Holiday Villa Beach Resort & Spa Langkawi

... ferry passenger.<br>So, I arrived on the island (which is massive, by the way), grabbed a map (with no guest houses mapped on it), asked three people about Guest house locations (I make a general rule to ask at least two), and got a taxi (the only form of transport left) to the Gecco Guest house. Luckily there was a bed free (although there were more guest houses nearby (another general rule I go for (apologies for the wealth of brackets, and brackets in brackets, by the way ...

... twelve hours on the freezing train was brutal. But it was pretty funny to see everyone whine and try to find a way to warm up. My friend Kunal actually took all of the headrest covers and attempted to make a blanket of them - epic fail (don't worry, I took a picture). We arrived in Kuala Lumpur around six in the morning and hopped into cabs to get a ride to the bus station. We had about fifteen minutes to get breakfast before we had to be on the buses ...

... He didn't even bat an eyelid. True extravagant indulgence... With a private balcony, luxurious and roomy suite, with first class view on top of the water overlooking the endless stretch of sea before us, beautiful and unobstructed view of sunrise and sunset right before our eyes, this should be considered one of the best in Malaysia. <br><br>Apart from exploring the resort and taking some great shots, we booked a few tours to explore ...

... cheap. Many more to come. After breakfast we headed down to the beach for a swim and before catching up with Michele (thanks Donna and Mum for organising). This was the first of several lovely meals that we were not allowed to pay for, and the begining of two days of Hospitality and entertainment that made us feel right at home. Michelle is a Yacht Broker, which allowed Hamish to recindle old dreams and in the afternoon Michele took us to the ...

... and on one particular night we visited our newly found friend Thon (The Bob Marley of Lipe) who had a restaurant inland on the main drag. We purchased some fresh prawns and asked him to cook them in a Penang Curry, it turned out to be one our best meals so far on our trip. After a few too many Chang's we had a little sing song with a group of the locals ate some crab and threw up (whether it was the crab or the drink who knows? Probably ...

... as we arrived overland, not by air :( This means we've got to make a detour into Burma to get another two weeks. Lots of accomodation was full so we got the first free bungalow. It is minging but has a certain decaying charm, first place without a flushing lavvy, EEK. Dumped our stuff and straight for our first Thai pad thai. Then to the whitesands and sunbathing with several Chang beers. Finished the day with curries and Changs in a beach bar. Day 2, Realised that we are an hour ...

... I guess this is progress, but it seems such a shame that the local people don't have a say in the matter and are simple told to move on. It is a nice place, but it was allot nicer last year apparently. We are parting ways. Liz is going back to Langkawi and Axel and Jacqueline are going to Koh Lanta. I am going to Krabi for a night and then to Ton Sai for Rock Climbing

... passed the airport as a plane was coming in to land. Mind you, we're doing no more then 60km (we couldn't tell what speed we were doing, due to someone removing the cable for the speedo - like that helps you go faster!!) and it was very slow light plane. But it was a 'top gun' moment... Our days in Langkawi was spent riding around the island, visiting various sites. At Gunung Raya (top of a mountain (hill)) we rode all the way up (on the last leg ...

The island is 90 minute speed boat ride from Pak Bara and passes by a couple of the Ko Tarutao Marine Park islands which are almost undeveloped, something unheard of on most Thai islands. Ko Lipe is one of your typical tropical islands, mountainous jungle surrounded by crystal clear turquoise blue waters and powdery soft white sand. The island predominately consists of low rise, rustic development and none of the big high-rise hotels or complexes, a real little slice of ...