:30pm in pouring rain, found my motorbike, strapped on my bags and drove home to Chaloklum. The following night was "Psycho Clownz", the punk rock party Mark at The Dive Inn and I were putting on as an alternative to the Full Moon Party in Haad Rin. I made up at home, then returned to The Dive Inn and made up Mark, Andy, Gaz and Gary as drunk clownz. We were a clown posse on Koh Phangan!! We pub crawled Chaloklum High Street, with visits to the posh Sheesha bar and Tio's and Yiannis filmed our antics as we terrorized the bars and entertained the local Chaloklum folk. Then it was back to The Dive Inn for more beer ...with me on the laptop playing old-school punk for the drunk clownz and their admirers...
Here's a funny clip from last night's Pool competition at The Dive Inn starring Grant and Ricky...
Wednesday, February 1, 2006
Yiannis and I started spending afternoons at the beach on Mae Haad, a busy but spectacular beach about five minutes drive from Chaloklum. Mae Haad is a snorkeling and diving center and there is a tiny island off the beach, Koh Maa, with its single set of bungalows and is picture postcard perfect.
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Yiannis and I cooked Avgolemono Soupa (a Greek fish soup) today with a portion of yesterday's catch. It turned out delicious and we brought what we didn't eat to The Dive Inn for Mark, Fern and the others to eat. The rain is pissing down and after dropping Yiannis off at Haad Salat, I'm spening a quiet night at home relaxing.
Thursday, January 19, 2006
Monday, January 16, 2006
Saturday we arrived on the island, I met up with
Malee, who I rented a motorbike from and we headed north to Chaloklum. We went for beers at the Revolution Cafe and
Net, my friend from last year helped me find a house to rent. I chose a big Thai style house in the village, behind
the temple, with 3 rooms, kitchen, large balcony and toilet - for $150 a month. Saturday night we had drinks at
The Dive Inn bar/diving school where I caught up with Fern and Mark...
Tuesday, January 3, 2006
Planning another trip to Thailand in January but until then please enjoy this video I took of my roommate
Boozy Suzy's band The Twots...just click on the player and your windows media player will open. My time in Serifos is drawing to a close and I sit contemplating... I have finally come to the realization that this is not the place I wish to die, however morbid this may sound. While I still harbour very strong feelings for this island and love its raging rugged beauty, I also recognize only too clearly that as a small island a certain village mentality holds sway and people tend to give too much signifigance to what would normally be seen as insignifigant. I find myself unwillingly giving into this mentality and appreciate more and more the freedom life in the city affords.
Most of this week I spent driving around the island on a little motorbike borrowed from Pascal. The beaches are all becoming developed with houses built directly on the beach. I long for the days when I first visited this place and all the beaches were virgin and free camping was the norm. These days most of the tourists are wealthy Greeks from Athens and backpackers rarely stay longer than a day or two as prices have soared since the introduction of the euro. I head to one of the few remaining authentic tavernas at the end of the bay and drink local Serifos wine and eat traditional Greek food. I see friends at Stou Stratou over coffee, and the first weekend here, a big holiday, I help clear tables and serve water and the cafe. A few evenings I drive down the hill to Livadi, the port, and drink beer at Karnayo, the islands oldest rock'n'roll bar. I end up at Metalleio, a restaurant/club, owned by a friend and catch up with people I haven't seen in years. A certain sadness envelops me as I realize it is time to move on but I know it is necessary and my life is calling to me...
I volunteered to coordinate Tuesday's lunch and cooked an Indian veggie curry, dahl, rice and salad for 300 people. When not actually cooking I was responsible for making sure the kitchen was stocked with food and running smoothly. This meant almost daily trips to the veggie market to dumpster vegetables, driving in a van to Makro to buy staples such as coffee, pasta, pulses, rice and muesli. Plus the occasional trip to an Indian and Chinese supermarket to buy spices and specialty foods needed for the meals.
Thursday night was band night and there were queer punk bands from Barcelona, the UK and Denmark performing. And the Sex Party space was still open for action. Friday night a politicial action was planned and many of the queeruptors headed into the city's mainstream commercial gay district to confront the middle-class homos. After disrupting a wealthy gay hotel, 8 kidz got arrested for disturbing the peace and propery damage and further demonstrations were held outside the jail the following day demanding the release of the Q8 prisoners. Our friends were finally released on Sunday afternoon but still face trumped up charges and mounting legal fees.
Wednesday, May 18, 2005
Sunday, May 15, 2005
After making our final goodbyes, I got the new luxury Volvo air-conditioned bus from Dharamsala to Delhi (surprisingly comfortable as most of the Indian buses are hell on wheels!!) Arrived in Delhi this morning, checked into Hotel Star Paradise and spent the afternoon walking around Main Bazaar. I found an inexpensive optician and asked the cost of prescription glasses - my last pair was bought in Bangkok 8 years ago and needed stronger lenses - so I ordered new glasses for $20, quite the bargain. Then I ran into an Aussie friend from McLeod Ganj and we made plans to have beers tonight in The Gold Regency's Chandi bar. Tomorrow, Monday, I will go to Connaught Circus to do last minute shopping then on Tuesday morning I catch a flight to Paris, via Dubai...
The fevers completely gone and I've settled into the life here in McLeod Ganj. Yiannis returned to Greece last weekend and now I have the room to myself. It's basic, but clean and comfortable, the shower is hot and the bed is cozy with duvets. Yesterday I began a 7 day course in traditional Tibetan massage. My first impression is that technique isn't too hard to master but remembering all the different positions and massages will be challenging. I take notes and we receive basic sketches of the positions. Once this course ends I may do another massage course in Thai massage and plan to do a 3 day Indian cooking class. Found a lovely little cafe on Temple Road, Moonpeak Cafe, that does authentic cappucino and espresso and I usually take a coffee there each afternooon. If the weather is sunny I have breakfast at Nick's Italian Kitchen's terrace overlooking the valley and the snow-peaked Himalayas... The village has several internet shops and I started frequenting the Dogga Internet Cafe, a non-profit computer center on Jogibara Road, where I continue my web design work. The connection is slow and erratic but functional.
Sunday, April 24, 2005
Flying out of Bangkok was relatively painless - I had been having
apprehensions as I overstayed my Thai visa by two days but I was directed by immigration to an 'overstay' desk where I paid the
necessary 400 Baht and got my exit stamp. Secuity was tight and when my shoulder bag was examined in the departure
lounge, my throw-away lighter was discovered and taken. Luckily they didn't find my zippo, hehe. This morning, woke early, had a chai and breakfast and will head out shortly to get online and post this latest travelblog. Booked a deluxe luxury bus to Dharamsala/McLeod Ganj for this afternoon at 3:30pm...more from the mountains!!
Yesterday morning I got a taxi to Pantip Plaza, Bangkok's computer shopping center. I was after a memory stick, or USB flash drive as they call it nowadays. Wandered its 5 floors but as it is the Thai New Year, most of the shops are closed for the holidays. Found a few open shops, all with similar gear and similar prices and bought an Apacer 128 MB drive - handy for copying data from one computer to another, which I expect I'll need to do while working online in India. I've heard horror stories of being unable to connect your laptop to an internet cafes network so may have to transfer data from my laptop to their pc, to email and upload to the web. Arghhh! Had lunch at my guesthouse then braved the water fights (which are everywhere outdoors) and headed to Khaosan Road to the Immortal Bar where a metal/punk show was on at 4pm. Bought my ticket for $4 and entered - a really cool venue, similar to CBGBs, small, smoky and full of young Thai kids dressed in black with heavy metal t-shirts on. Found Danny Double Bass, a Swiss guy I met last year at the Rambo gig and his friend Mike. We drank beers for half an hour then everyone was asked to go outside for the ticket check - a strange system. I started chatting with an older Thai woman, Toi, whose son was in one of the bands playing, Slazh. She asked the owner if she could remain inside as she was older and it was extremely hot outside and didn't want to get wet and when he gave her the thumbs up she suggested I stay as well. I just hung with her, chatting away (she spoke perfect English as she'd worked for a foreign company), smoking and drinking Singha. The ticket check actually took an hour and a half - which seemed to be their excuse to get everyone outside during the soundcheck. Eventually at 6pm everyone was allowed back inside and the show began. Stayed for the first 3 bands, all metal, and not really my style of music. Atleast one of the bands dressed up as ghosts which was amusing and rather theatrical and the soundboard was built into an old tuk-tuk which was way cool. I returned to the New Merry V covered in water and paste, had dinner and checked to see if Julie and Jess were in. They weren't so I went upstairs to shower then decided to crash out for the night.
Saturday night was my *official* farewell party and I arranged to cook dinner for some friends at Simon's house.
  
 
Monday morning was spent working online and arranging to get my gear into Thong Sala (fortunately Jess & Julie were getting a taxi in so they kindly picked my bag up from the Dive Inn where Simon helped me bring it the night before). Met David at Easy.it internet shop and we put the final touches on his t-shirt design for hedphuquers chaloklam then we met the gals for breakfast. David treated me to a whopping English breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausages, baked beans and toast then dropped us off at the Seatrans pier to catch our 12:30pm express boat to Donsak. Arrived in record time and immediately got the mini-bus to Phun Pin, where Surathani's train station is located. Had a bit of a walk then the gals and I had lunch - and started on the beers! Got the train at 6:25pm, the girls traveled 1st class and i traveled 2nd class aircon. My seat mates were two Americans from Virginia, one of which was a Peace Corps volunteer in Thailand's northeast. He spoke quite good Thai which never fails to impress the Thais working on the train. Met up with Billy (the other Virginian), Julie, and an Aussie and Dutch guy and spent a good few hours drinking beer, uh...not to mention the valium. Slept ever so well and woke up as the train was pulling in Hualamphong station in Bangkok. The three of us hailed a taxi and in a matter of minutes were back at New Merry V guesthouse for a few wild days and nights in BangCock!! And just in time for Songkran, the Thai New Year!!! Ventured out for walk to drop off my laundry and got drenched with water - the Thai greeting for New Year! Returned to the hotel, wrapped my wallet in plastic, collected my passport from the agency who sorted my Indian Visa, then met up with Jess and Julie to have breakfast. We were immediately soaked with water - everyone carries massive plastic water guns, buckets, bowls and water bottles and the game is to soak passersby...i was drenched within minutes and of course we just joined in the fun!! Julie bought a water gun with strap-on water tank and looked like a dyke soldier ready for combat ;-) I showed them to Khaosan road and made my way back to the guesthouse to finish off some work and get this posted. I'll undoubtedly add more to this as i remember stuff so check back and if you fancy so, and read over it again for further embellishments!!
More on this after the party!! The party was good fun although the turnout was minimal...guess it takes more than flyering to draw a crowd to Chaloklum, hehe! The music was amazing but I was in one of those quiet moods where one can drink and drink and not get drunk. But we gave Jim and fantabulous sendoff which was all that mattered!
Tuesday afternoon on my way home from Thong Sala, I stopped in at the Revolution and a funnily drunken David was there with his friend Walter. I hooked up my laptop and we had a go listening to my music - David was chuffed to have found lots of music he hadn't heard in a long while and we made plans to download music to his mate Simon's computer when he returned from his visa run. I remained at the cafe and got Net to get the floppy disk with details of their new menu so I could edit it on my laptop. She and I took the floppy to a nearby internet shop to burn it onto a cd so I could get it onto my computer and in the end I emailed it to myself then connected my laptop to the net and downloaded the file. We returned to the cafe and I spent the remainder of the afternoon designing a new menu for the restaurant.
Headed home round five o'clock and had a note from David to meet him and Simon at the Dive Inn at half seven to
download music and play pool. I figured I'd give it a shot and finished up the work I'd been doing on a
tonypresents web flyer, showered and headed back down the hill to Chalok Lum town. David hadn't arrived yet
but the dive bar was full of mainly men and a few Thai women working the bar. I ordered a Singha and ended up
chatting with a few guys playing pool. I declined their invitation to join the pool tournament and found David's
friend Simon, recognizable by his laptop. Simon is a young Swiss German lad, who according to David, refuses to speak
German and has adopted a sorta east-end London accent. David arrived, I was introduced to most of the bar and I
suggested hooking up my laptop to their sound system and doing a DJ set. Borrowed Simon's cable and I was on.
I played a 4 hour set of old-school punk classics and the bar dug the music; David commented that Mark, the
bar's owner, an older London punker, in Bangkok for a few days, would dig my sounds. We made plans to hook up
when David returns from Cambodia and Mark returns from Bangkok to do a DJ night at Cafe Del Mar, a beachfront
bar across from the Revolution Cafe. I got pleasantly drunk and made plans to visit Simon the next day at his house after he
gets off work at the Dive Inn then slowly drove home, careful of the road in my somewhat inebriated state...
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
Over the weekend while driving home through the jungle, I happened upon "Ta Kuad", varanus bengalensis, a huge lizard native to this land, similar to an iguana. The magnificent lizard was lazily crossing the winding dirt road ahead of me and my motorbike, its stout body and stub legs gracefully swaying from side to side oblivious of me and the influx of tourism on its territory. According to Net at the Revolution Cafe, Ta Kuad are rapidly disappearing as people from the North hunt them for food. I feel lucky to have glimpsed such a beautiful creature. Last night it was Net's birthday and we celebrated at the Revolution Cafe. Mon cooked a sumptious meal for our table of 10 of garlic pepper prawns, tom yum seafood, tempura chicken and a simple fresh salad. Net and her husband, It, provided the food and beer, a friend brought Regency Thai brandy and I supplied the champagne...and the soundtrack, a cd I burned for the cafe including The Clash's Armagedion Time, Guns of Brixton, Stiff Little Fingers' Tin Soldier, X-Ray Sex's Germ Free Adolescents and Audio Web's Policeman Skank. After a beautiful drunken dinner by the seaside, I carefully maneouvered the dirt road home and slept ever so soundly high atop the hill.
This afternoon I put the final touches on making my bungalow my home for the next three weeks: hung a mosquito net and the purple tie-dye hammock I bought in town this morning. Unfortunately no skull and cross-bone hammocks available so I guess I have to settle for the pseudo-hippy alternative, hehe. Oh and I seem to have aquired a cat...
Got the air-con 2nd class sleeper train down to Surat Thani then a mini-bus to Don Sak and the Seatrans Express to Koh Phangan. Rang up Malee upon arrival and she sent a taxi to collect me from Thong Sala, stop at her and Simon's house to pick up the bag I left with them then take me to the house I rented on the mountain top behind Chalok Lum Bay. While this house is a bit smaller than the house I rented at Land Fine earlier in the year, the view is superb...directly in front is the whole of Chalok Lum Bay and to the west is coconut plantation after coconut plantation!
Quite an eventful flight to Bangkok with my newfound friends from Saigon. The couple doing volunteer work in Aghanistan (see below), Christie and Tony, had overweisght baggage and our tour guide suggested we all share the weight allowance so they could avoid paying the extra weight penalty fee. Fair enough. While boarding the flight in Saigon, I got pulled over and asked to accompany the Vietnam airlines officer back through security as there was something suspicious in my luggage. I followed the agent back downstairs, out of immigration and through security, all the while wondering if it was my bag that was suspicious or one of the couples' bags that was checked in on my ticket - it was, in fact, my bag and I was asked if I had zippo fuel in it...I feigned ignorance and it was removed from my bag and thrown away...and I boarded the plane enroute to Bangkok, smiling yet zippo-fluidless...
Arrived this evening in Vietnam and was met at the airport by the tour rep who made arrangements to bring us to the hotel couretesy of Vietnam Airlines. We are 6 people, an Australian and American couple working in Afghanistan and their baby, an Australian guy on his way to work in Japan and an Israeli girl. I'm heading out shortly for some food and fags, then want to get a good night's sleep in this posh hotel before flying to Bangkok in the morning...
Saigon hotel's
Sydney, Australia
Spent the last few days in Ashfield at Fleur's place and today I got the ferry out to Manly Beach. Manly is another typical Aussie beach town which I will remember as the place where I ate the worst shepards pie of my life at a backpacker cafe. It consisted of, and I kid you not, a tin of shepards pie meat (beef? beans? peas?), microwaved to luke warm, and served in a bowl with 2 slices of toast. Now I realize the English are not typically known for their cuisine, but I had so hoped for a real English shepards pie: ground beef sauteed with onions, garlic, tomato, peas, covered with a thick layer of fresh mashed potatoes, cheese then baked to perfection. Oh well. While on the topic of food, I did discover another typicalled Aussie version of a dish - Beef burger topped with the usual salad with the added addition of beetroot!
Saturday evening we flyered the parade as it ended - walked down Oxford St to the CBD and got the bus to Enmore for Paul, Karen and Thomas' birthday party. Cool house party, about 100 people showed and I was one of about 5 ppl to dj. Mark's boyfriend Shannon arrived from Melbourne with his friend Jim and we all hung out, danced and drank the night away.
On Sunday I vegged out at home then headed to Oxford St at 6pm to meet my Thai fried Ta. We had drinks at a pub then
dinner at a lovely Thai restaurant that Ta knew. Delicious soft shell crab and duck curry. Took a coffee after dinner
and Ta went home to bed. I had plans to go to Kooky, a queer performance/club nite, and it was set to be a classic
Kooky night being mardi gras weekend. I arrived as it opened at 10:30pm, and the basement soon filled to capacity.
Everyone I seemed to know in Sydney was there as well as friends visiting from Melbourne. The beer washed away any
sense of reserve and I was merrily chatting away with the gang - I was also trying to sort out somewhere to stay
for my remaining week as Chris needed space and I soon had several offers to stay for a few days each at friends.
An attraction developed between Shannon and myself and we found ourselves becoming more and more affectionate -
unfortunately I had to refuse Mark's offer to stay at his in Melbourne as the transport over would cost over $100
and I couldn't justify the expense for a few days fun. Too bad!
Friday, March 4, 2005
Last night I hung at the Newtown Hotel bar and The Town Hall Hotel bars. The Newtown is one of Newtown's gay bars, along with the Impy, The Imperial, a bar with drag shows and open late. Chatted with some guys then headed home to sleep it all off. Tomorrow is Sydney's Mardi Gras parade and some of us are planning an action and will be handing out flyers explaining why New Mardi Gras needs to change and commit to less corporate sponsorship and more community building. More of this soon. Community Not Commodity!
Sydney's a blast. Queeruption 7 came and went and I will write more soon once I process the events
of the last 2 weeks (see below). At this point it's all a blur...
Sunday, February 13, 2005
Arrived Friday morning and after the obligatory chat with customs and immigration i was on my way to
Newtown. Staying with the legokid and his mates in their lovely old house off of King St - my room was
the old laundry room and is off the back garden - sweet! Spent my first night gettting to know the
queeruption gang at the Erko hotel's bar and yesterday we had a building meeting at lego's. Edited and updated
the Sydney Q7 website most of yesterday afternoon and last night went w/ legokid to a farewell party of one of
his friends in a warehouse art-space in Redfern. Ran into Adrian and Alex from A'dam and met lots of rad folx.
The combination of vodka-orange before leaving home, then red wine and beer at the party wasn't the best choice
and this morning i experienced a killer of a hangover - my first in over a month, hehe. Fortunately it's
receding and i plan a nice walk after getting off the computer :-)
Tonight I'm meeting Scott and Sabine for dinner at a seafood restaurant in Chalok Lum which I haven't tried yet and
that was recommended by Nick. Til then just hanging at my bungalow and soothing after sun lotion on my
burning skin. Hard fucking life ;-)
Monday, January 31, 2005
Mr. Nick joined us Scott, Sabine and I at The Revolution Cafe for dinner: a glorious decadent dinner of fresh barbecued fresh prawns, a red snapper in a sweet and sour sauce with pineapples and veggie curry. Sumptious! Three cheers for our hosts Net and Mon :-)
Tomorrow we're off to Botle Beach in Pong's speedboat!!
Friday, January 21, 2005
I hear I should be protecting my tattoo with sunblock but who wants a white tattoo'd patch, ya know? Thinking about getting another faux hawk. And going for a day trip to Koh Samui. Perhaps joining the jungle gym and getting rid of some extra baggage. Or maybe just lying in my hammock and dreaming. Could be interesting to remain a bit longer in Australia - I'll decide once I'm down under. The options are endless...
I just added an earlier travel log from the winter of '97-'98 when I left the UK to travel and
eventually move to San Francisco. It needs editing, is not politically correct but what the fuck!
My swatch watch died this morning (old age and salt water) so gonna look for a cheapo digital watch while in town, check email and buy fresh eggs at the morning market. I'm heading to Sydney in February for a couple of weeks to participate in Queeruption 7. Several friends from Amsterdam, San Francisco and Canada are going as well and I'm volunteering my kitchen skills, as well as doing a dj night and possibly a work-shop on web-design. Then it'll be back to Thailand for 6 weeks before heading to the mountains of India...
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Arrived in Stansted and sailed on thru. Met Boozy Suzy at the sex shop, went back with her to hers and went to the pub. Spent a few days staying with Christo in Twickenham and had his attic to sleep in. Bought a new hat and black skinnies at Camden Market. And more tin beer signs for my restaurant, 
Stockholm was deserted over mid-sommer - all the Swedes leave the city for the country and islands. Hung out with Danny (you old grump) & Karin and
Bjorn & Vickan. Walked all over Sodermalm. Had a funny evening at The Brick House with Mattias and Dave and Helle. Can't wait to get to London!! 
Back in Portugal after 12 years! Had one day and one night in Lisboa...I had forgotten how beautiful a city Lisboa is. Walked for hours through Bairro Alto, had a lunch of pork and clams and found a little bar where I spent the evening drinking Sagres beer with an Irishman, Stu. Took the bus down to Lagos the following day and Loesje picked me up from the bus station. So good to see Loes and be back in the Algarve!!
Spent 5 days in Switzerland. Cooked 2 Thai dinners at Stiftung Gartnerhaus and catered a dinner party for Benny and Ludger at their beautiful home in Meisterschwanden. 10 people, a four course Thai meal, and it was a roaring success. Pork Satay, Tempura Prawns, Yam Salad, Laab Gai, Red Curry Fish, Green Curry Chicken, Tom Kha Gung and Rice. Great seeing Benny & Ludger, both doing very very well! Spent an evening with Erika in Wadenswil and drank champagne with Rita on her birthday in Zurich. Checked out two flea markets in Zurich, and walked for miles and miles. 
Flew from Berlin to Munich and Stefan collected me from the airport and drove us to Campground Pilsensee where Sandra and Christian have their restaurant 
Chilled out week in Berlin...Kreuzberg where I've been living is much like the Mission in SF. Cafes, bars, 2nd hand shops and cheap food. Been living on shoarmas and kebabs and there is Turkish fast food shops on every corner. Sunday, Blaise, Ele and I went to two flea markets, good fun!
Leaving on Thursday for Munich to visit Sandra and Christian then on to Switzerland a few days later to see Benny and Ludger. Then some sun for a few
weeks in Portugal...
Flew EasyJet on Monday from Athens to Berlin. Blaise Station met me at the airport, we got the bus to Ele's flat then went out to find some beers
at a local Turkish fast food restaurant. Tuesday we headed to B's flat in Kreuzberg, dropped off my bags then walked around the block to a
rock'n'roll hostel/bar. Met a bunch of his mates there, a Brit, Simon, Molly, a girl from Oakland and assorted German characters including Chrissy.
Hooked up late afternoon with Charlie and eventually ended up at a Tuesday Punk Nite in a squatted bar. Got back home around 8:00 and crashed. Woke with the worst hangover imaginable at 3:30 and forced myself to go out for shopping so I could have breakfast. Found a bio market, bought eggs and bread and went back to the flat. Turned the key in the door and, oh fuck, it snapped off in the lock. Freaking, I waited 2 minutes, phoned Blaise, no answer. Texted him asking for, uh, help. Tried to turn the broken key and incredibly the door opened. Saved!! Chilled in the flat til B's
flatmate returned home, I let him in and explained what had happened. This morning he managed to get the broken key out of the lock and copied a new key for me. Finally feeling whole again, I went out, got coffee in a wifi cafe, did work on my laptop and bought brotwurst and beer for lunch at a supermarket. Met Blaise late afternoon, and went for some beers at Eskalibur, a record shop then more beer at Bull Bar. Made plans for the weekend...a barbecue Friday afternoon in the park and punk shows Friday and Saturday night...
Back in Chaloklum since December 23rd. Just bought out my business partner at 
After waking Wednesday morning and having breakfast in the lobby, I headed to Siam Square to get new simcards at MBK for my iphone and laptop's aircard. Sorted out the iphone straight away and got a local Thai number and activated Edge/gprs so I've got internet access on the phone, on prepaid. Sweet. Needed help activating the new sim for the laptop and went to Paragon's AIS office where the engineers gladly helped me update my Sierra Wireless aircard software and got the new sim connected to the internet. All this in the heavy haze of the worse case of jet lag I've ever experienced, hehe. Even managed to buy Zippo fluid and contact lens solution before heading back to my room to sleep. That evening I met up with Gee, my Thai friend and she, her boyfriend Duncan and I had drinks at a very cool hole in the wall bar 'Cheap Charlie's" on soi 11. Then we went to Santika, a posh disco club that was supposed to be having an indie night. Enroute, out taxi got pulled over by 'Bangkok's finest' and we were searched (for drugs, I suppose), the police using the upcoming election as an excuse for the search. We were soon back on our way to the club but no indie night so we left after one drink as the House music was so loud I could feel my chest vibrate. Ughhh. Gee and Duncan dropped me off at Si lom soi 4 and I had a beer at Telephone, did some people watching then had some Pad Thai at a street stall and chatted with a friendly Indian couple visiting from Delhi. Walked balk to my guesthouse and settled in for a good night of much needed sleep! This morning I'm getting the skytrain and river taxi to Banglamphu to collect my train ticket then do a bit of shopping before going to Panthip Plaza, Bangkok's most famous computer mall...
On Tuesday met Boozy Suzy at the Angel and helped her carry her bags to her new flat, and caught up on things since we left Thailand 3 months previous. Of course the obligatory pub crawl was involved and eventually Charlie paid us a visit. The EDIV. The following 4 days were a maddening blur or pubs, old friends...Sean, Steve, Christo, Anne...Camden and Portobello Road markets...beer...shopping...fish & chips...curry...beer. Saturday night, my last in Londontown, was at a street party at Mile End Place where several old friends own houses. Arranged to meet my old mate Easty there, who came with Jake Wako and Brian. Nikki was there and Maria and Anne, and Yiorgos. So good seeing everyone, especially my Liverpool mates and the old gang!! Time to head back to Trev's, pack and sleep before the flight to SF in the morning. Heathrow was buzzing, after the previous days attack at Glasgow airport. 2 hour flight delay. Here we go. Vodka Orange, and another. Red wine X 3. Sleep. San Francisco. BART to the Mission. 876 Val.
Home...
Friday, June 22, 2007
Serifos, oddly enough, has been an oasis of calm. The weather has been hot and sunny with only a few days of wind and my friends here have been suprisingly chilled although the high season is fast approaching. Staying in Hora, the old village atop the mountain, in a friend's traditional white-washed Greek house with a spectacular view of the village and the sea below. Taking walks to the beach, taking colour and spending most evenings at Stou Stratou, the cafe-bar next to the Town Hall and church. Tonight Gropee the Drunk Clown is making his Greek debut and we will shoot some video footage of Gropee walking through Hora and entertaining the Saturday night revellers at Strato's cafe...
Every bloody time I visit the Indian subcontinent, I get ill, guaranteed. This time I thought I'd beat the odds, feeling 100% my first week in India. Ha! My second week in McLeod Ganj, I (to put in bluntly) came down with the shits and after three days of frequent trips to the toilet decided to visit the chemist. Said chemist also doubles as a medical clinic and he prescribed rehydration salts - good - and an antibiotic containing high doses of both cyprofloaxcin and tinidazole - questionable. Prescription was for 5 days, 3 tabs a day. Almost immediately I started experiencing headaches, hypersensitivity of the skin, restlessness and insomnia. And developed a terribly itchy skin rash. On the third day of taking the tabs, I'd had enough and returned to the chemist and told him of the adverse reaction. I stopped the tabs and began taking an ayurvedic instead. The diarrhoea settled along with the other side effects except for the itchy rash. Went to see another doctor who put gave me antihistamines and calamine lotion to stop the itching and advised never to take cyprofloaxcin. After a few more days of itching and a more of the rash I went to the 
Back of the island! My motor bike, which I'd parked at the 7-11 in Thong Sala, was missing when I got off the boat so I rang Malee who had picked it up as someone had told her it had been abandoned there for several days. Arghh! I waited while she drove it over and I got the bike back and finally drove home to Chaloklum. The next night was the start of the huge Temple Party in town and crews were busy finishing off the stage, stocking the food stalls and setting up the market on the temple grounds next to my house. After showering and changing, I headed over to the Dive-Inn for a coffee and to see the gang. The next day was the Dive-Inn's third 'Snorkeling & Fishing' expedition to The National Marine Park (where the film, The Beach, was filmed) and Mark invited me along. Sweet!! That night met up with Net, Mou, John and Ish at the temple for dinner and a few beers then slept. We all met up in the morning at the Dive-Inn at 8am and we were off to the Marine Park for a glorious day of snorkeling & fishing...I caught 10 fish, mostly small ones, and the water was crystal clear while snorkeling. Schools of fish swam round me, we had lunch and beers onboard then returned back to Koh Phangan at 7pm, tired and exhausted but smiling!! 
Friday night, Gene's band 'Futon' had a gig at Astra so I got a taxi to RCA, one of Bangkok's main entertainment districts. Good chance to check out the space as the next night I would be going to Astra to clown 'Dude Sweet'. After a few tall Singha's at a street cafe, I ventured inside Astra, a two leveled club with bar, lounge and VIP area upstairs. Futon put on a very good show, with Gene, in a long skirt and spiky blonde hair, working the crowd and Simon, Suede's ex-drummer, on drums. Saturday, had my teeth cleaned at the dental clinic, did a bit of shopping at MBK and returned to New Merry V late afternoon to put on my clown makeup. The receptionists at the hotel loved Gropee the Clown as he turned in his key at the front desk and after one failed attempt I managed to flag a taxi to take me to RCA /Astra. The taxi driver and I laughed the entire drive across town and the stares from passers by psyched me up for my grand entrance. Walked through RCA, past numerous posh nightclubs, horn honking, Gropee took form and at Astra my name was on the guest list as Note had promised! Got a 'press' hand stamp, allowing me access to the press conference being held in the bar area of the club and Gropee the Drunk Clown was an instant hit!! I hit a heinekens for an initial buzz then Note invited me to join he and his friends at their open bar by the DJ booth for endless Sangsom whiskey cocktails. Astra was packed full, and the 'Frog' DJ's in from London for the night spun 80's, 90's and recent indie to a crowd that never stopped dancing. By 1am I was exhausted from drinking, dancing and the media attention (hehe!) so made my exit and suprisingly was able to get a taxi back to Banglamphu straight away. Back at the hotel showered and removed the makeup and slept. Sunday I checked out at noon and headed for the Chilling House 
Cafe for 'Free Style Hardcore, a 6 hour hardcore show of local underground Thai hardcore bands. The place was hot, no air-con, so hung outside on makeshift tables and chairs and chatted with T and a few of his friends, venturing inside when the bands were on. Did a video of the show, drank a few beers then at half five got the metro/stytrain to Hualamphong station to catch my 6:20 train to Surat Thani and Koh Phangan. Same train a the previous two times, with the disco dining carriage and Natalie, the ladyboy server, working the tables :) Met Marika, a French dive-master, Matt, an American tour guide, and we enjoyed the Tarantino-esque atmosphere of the train speeding south, disco blaring, fairy lights flashing, while smoking and drinking ice cold beers. 
The last weeks are a blur of Koh Phangan days and nights. Since returning from Bangkok I've been adopted by a Temple puppy who has now taken up residence at my house. Yiannis left for Chang Mai and is now traveing in Cambodia. We had a house-warming party at the house and I cooked Indian food for ten. Mark and Gaz turned up round midnight and we sat on the balcony listening to punk and watching the Dive-Inn videos til three. 
Met a very cool couple from Berlin, Blaise, a New Zealander and his German girlfriend Isla. Blaise is an old-school punk and we immediately clicked. Vague plans are in the air to pay them a visit in Berlin during the summer or have them visit San Francisco. 
Spent three mad crazy days in Bangkok...
The past week reaffirmed my feelings that Koh Phangan is like home to me. John and Ish, a Glaswegian couple I met 2 years ago returned and we spent a beautiful evening at their bungalow at Utopia where Ish cooked Indian food and we drank wine during sunset. We were six; Phil, a diving instructor who had had a serious motorbike accident last year was back, Mou, a british english teacher and bar wench, John, Ish, Yiannis and myself. Mark and Gaz left for Koh Tao, where Mark is doing his annual diving instructor thing and the Dive Inn is quiet while he's away. I painted two signs for the Revolution Cafe and proudly hung them on both the front entrance and seaside. Mou, a friend of hers and I had dinner at the new italian restaurant in Chaloklum, delicious homemade pasta and pizza. 
Depending on financial restraints, I may try and extend my trip an additional month and if so I will do a visa run to Penang in Malaysia in early march. Next week Mou and I will get the night train to Bangkok and Mou will continue to Cambodia for her visa run and I will spend a long weekend in Bangkok. I must complete the second phase of my dental treatment while there and will have a few days for shopping, nightlife and...sex. Dude Sweet, a monthly indie club I know from years ago is on so I'll have the chance to see a few people I met there in 2003 and see how the scene has progressed...
On Monday, Yiannis, Kam, Gaz and I went fishing all afternoon on a long-tail boat with one of the local fisherman. It was the Greek & American team against the Brits. I managed to catch 3 fish and Yiannis 14, slaughtering the Brits
easily. They, therefore, paid for the boat trip and we covered the beers. They bought fishing rods and we fished
with lines attached to empty plsatic water bottles, Thai-style. My back is still rather sunburnt after 5 hours out
in the burning Thai sun but hopefully within a few days it'll turn a golden brown. 
Today I designed a flyer for the party Mark, owner of The Dive Inn, and I are putting on next month on February 14th, Valentines Day. Mark is an old English punk and we're doing a punk rock night, Psycho Clownz, sponsored by The Dive Inn, Hedphuqers Chaloklum and The Drunk Clownz. So far we have 3 clownz, myself, Mark and Mo and I'll set up a make-up table at the party for those who want to become last minute clownz. 
All settled in the house. Borrowed a cool bamboo chair from Net for table in the main room. Yesterday I met Pong in Thong Sala and he helped me buy a second hand mobile/cell phone...1500 baht which is $35. So I now have a Thai phone
number...and my first mobile phone!! Last night was a "trance" party at Paradise Waterfall and Net and Mon wanted to check it out...and that gave me my first opportunity to go clowning in Thailand :) Lots of fun but kinda lonely being
the only clown in town. Check out the video...
Big shopping day yesterday in Thong Sala...kitchenware, staples, and veggies at the local market. The
house is coming together nicely and I'm already feeling completely at home. Yiannis and I had lunch
on Haad Salat and Salad Hut and coffee with Pong at Salad Hut 2, his new restaurant/bar across from the Reggae Village. Apparently I can buy a second hand mobile telephone in town for 1500 Baht so Pong and I are going to sort
it out this afternoon and get me a Thai telephone number. Pong and his wife Katis are thinking about turning
Salad Hut 2 into a steak house so I may give their cooks lessons in grilling steak and making sauces. Last night
I had dinner and a few beers at the Revolution Cafe and chatted with Net and Mon about going to a party this week
at Paradise waterfall. If in the mood I will clown the party with a Thai woman on each arm, hehe!!
Bangkok was all the rage. Yiannis arrived Sunday morning and we settled in at the New Merry V. The first
few days were a headrush: a maddening blur of markets, delicious food, shopping, and... drinking. I bought
new contact lenses, had a molar tooth extracted and had a composite put on my front tooth. I can smile comfortably now, hehe. On Wednesday we met up with Pascal and Stratos. More beautiful food, Yiannis and Stratos could speak
Greek together and Pascal and I caught up on times past and present. Had a funny night at the Shamrock Irish
Bar where Yiannis almost had a run in with a pimp for unknowingly insulting one of his girls. We visited the
National Museum and Bobe, the wholesale clothing market where we bought shirts and trousers for a couple of
dollars each. Bangkok is deliciously captivating and we savoured every moment. On Friday we made our goodbyes, Pascal
and Stratos flew back to Athens and Yiannis and I took the sleeper train to Surat Thani. We spent our time on the
train in the restaurant carriage, nicknamed the disco car, a scene straight out of a Tarantino film. Christmas lights
hung throughout the carriage, the waitress, a ladyboy, served us ice cold big Singhas and Yiannis and I befriended
Net, a Thai girl heading to Koh Phangan for the Full Moon Party. At the table next to ours sat 5 of the train
police whom we joked and shared cigarettes with. 
This morning I moved from the room I was renting from the priest to Loesje's house. I've stayed in this
house on numerous occasions, on the hill behind Pascal's house, and it feels like home. Stocked up the
kitchen with veggies, staples and bought a rack of lamb from the butcher in Livadi. Drove to Karavi beach during
the afternoon and took some sun. Tonight I plan to drive down the hill to Livadi and have a night on the
town, the first since arriving earlier in the week...
Upon arrival at Athens airport, my customary black attracted the interest of the local DEA but I was soon
on my way into the city on the newly completed metro. Spent the weekend in Thision (my old stomping ground)
at Sheila's and caught up with old friends in Monastiraki at the weekend market. Monday morning I got the
high speed ferry to Serifos and met up onboard with Nikolaki, Gerard and Vangelakis, all Serifos alumnai. Once
on the island I caught the bus up to Hora and headed straight to Stou Stratou where Stratos was just opening the
cafe for the day's trade. Pascal arrived shortly thereafter and after breakfast I checked in my room and unpacked.
As things worked out I would stay in the rented room for 5 nights then move to Loes's house for the remainder of
my stay - a nice suprise as normally the house would have been rented for the entire season. I arranged
with Pascal to use his internet connection daily (hooray!) and he and Stratos offered me one of their motorbikes
during my stay. In a matter of a few hours my two major concerns were put at rest, mobility and internet access,
and I settled into the routine of Serifos life. After three weeks in Barcelona and the craziness of Queeruption,
the tranquility of Serifos was a most welcome relief. Sleep came easily and I was soon lulled into the coocoon
of my old life on the Island.
Arrived in Barcelona weeks ago and this is the 1st chance I've had to update this blog. From day one, it's
been all go with the first weeks devoted to setting up the Queeruption 8 kitchen in the old squatted
artificial leather factoria. Queeruption, for those of you out of the loop, is an annual radical queer,
anarchist gathering bringing together diy workshops, art, performance, film, live bands, djs and parties (both
dance and sexxx). And the Q kitchen serves up 3 meals a day, all vegan and cooked by volunteers. I volunteered
to coordinate and organize the kitchen as I have years of restaurant and catering experience and the challenge
of cooking vegan for an entire week is always too good to pass by! My old friend Milo arrived On Monday
from Milwaukee and I invited him to share my sleeping room which I'd fitted with padlock, mattress, locker and desk.
A few days later he, along with another friend, were involved in an accident in the kitchen where his
feet got burnt and he chose to fly home early. The following day my Dutch friend Omar arrived with his
boyfriend Wells and they became my new roommates for the remainder of Q8.
Q8 began on Monday, May 30th, with a police seige of the building. Folx could leave but no one was allowed
to enter the premises and the street was blocked off by police on three sides. I was woken at 3am by
the sound of police sirens and by 6am the parking lot at one end of the street was filled with half-naked
queers blowing horns and banging drums. By noon the protest outside had grown to 100 people and was fast
turning into a street party. I was dreading the hour when my cigarettes would finish but by 3pm rumours were
circulating that a deal had been struck with the local council, the building's owner and the police. A
friend signed a paper taking responsibility that the gathering would not be a rave nor a mega-party and eventually
the police retreated and the doors were opened to allow in the kidz who had been waiting outside. I ventured
out for the first time in 24 hours to buy ciggies and beer and the gathering began a day late but with
renewed vigor!! 
On Wednesday I took the day off from the kitchen to focus on preparing the Men's Space of the Sex Party (with
seperate rooms for women, trans and several mixed spaces). We created a room with walls of black and blue artificial leather
scavenged from the factory and hung huge rolls
from the basement ceiling, one row black and one row blue. Clothing lockers were moved down from the
upstairs shower room (itself a potential porn movie set) to the men's space to create several smaller rooms and
I used spray paint to paint graffiti on the walls. The hanging neon lights were painted purple and red with
just enough light to see your prospective sex partner(s) and condoms were placed strategically around the room
to encourage safe sex. The party was a huge success and I had the honour of starting the action off in the men's
space with a Danish boy from Copenhagen. Soon after the room became a heaving pit of queer punk sexxx and I
spent most of the night entangled with numerous Spanish, French and ??? boys - occasionally taking a break to
join the alternative dance party happening simultaneously in the main hall. I eventually returned to my room
upstairs in the sleeping quarters after sunrise for a few hours of much needed sleep then returned after noon for
a coffee (and then more sex, still going strong in the play area). Bless those Spanish boys!!
Saturday was spent in an exhausting general meeting where the consequences of the action were explained in detail
and a consensus needed to be reached to decide how to proceed with Saturday night's big party. Immediate
eviction was a distinct possibility after the previous night's events and the right decisions needed to be made
to ensure the success of the party and avoid eviction. It was decided to proceed with the party but keep the
sound level to a minimum. Of course in reality the party could be heard from the street and it carried on into the
wee hours of Sunday morning.
The flight from Delhi to Paris was unevenful except for security in Delhi wanting to confiscate my trusty
Zippo lighter. In the end they had me remove the cotton inside the lighter and packaged it in a sealed envelope
for me to collect on arrival in Paris. Rather odd as the smoking room in Dubai airport was full of passengers
with lighters and I remember the days not long ago when you could still smoke aboard flights! I collected my bag
in Paris, and my Zippo, and tried phoning Laurent and Magali whom I arranged to stay with. No answer so I left
a message and got the bus to the RER station and the train to Aulnay Sous-Bois. I forgot to buy a phone card
at the airport (as I used my credit card to phone earlier) and when I tried to phone Laurent again the phone
booths at the station only took French telecartes, not credit cards. All the shops were closed so I found the
nearest bar and proceeded to ask the bartender (and the customers at the bar) if there was a telephone I could use.
Several of the patrons spoke bits of English and although there was no phone in the bar one of the customers let
me use his mobile phone to ring Laurent. The drinkers joked with me about America and fucking George B. (some things
easily cross the language barrier) and I felt very welcome - they even cheered when they asked me which ville I was from and I
told them San Francisco. They must have remembered how SF voted in the last election ;-) Magali picked me up soon
after and we drove back to their house where we caught up over a few beers and I had my first taste of French cheese
after too long an absence! Laurent informed me that they had DSL and a wireless router so I spent the next few
hours online catching up on email then crashed for the night. 
This morning I woke up with the sun shining and although it was chilly it was a pleasant change after Delhi's
sweltering 42 degree heat. After breakfast (more cheese!!) I had a shower then Laurent dropped me off at the
station to get a train into Paris. Bought a phone card at the post office then got the metro to Reuilly-Diderot
to visit my friend Corinne. We took a long walk, looking for a cafe/bar to have a drink outside in the sun, and
settled on a little place near Place Oberkampf across from a park. Co filled me in on all the Serifos news as she
had just returned two days earlier from the island and it was good to hear that everyone there was fine and that
there was a good crowd on the island for Greek Easter. Corinne left for her Greek lesson and I got the RER back to
Livry Gargan. Laurent collected me at the station and we had dinner in the back graden with Laurent's parents
who were visiting for their daughter's school dance fete. Magali cooked a delicious roast chicken, green beans with carrots and lardon
and Laurent's mother baked a wonderful 3 layered almond gateaux. And of course French wine! Vive la France!
Two weeks have passed since my last entry and although I felt ready to leave India after my illness all flights
were full so I resigned myself to staying in McLeod Ganj.
The Tibetan massage course occupied my next week and
gave me something to look forward to each day. I asked Dhondup, my massage therapist, about his website - the
link I had for it was broken - and he told me that it was a typographical error but that the site wasn't good.
I mentioned I did web design and if he liked I could make him a new website. I expected no payment and wanted
to do this to thank him for teaching me massage; he is extremely gifted and is generous with his skills. I
completed his website 
Each morning after my massage his wife would cook me breakfast and make chai, and we'd chat with
his Kashmiri neighbors who were clearing their spare room of debris to make a bedroom for their daughter.
Lovely people and I feel certain I'll remain friends with Dhondop; and of course when I return to India I'll
most definitely pay him a visit.
While visiting an internet shop with him, I was approached by an Indian gentleman, Anil, who owns an Indian Restaurant,
The Taste of India, with his wife Nisha. Nisha also offers Indian cooking classes and he was interested in making
a basic website for the cooking school. I told him I could do it and after negotiating a minimal price I began work on it.
He was terribly slow in getting me material for the site, kept pushing me to do more, and waited til the day I was leaving to
pay me for my work. Fortunately I was fond of his wife and learned a lot taking her cooking classes! 
Three days before leaving McLeod Ganj, Dhondup's upstairs neigbour asked if I could do a site for her husband's
Thanka painting school. A Thanka is a traditional Tibetan religious painting and Tashi runs a school teaching
thanka painting to newly arrived Tibetan refugees who lack the education or language skills to get work in India.
I reluctantly agreed to make him a website (my last 2 weeks felt more like working fulltime than holiday!!) but it
was for a good cause and Tashi offered to give me a Thanka in exchange for making the site. I did a photo shoot in his
school of he and his boys and he had a university student write copy for the site. Within two days I completed
his site, correcting and rewriting the site's text, scanning and optimizing the images and designing a logo. 
My days were full and often I was still in the internet shop until 10pm crouched over the computer :) During my
last week in town I met a Canadian lad called Ryan and we became fast friends. He'd been in Australia managing
restaurants in an island off of Cairns and hadn't been home to Toronto in 2 1/2 years - we did the Indian cooking course together
along with a German boy from Munich, Peter, and spent the last few nights hanging out in McLo's bar with Ryan's
English mate, Jim. My farewell night at McLo's involved an uncountable number of Kingfisher beers and the Saturday
afternnon I left we all did lunch at Mai Thai, a Thai restaurant at the bottom of Jogibara Road.
I've been in McLeod Ganj for one week now. The first few days were spent exploring the village, with its myriad
alleyways, temples, cafes, shops and lovely people. Yannis, my Greek friend and roommate for the week,
participated in a three day Tibetan Cooking Course (Tibetan momos, breads and soups). Evenings were spent drinking
beer at McLeod's Restaurant & Bar, overlooking the main bus stand and square. The village is mainly comprised
of a large Tibetan refugee community who followed the Dalai Lama on foot from Tibet to McLeod Ganj and is
the headquarters of his Tibetan government in exile. 
On day four, after spending 7 hours in an internet shop finishing off a job, I came down with a mild fever and headache.
The fever held for three days and I spent an entire day holed up in my room sleeping and sweating. The fever broke
yesterday, the headache started improving, and although both the fever and headache still come and go I think I'm
over the worst of it. Speaking with friends here, it's a common illness (un-named of course), and usually folks get
over it within a week. I expect to spend a few more days just taking things slow and easy, staying off the
alcohol, and reading. Friends have given my antibiotics and tell me all the local doctor will do is give you same,
so just let it run its course...ahhhh, India!! 
After a harrowing 15 hour journey from Delhi, we arrived in McLeod Ganj at 5:30 am. Maria, a Canadian girl I
met on the bus knew a guesthouse so she, Yannis and I walked over there and woke up the sleeping receptionist.
Yannis and I are sharing a double room as there was only was room available and Maria stayed with a friend already staying there.
Met Yannis on the bus, a Greek from Rethymnon, Crete, and we immediately got on well as I speak Greek - and somehow
we recognized some sort of common bond. He and I went out for coffee and cake for breakfast, then we both registered
for a Tibetan Cooking class held for three days. That begins this afternoon at 5pm and I'm really looking forward
to making momos!! Found an internet shop to connect my laptop to - works for some things but can't seem to access
some internet sites. Heading out for some lunch and to explore the town...
Flew into Delhi Friday morning at 6am and was met at Delhi airport by my taxi arranged online from the
Smyle Inn where I booked my first night. The driver, Patil, was friendly and he had matches in his minivan so I was
able to smoke on the drive into Paharganj. Checked into the Smyle Inn, basic rooms with fan and attached toilet and
shower and had a rest before venturing out into the streets of Paharganj, Delhi's old market area. Little has
changed here since my last visit 8 years ago: crowded, bustling streets with cows wandering aimlessly, vespas
zipping through the throngs, motor rickshaws piled with sodas and butane bottles, women dressed in colourful saris and
cycle rickshaws touting for riders. I left the hotel to find an ATM then had breakfast at a little cafe on
Main Bazaar. Hit three internet shops before I found one where I was allowed to plug in my laptop to the internet
then caught up on emails and did some research on my trip to Dharamsala. Took a nap in the afternoon then had dinner at
a small Indian cafe - a thali - potato and pea curry, dahl, raita, a papadom and naan bread. Found a bar on Main
Bazaar and ended up chatting with an Australian fellow from the Gold Coast who was in India on his own before
rejoining his wife in Kuala Lumpur to fly on to the UK. 
Tuesday night we had dinner at the Joke restaurant - Huge Grilled Prawns, Coconut Chicken soup, Laab and rice -
then walked back through Rambutri Village where we stopped on the street for some beers. Ran into Ron and Mike from
Chaloklam who joined us for more beers then I had an early night as I was reaching my limit of inebriation...
Friday afternoon Julie, Jess and I got a long-tail boat around the island to Thong Nai Pan, Haad Sadet and Haad
Khom - and I smothered my head with #50 sun cream after the previous days haircut at a local Chaloklum barber shop
where apparently 'short back and sides' means a skinhead with a number one on the top. Live and learn!!
Friday night we had a bit of a party for Canadian Ron and Mike's last night over at Fanta where DJs David hedphuquer
and Simon hedphuquer manned the decks and spit out music ranging from the Undertones to...geez, who the fuck knows!
Began cooking at home around 2pm (as cooking a dinner for 12 on a single gas burner takes a bit of time and effort!) -
and interspersed cooking with burning David and Simon 8 CDs of music mp3s. Gotta share the music and the love!!
Everything went superbly...except for transporting said dinner on the back of a motorbike to Simon's pad!! Lost
a bit of red wine sauce enroute but everything else survived handsomely. Simon, Malee and her brother turned up 1st,
followed by Jess and Julie, Simon, David, Fern, Lynn, Mon and It. Served fresh prawns in a white wine, garlic and shallot
sauce as an appetizer followed by coq au vin, sliced grilled pork steak in mushroom cream sauce and garlic mashed
potatoes. And everyone consumed a fair share of beer, wine, and...more. A lovely chilled evening in a most
beautiful place. Thanks kidz!
Sunday night was Jess, Julie and my actual last night and we met David, Simon, Ra, Sally and Werner at the Revolution Cafe for
dinner and drinks. We had a table of 8 and there was another table of 8 Thai men - so the cafe was full and the
vibe was jumping! Good food, good beer and good conversation, a most pleasant way to end my time in Koh Phangan
for 2005. And I now feel privileged and blessed to have made two very good friends in David and Simon (long live
hedphuquers chaloklam!!)
DJ'ing tonight at a party for Jim, one of the instructors at the Dive Inn. David, Simon and myself
(Hedphuquers Chaloklum) resent: Later Jim, The Farewell Party! Cafe del Mar, Chaloklum Beach. 9pm-???
Spinning Punk, No-wAvE, Fuck Rock - No Psy policy! - Punks Not Bombs ;-)
On Monday evening, while hanging at the Revolution Cafe, I met a bloke called David, an Irishman who is a
dive instructor at The Dive Inn, Chalok Lum's local dive bar and diving center. I've avoided the Dive Inn on
previous stays in Chalok Lum as it had an air of clique-iness that had always put me off. David had lived in
San Francisco, was obsessive about music and was straight but queer-friendly - to the point of having done drag
at TrannyShack while in SF. We got on really well and made plans to meet up upon his return from Cambodia,
where he was off to for a few days on a visa run.
Settled in nicely in Chalok Lum after an initial stressful day dealing with an insect infestation on the bungalow's
balcony and having to pay for a replacement gas bottle for my cooker which will last for 6 months. Lucky
future tenants. Nothing is ever perfect even in Paradise...
Today I had email from 
Bangkok was Bangkok. Home, or so it seemed. Checked into New Merry V as usual, and spent the day organizing
my visa to India (left my passport at the travel agency in New Merry V as it takes 5 days to process an Indian visa),
and getting the needed immunizations for India (Hepatitis A, Meningitis and Tetanus. Typhoid unneccessary as
apparently I'm now immune after last years bout with Typhoid Fever while in Cambodia).
Saturday night the queeruption gang met at 7pm for drinks at the Townie. Met a cute shaved-headed lad Joe,
a friend of Manky's who apparently had a thing for bondage. After a few rounds, we
decided to move on to the Impy in Erskinville. Nassim restrained young Joe by tieing him to the exit doors
with the elastic straps leftover from the no-sex bands at the sex party. We tested his boundaries in this
public space and I spended much of the night making out with him. Hot ;-)
On Sunday, Violet suggested we do a fasionista subversion anti-glamour fashion show at the Sydney Opera House.
After moving my bags from Fleur's house to Central Station I returned to Manky's to prepare for the Fashion
show. Manky, Norrie and Violet chose costumes and I volunteered to photograph the proceedings. We got the bus
to Circular Quay and joined the throng of tourists heading to the Opera House. After spreading out the clothes
on the Opera House steps, the models started dressing for the action. For two hours I photographed Violet, Manky
and Norrie in various states of dress (and undress) and quite a crowd gathered to view the queer happenings.
I filmed several short videos and a gallery worth of still; we then decided to return to Newtown and get ready
for the evening. I decided to miss out on a farewell house party in St Peters and after uploading all the
photos to the queeruption website I walked to Kings Cross for Kooky, a mixed/queer night club held every Sunday night.
Hung with a few friends, drank a few beers, had a dance then walked back to Darlinghurst to get some rest before
my flight to Saigon.
After a lazy day wandering the streets of Newtown, Cotton drove Thomas and I out to Bondi Beach. We had a
truly Australian evening picnic on a grassy knoll off the beach: kangaroo steak sandwiches, vegemite biscuits
and tim tams - the locals, no doubt, would cringe in horror at the thought of eating their national symbol.
Cotton informed me my look was feral, apparently wild or savage. I had to grin in glee...
Saturday was Mardi Gras, Sydney's massive gay parade. Several queeruptors, myself included, discussed plans
to stage some sort of political action at the parade but as the weekend approached no one seemed to have the
energy to organize anything substantial. A group of us met at 1pm in Darlinghurst at N's house - E. and I
designed flyers a few days earlier and the group spent the afternoon cutting up the flyers, drinking coffee and beer
and fooling about. Rob arrived from Melbourne with his housemate Sebastien, a cute 18 year old queer punk boy.
Nathanwe's friend Storm dropped in from up North - and we all got on really well. He has an eerie resemblance to Ron Apple,
and I couldn't help thinking I had Ronnie back for the day. Bizarre.
Wednesday I did the obligatory Sydney tourist wanderings - the Opera House, The Rocks and the Botanical Garden.
Tuesday I got the ferry to Watson's Bay and spent the afternoon on Lady Jane Beach, one of Sydney's two nude beaches.
Tuesday night met for drinks at the Townie with some friends to discuss the planned Mardi Grad day action.
Arrived at the Regent St. venue at 10am which had been squatted the night before. I was let in by the info group,
who unlocked and then locked the chained padlock. The building was an old club, on two levels, with huge
windows looking out onto Regent St. Most of the necessary equipment had already been taken in and we
began the task of cleaning the kitchen - sweeping, mopping, and filling the shelves with food for the week. After
about 2 hours, I heard loud voices from downstairs - the owner's son had turned up and he and N. were having a scuffle.
Everyone headed down in a show of force and my first sight was the son breaking a broomsick in half and swinging
in toward anyone within reaching distance. We tried negotiating, explaining we would be gone within a week but
he refused to listen. His father, an old-school Greek, and the police soon arrived and threatened to have everyone
arrested. We agreed to leave voluntarily and everyone began the task of emptying the building of everything
we brought with us. E. and I talked with the father, me in Greek, and aplogized for the inconvenience - in the
hope he might agree to let us use the venue. No go. Apparently the police insisted the place remain vacant due to
previous drug-related crime and a recent murder in the basement. Eventually everything was out on the pavement and we made
plans to squat the second venue that night. A meeting was held in a local park and it was agreed a handfull of people
would enter the new venue that night in Homebush.
We met en masse the following morning at Homebush train station and
the group walked the 5 minutes to the Midnight Star, an old theatre that had been recently squatted for a New
Year's Eve party. This venue, however, had no electricity or running water and we all entered and met upstairs for
a planning meeting. We toured the theatre, locating possible exits and discussed the plan if the police were to arrive
and split into groups to talk about specifics such as unarrestables and internationals, security and holding down the
squat. After an hour, I decided to leave and get to the internet shop to update the website - I was feeling insecure
as I was uncomfortable inside the building in the dark - and felt I would be more useful on the outside. I phoned
the queeruption mobile in the afternoon and learned the police were at the venue and negotiations were underway to
allow the unarrestables to leave. After another couple of hours it was decided to leave the building, the second
evistion in two days. We met that evening at Alpha House to access our options and agreed to move the gathering
to The Nunnery, an old big house, in Newtown. 
On Friday, 
My first shag of the week was on Friday night - with a lovely, intelligent queer punk boy, 20, from Adelaide.
J. was tall, blonde and lanky and we had a night of hot punxxx sexxx in legokid's
laundry where I have been living since arriving in Sydney. Thanx J!! Queeruption ended on Wednesday the 23rd - quite a
successful queeruption in spite of the two failed squatting actions and on Friday we met again at Alpha house
for a debriefing and potluck dinner. I've made some wonderful friends and met some brilliant people - and although
this was probably one of the smalled queeruption gatherings, it was one of the most memorable...
The Seatran Express boat got me into Surat Thani in record time - took a few pics aboard the speedboat and next thing I
knew we had arrived at he harbour.
The minibus drove us to the train station and after a simple lunch and coffee it was
time to board the train to Bangkok. Soon after departure the smokers made their way to the smoking area: the doorway
between train cars. The next few hours were spent hanging out with new-found train friends: Cherene and Mort, a
New Zealand/Norwegien couple, Jason, from Wales and an assorted group from Germany, France and Italy. We smoked,
drank beers and got to know each other only as one does while riding the trains.
Everyone crashed out around 10pm and
the valium lulled me into a deep sleep, waking just a few minutes before our arrival in Hualamphong, Bangkok's
central station. Cherene and Mort needed a hotel for the day as their flight wasn't til midnight so we got a taxi
together to Banglamphoo and checked in the New Merry V, my regulat guesthouse. Splurged for their top aircon, hot-water room
($12, feeling like treating myself to a bit of luxury before my flight tomorrow to Sydney :-)
Had breakfast at
Ricky's Coffee Shop next to the guesthouse with C & M then took a stoll before returning to my room where I now sit
in air-conditioned comfort...
February! What a splendid day out on Pong's longtail boat - we cruised from Haat Salat round 11am and made our way to Bottle
Beach, a cove reachable only by boat or by hiking a trail throught the jungle. Scott and Sabine rented snorkeling
gear and explored the rocky coastline while I topped up my tan on the beach and swam. Pong hung at the restauarant
with his daughter Maya and some of the Swedes who came along on the boat trip and I had a simple lunch of friend
rice and squid and washed it all down with a large bottle of ice cold Singa beer. While wading out to sea I was
astounded yet again by how lucky I am to be in southern Thailand and with my charmed existence. Live for today!
Yesterday, Scott and Sabine arrived on Koh Phangan after trekking upcountry in the North for a week. Scott
and I first talked about meeting up in Thailand a couple of years ago when I was working regularly at The Great American
Music Hall in San Francisco where he bartends. He's a good friend, a very talented singer-songwriter and I helped him
design his websites when we first met. It's always good fun when plans in the making come to fruition and I was
excited that they were finally putting the plan into action and visiting Koh Phangan. I met their speedboat at the pier in
Thong Sala and accompanied them to the bungalow they booked while on the boat. Scott rented a motorbike and we drove
to the north of the island, stopping off at my house and then to several beaches which I thought they might prefer
staying at. We had lunch at the Seaside restaurant and then they booked a bungalow for the next day in Chalok Lum,
within walking distance of the fishing village and my local haunts in the town. We then headed over to Haad Salat and
I introduced them to Pong and Katarina at Salad Hut, who arrived from Stockholm a few days earlier with their daughters Maya, 3, and
Zora, 5 weeks old. Pong is making a trip to Bottle Beach tomorrrow on his boat and we arranged to join him for an
afternoon of swimming and snorkeling. We then had ice coffees and shakes on the beach during sunset then drove back
to Scott and Sabine's bungalow where we had a few ice cold Singha's. End of beautiful day.
This morning I helped them move to Chalok Lum then later this afternoon it's beachtime then dinner by the sea...
Am I looking suave, tanned and cool in my in my Thai fisherman trousers at home or what, hehe?!
Drinking coffee and listening to X-Ray Spex's Germ Free Adolescents. Had my first thai massage of the year on Haat Salat then
late yesterday afternoon Ali, Bishop, Andrew and Rose called round the house on their motorbikes, giving me the opportunity to entertain friends for the first time at my bungalow.
After a round of Singha beers we drove into Chalok Lum town for appetizers at the bar with no name (which I've nick-named
'Revolution Cafe') after the poster of Che hanging above the fridge. The cafe sits directly on the beach and is one of the
few cafes frequented by farangs and locals alike. I ordered for everyone: seafood tempura, fried cashew nuts,
thai fishcakes, yam seafood (a spicy thai salad) and a plate of the largest fresh prawns I've ever had the
pleasure of eating. Three young Thai children played on the beach, trying to set free one of the long-tail
boats, and the smallest of the three got a mild beating with a branch by his grandmother. After our snacks we drove over
to Seaside restaurant for a dinner of fresh shark, red snapper and assorted pad thais and curries. 
A glorious day. A simple lunch of pad thai on Haad Salat and an hour on the beach priming my still-pale
skin for the deep dark tan soon to come. A couple of hours back at the bungalow relaxing to The
Essential Clash on DVD and reading Let Fury Have The Hour.
Then a sunset dinner of barbequed Red Snapper and rice washed down with a large Singha beer. Nothing less than
exceptional! 7pm, back at home now, another Singha and a lay in the