The new year finds us in Thailand and boy are we having a lot of fun. I hope you enjoyed our guest blogger, Dan. Our friends Dan and Angie, a.k.a. Dangie have been on the boat for a couple of months and Dan volunteered to do a guest blog spot. His writing is far more creative and interesting than mine but I did have to ground him from video games to get him motivated to finish his work. Zack thought that was great because it is his standard punishment for under performance at school and he was glad that someone else was on the hot seat for a while.

We decided to not check into Thailand until we reached Au Chalong which is the major check in point. We have read that as long as you make it from Malaysia to Au Chalong in about a week it is not a problem to wait to do customs and immigration. It worked for us and all of our friends, no issues. It did however mean that we had to rush through some very beautiful islands that we would have liked to spend more time exploring. Our first stop was Koh Lipe, a small island that is a tourist mecca. We anchored on the north-west side with a few other boats. There was a small beach where we were able to take the dinghy ashore and lock it to a tree. A short walk and we were on the other side of the island in the main tourist area. The island is super laid back and there were lots of small shops and restaurants. It has a funky sort of vibe and lots of ex-pats were about. We were able to find an ATM and get some baht (local currency) and we had a nice swim on the beach, but the snorkeling was not great. We stopped at a small shack on the beach and had some delicious curry. Food is cheap and tasty here in Thailand and we expect to be eating out a lot! We had a snorkel on the other side of the island where we were anchored and it was nice, but a bit disappointing. The water is warm but there was limited coral. The were lots of giant clams and we did see a moray eel but that was about it, not a lot of fish life.

Our next stop was Koh Rok, which is a national park. A lot of the small islands are national parks. The purpose seems to be revenue based, because they charge everyone a fee to be in the park but the park boundaries are not large and the local fishermen are all lined up on the edge of the no fishing zones with nets. The zones are not big enough to have an impact on preserving fish life. The local guides also anchor on top of the coral they have brought the tourists to see, so all in all not a healthy underwater environment. Koh Rok is a small island and all of the anchorages that we have been in lately have been super rolly, so we are all a bit sleep deprived. We picked up a mooring on the north side thinking it would be calm for the night. It was calm until dark and then the wind shifted and it was worse than being at sea on a rough night. Zack can sleep through anything but the rest of us are getting tired and poor Angie is not sleeping at all. We were with our friends Will and Karen on Chanty and it was Karen's birthday so we all went in for dinner at the beach cafe. Small island in the middle of nowhere so we were not expecting much. It was great! Lots of choices on the menu and the food was really good. Zack was so impressed with his meal that he has decided he will write restaurant reviews of every place where we eat as his project for Thailand. We moved the boat around to the south side of the island and spent two days here playing on the beach and snorkeling.

We heard Dream Maker and Allure on the radio and decided to all meet up in Koh Phi Phi Le. Koh Phi Phi Le is a fantastically beautiful bay carved into the rock karsts of the island. The cliffs tower above the bay and is is quite dramatic. It is also where the movie "The Beach" was filmed. It is a must see on any Southern Thailand tour and it made Jost look like the sleepy little island that it used to be. The beach was wall to wall power boats and the local small tourist pangas were swarming in and out at top speed. The beach was a mob scene of scantily dressed westerners. Not really our scene but what the heck. We were lucky enough to pick up a mooring, however dodgy it was . With all the crazy boat traffic we were hesitant to go for a swim. We launched Zack's kayak and he was going to paddle by us as we snorkeled so we could be seen. We were slow getting ready so he paddled over to Allure where he ended up staying to hang with his mates George and Luke. Angie volunteered for kayak duty and we were off to snorkel. No coral but lots of small fish and some cool rock formations to swim through. The water temperature is perfect and we were in for hours. We met the other boats on one of the smaller not crowded beaches to play and catch up. Zack went to Dream Maker to watch a Christmas movie but the rest of us were just too tired so we crashed. Jason woke us all up when he dropped Zack off at 10pm. He's a turkey.

We left early for Au Chalong, the main check-in point for all yachts coming to Thailand. It is one stop shopping with all the offices in one building on the main pier. The anchorage is big and commercial with lots of boat traffic and not great holding. We have read bad things about leaving a dinghy here and that theft is an issue. The dock is in horrible shape and there is sharp metal everywhere so you don;t want to tie up. Most cruisers actually pull their dinghy onto the concrete floating dock which is what we ended up doing as well. It is the only way to keep it from bashing against sharp edges and it allows you to get close enough to a pole to lock it, not great. The town is pretty cool and has a laid back vibe although it is a main town and quite busy. After checking in, a relatively easy process, we decided to get something to eat and find some groceries. We took a left off the pier and found a great little restaurant near the corner. All the food was cheap and delicious, I had a red curry that was perfect. We went in search of the grocery store which was a fair walk. we found it but the produce was all old and it didn't look like we would be able to stock up. We found some boater friends there and they told us that the pharmacy that we passed along the way was actually a huge store with a small frontage. We headed back to see what we could see. The front of the store was small, air conditioned, and clean but did not have lots on offer. You cross into the back and it is a much more local scene. There is no air conditioning and the smell makes you wonder if it is safe to continue. Being the intrepid travelers that we are, or perhaps we are just desensitized to filthy food markets, we carried on in. It was more of a bulk package store. and it was gross but it was our only option. The produce was well picked over but we did find enough to keep us going and we did find some good buys on packaged goods. There was a large meat section to one side and I suspect that is where most of the smell was coming from. The meat was displayed on large wooden tables with boards to section of the different cuts. It was all unwrapped and open air. The floor was covered in chicken and meat drippings making it difficult to get close without stepping in a puddle of chicken ooze. I didn't even try. This could also be the source of the multitudes of cockroaches crawling around the store. We scrubbed and washed down everything back at the boat and got rid of all the packaging immediately. It was cheap but not worth the risk of infesting the boat with roaches which thankfully we have avoided so far. We found out the next day that if we had turned right there was a super fancy, albeit super expensive, although super clean, grocery store even closer to the anchorage. We went and it has every product you could ever want, it also has boutique prices.

Friends on Psycho Puss had been in Au Chalong for about a week and had rented a car. Heather volunteered to drive Marie, Wendy and myself around so we could finish our Christmas shopping. The first mall was all fancy name brand shops, but also had a huge and clean grocery store. The second mall was more normal stuff and we were able to get all our shopping done. It also had a huge and clean grocery store. We couldn't help ourselves and loaded up some trolleys with all sorts of good groceries. Prices are very reasonable especially for produce. Unfortunately it is a fair distance from the anchorage and not possible to walk.

The group decided to go around to Nai Harn Bay for Christmas. So we all headed out for a 3 mile hop around to one of our now favorite spots in Thailand. The bay is fairly well protected and best of all no jet skis. Not really best of all because there was a decent surf wave that we spent days on. Zack and I spent most of the first day baking Christmas cookies. We had some of his friends over to decorate cookies and that was lots of fun. Then David, Dan and Zack went in to surf. Zack was stoked! He has been looking for a surf beach since Bali and I am not sure we will be leaving Nai Harn any time soon! It's a good thing we have made some ornaments and Christmas crafts already because I don't think he would be interested for long with the wave crashing in the distance.

We had a delightful Christmas morning on the boat with Dan and Angie. Zack was super happy with all his loot. After a late breakfast all the kids got together for games on the back of Dream Maker. Melia on Per Ardua gave them a list of challenges to complete and they were at it for hours, swimming, kayaking and paddle boarding around the boats. It was good because while they played we all cooked up a feast for the afternoon beach party. I roasted a turkey that has been in the freezer for over a year. I had gotten it for Thanksgiving the year before in Australia but had never actually cooked it. It was time. It came out fine so all good. The beach party was great with lots of boats turning up. The landing onto the beach was insane with crashing waves. We got soaked and so did some others but no injuries, and everyone kept the food dry. It was a huge and delicious feast with lots of traditional and non traditional food. Even the vegetarians had a feast. I had been rallying all the boats to have a Yankee Gift Swap so naturally I got put in charge. The issue was that not all the boats in attendance had received the memo. So only some boats had brought in presents and not all the presents had been geared towards children. We put all the children in a circle and had to choose 7 adults to fill out the game. Usually in a Yankee Gift Swap you get to open the present you choose but we decided to put a new spin on the game. You had to choose your gift then before you opened it you had to choose whether or not you would swap with a person before you. It was a good twist and added some excitement . Some of the younger kids had never played a swap before and the pack of Ferrero Roucheurs kept getting stolen. Indie was a bit disappointed when Luke stole them and then Tayah stole them from Luke, but Carlos, Indies dad, stole them back. He then shared them to all the kids who had gotten dodgy gifts. Dan stole a tooth brush from Liam but I think Liam was happy with his swap. Zack knew to choose a box of jelly candies that we had brought but he got swapped and ended up with a toy boat that he broke when he was trying to open the wrapping. He was bumming but only for a minute because it was too much fun. Shayla shared the Kit-Kat bars she had gotten and Luke shared the durian candies he had been swapped. The durian candies were my attempt at a joke gift and it worked because they were disgusting. The swap was deemed a success and it was good entertainment for the rest of the group. Zack had brought in a couple of fireworks that he wanted to set off. They had gotten wet on the landing and we feared they were ruined. David took them out to some rocks and lit the first on off. It went up with a bang and was a crowd pleaser. The second one did not go off on the first try but David relit it and it went off with a boom. It is crazy the caliber of fireworks you can buy here. Zack had found these in the pharmacy store and they were even cheaper than in Indonesia. They are smaller versions of the real thing and put on a good show, at about $3 each. Zack spends most of his pocket money on fireworks these days. Christmas - Grand success!

The beach at Nai Harn Bay is a kilometer of perfect white sand with a sometimes very decent surf wave rolling in. It is Christmas/New Years so the beach is packed with tourist families. It is a very diverse mix of people from lots of countries speaking lots of languages. The one common trait seems to be lack of understanding of how much damage a surf board to the head will cause. We have been going in early to surf, before the beach gets crowded. We stake out a small spot and go for it. Zack is good and can steer around people. I however need a clear mile so I can avoid killing others. The issue is that although there is plenty of room for everyone, and designated swim areas, people invariably want to stand directly in front of the surfers. It's a short wave and you land right on the beach so it gets dangerous, especially when people do the deer in the headlights thing as you careen towards them on a very solid surfboard. They also get upset when they get hit. Kuta Beach, Bali was perfect for surfing because it was full of tossers expecting full well to get hit a few times a day, not so much here. It also does not matter if you move because the fools just follow you. So run them down is the only option. I got one in the legs, Jason yardsailed on some poor guy and George got a good lecture from an Aussie for almost hitting his daughter. Not so bad for 4 days of good surfing. We did spend a fair bit of time on the boogie boards when it was just too busy to surf. In 4 days of surfing Zack has made some big improvements to his style, especially because he had Dan to impress. I am still a hopeless tosser. Zack's buddy, George, got into the surfing on his foamy board and I think Allure will be looking for a decent board for him because he really got into it and was catching some great rides. Dan was even able to get out a few days and catch some waves. He showed us what amateurs we really are. Sadly Dan and Angie have left Flour Girl and headed out on their own to see some more of Thailand before they go back to the real world of jobs mid January. It was lots of fun having them and we are going to miss them a lot! One thing to mention for any one following us: there is a dock called Pier 93 located at the yacht club in Nai Harn bay. You can tie your dinghy up for 300 baht and redeem the receipt at the bar. While we were there 3 dinghies went missing, unfortunately on of them was Allure's. All over Thailand, lock it or lose it.

Our last day in Nai Harn we went on a little bus trip. Jason had arranged a taxi for us, Allure and Per Ardua. We were going to the snake show. He had seen one years ago in Thailand and wanted us to experience it. OK. The place we went also did elephant trekking and a monkey show. It was not a great place and I really did not want to support that type of business but we were there and Zack was all about it so what can you do. Thailand is not big on animal rights and a lot of it is pretty sad. The snake show started with everyone having their picture taken with a python. Zack rocked up no problem, big smiles. Me, not going to happen. All the kids went in for a photo, so cool. The show was basically one guy messing with a few types of snakes and another guy telling you about the snakes. I was not so impressed but the kids all learned something and thought the show was great. Next up Jason wants to go to the gun range to shoot guns. OK. The taxi driver took us to one he thought was safe. It was well run and strong on safety but expensive. Not sure the driver doesn't get kickbacks, but whatever he was taking good care of us. George and Luke wanted to shoot .22 hand guns which after a bit of coercing they were allowed to . Zack wanted to as well but he was told he could only shoot a BB gun because he was too young. He is a fair bit smaller than the Allure boys but only a year younger. I stood up for him and they agreed that he could shoot a .22 rifle. Well he was pretty keen. The little shit sat down and hit the target 9 shots out of 10 with one almost a bulls eye! He was glowing he was so proud. His score was a 70%. I hope he doesn't become a sniper because he has some talent there. It was and expensive 10 minutes but he was stoked so I guess it was worth it!

Ao Patong is a famous bay in Southern Thailand. Famous for being a place of ill repute and basic craziness. We were warned but headed there for New Years Eve anyway. The bay is huge and we anchored in a group away from the ferries and other boat traffic. Did not matter, the jet skis found us. They tend to use the boats as a slalom course. It's not fun and we some times throw rotten fruit. We did not go ashore. Dream Maker invited everyone over for a party and so we all had a nice time away from the chaos on shore. The kids had a rave party in the main saloon, blasting punk music and dancing up a storm. Poor Zack has my sense of rythem but he still got into it. We spent the night watching random fireworks all over the beach and making sure none of the floating lanterns landed on the boats. There were thousands of lanterns floating over head. Not sure the symbolism behind the lanterns but it's a big thing here to light a tissue paper lantern and let it float out to sea. There was a good breeze so they mostly made it past the boats, a few crashers but only in the water. At midnight the sky erupted. It wasn't quite Sydney but it was awesome! It was chaos, with fireworks going off along the entire beach for at least an hour. Fireworks are cheap here and the display was huge and everywhere. As the fireworks were going off the kids counted down to the new year and then all jumped off the front of the boat together as the adults toasted and kissed and hugged each other into the new year. I don't think Zack will be forgetting this new year for a while.

Thank you for your patience in reading this. One of my New Years resolutions is to not let the blog get so far behind!!