From base to base via Paradise.

Once Christina arrived, we left our temporary home in paradise and exchanged stability in the tropics for life on the road again. We visited some utterly beautiful islands near Ko Phi Phi Don and ended up in Raieley.

In Raieley we got busy with some rick climbing, and enjoyed some of the most beautiful beaches in Thailand [if not the world] I've ever had the pleasure of seeing.

Raieley was quite small, very quite, and after a day or so we went onwards to Ao Nang, a beach town back on the "main land". It had a bustleing vibe to it, and it was strange seeing cards on a road again... after just two weeks you get really used to not seeing traffic anymore.

Ao Nang had an annoying/pestering attitude to it, people would never just let you walk down the street un-approached; to look at their hotel, or to look at their menu.

While I was in Ao Nang my birthday came and past, and to celebrate we went on a kayak trip to some limestone cliff march lands and visit some ancient cave paintings. 

The kayak trip was great, and in the evenings we stayed in an extremely luxurious hotel that I had managed to get at a crazy steal of a price... for those of you who have never tried this: here is a tip.

When it's low season in the place you are visiting, look at the most expensive hotels first, and ask them if they would make a deal at the budget you can afford. They already had their prices cut 50% and they cut it down a further 66% from that already reduced price to meet our budget! Absolutely a steal. It was nice to get some comfort for my birthday, and Laura treated me exceptionally well [not that she doesn't treat me well every day, I am continually spoiled in life, life is good these days].

From here though we parted ways for about a week. Laura and Christina took off to Chang Mai on their own, and I decided to stay put in Ao Nang while they had some time together. It was odd being alone suddenly, and Thai people really do speak so little English, it's that instant "lost in translation" feeling.

I had some work to do, but not much, and in general I just felt down this week. The last days with Christina and Laura, with all of our traveling, were somehow not easy for me. I never managed to feel fully comfortable, and frequently felt on edge. Now alone and isolated for the week, it didn't make things better, but it did bring some distance and therefore observation to the entire subject. It's funny to be reminded sometimes how when things are really "perfect" and you are in supposedly paradise, it's those exact same times when life can seem so difficult, in your own head. Maybe as human's we can't deal with perfection and seek in those times to hunt for growth in new areas. If the external world seems stable, we turn within, and the sturing for perpetual growth continues; as it does and has done, in undulating waves, unending, continual.

Back to the beach... the best part of this whole week was probably a glorious moment with the sunset, and my mothers birthday. On her birthday we stayed connected on skype for many hours, talking, playing games, and just hanging out. It really kind of felt like I was with her for that day after so many hours of staying connected.

Otherwise I got deeply into game addiction, which is always a mixed-experience. This time with a collectable card game for the iPhone. I can tell you its a good game, but that also makes it a very bad one; its been many months of addiction and only now [weeks after this time in Ao Nang] shows real signs of wavering back to normality.

Towards the end of the week, Laura contacted me with an urgency. Christina and her had been robbed. Laura lost her bank card... so I spent the last couple of days there just running around places trying to find out how to wire money, and failing miserably at my quest as every door I tried seemed closed. Fortunately she got just enough money lent to her, and a hotel bed that she could postpone payment on.

Originally we were going to meet either back in Ao Nang or on an island half way between Ao Nang and Bangkok, but given the new situation, I bought a plane ticket to fly to Bangkok ASAP instead.

That Monday I left on my plane, got to Bangkok that day and was greeted by my love in open fully loving embrace again. It's amazing what just a week apart will do when you are close to someone. We we're both so happy to see each other, and life now turned to new questions... should we settle now in one place and stop the perpetual traveling? Is Bangkok the right place to do so?