We are home!  We managed to have a bit of a blow out during our last few weeks and also had travel companions, Dave and Suzie for about 6 weeks.  They were pretty cruisy and backpacked at about the same speed as us.  They were also heading for the UK so we had similar feelings on returning to the cold weather and setting ourselves up again.

After leaving Vietnam and arriving in relaxing Laos we took to the tubes!  A couple of days were spent drifting down stream in a tractor tyre inner tube stopping at make-shift bars every 50 metres or so.  We would leave about 11 thinking we would have plenty of time to go 4km down stream but at 8pm we still had halfway to go!  It`s dark, everyone is very happy on mushroom shakes, beer and cocktails and are oblivious to the bumps and bruises we have gained from flying foxes, high jumps into the water or in my case just getting out onto the bank!!  We then spend the next few days reminding each other of all the goings on e.g beer fights, mud fights, flat tyres etc.  We then spent a few days up in Luang Prabang where we enjoyed bbq fish and buffalo sausages on the night market  and waterfalls by day.

The last week of this trip were spent in sunny Thailand.  We did splash out and flew from Luang Prabang to Bangkok so that we could laze on the beach and eat some of the best food in the last few days.  A busy day spent shopping in Bangkok and then we tagged along with Dave and Suzi for the overnight bus to Surat Thani.  I got the wet seat!  The rain was really heavy and I happened to have a leak which dripped for the following 10 and a half hours.  Hey its all the fun of travelling!!  Caught the ferry to Ko Samui and although finding a beach hut was a little challenging we did it and Dave had done a good job getting us all there in one piece and still smiling!!!  The town was glitzy  and the gogo girls far outweighed the westerners!  The beach was fantastic out at Lamai.  We mailed Dave (Ladyboy, Total Fatness, Haskins) hoping to see him in Ko tao to find he was having fun in Bangkok so a real shame we missed him.  We went back to Ko Tao anyway to spot the changes in the last 4 years.  We stayed out an Moondance bungalows around the headland and enjoyed the last 3 days lazing on the beach, coconut shakes and bombing around the dirt roads on a brand new motorbike.  This Island is still paradise.

So now we are home.  We have had some fantastic mails and messages over the last 2 and a half years and are so lucky to have people like you that have kept in touch.  We have met some amazing people, had some incredible experiences and had so much fun.  We are so excited to be back with our family and friends and look forward to catching up with everyone.  Atlast we can hang up our backpacks, get a hot shower and drown in real ale.  We neither know what will happen next but everything happens for a reason so we will just wait and see. See you soon!!!!