After lunch, we took a leisurely trip downriver in a canoe (complete with chauffeur/paddler). It was lovely. Kingfishers on the riverbank, iridescent dragonflies darting in front of the canoe, oh, and banded mangrove snakes sleeping off lunch in the trees.

This one was about 2 feet across.

With JB much better & de-corked,we set off for Khao Lak, about 3 hours drive up the coast from Phuket. Khao Lak is THE place for people who are: a) German & on a package tour, or b) looking to go on live aboard dives to the Similan Islands. As we fell into neither category, we made a detour to Khao Sok national park, in search of the fabled Rafflesia, the biggest flower in the world. Its fragrance is said to resemble that of a rotting corpse. I couldn't smell anything, although I have been sleeping in the same room as JB's climbing shoes for 9 weeks now, so...............

Phuket was meant to be an overnight stop, but due to JB contracting a particularly vicious stomach bug, it looks like we'll be here or a few days. Luckily, I befriended an Australian on the beach & managed to procure a cork from his hat which, hopefully, will serve as a temporary solution.

Morning worship, sun temple, Pattong beach.

And so we moved back into Thailand, to Phuket. We're staying in Pattong,a place where many thousands of people come every year to worship Bacchus & Helios. There's a temple to Bacchus on every corner, and a giant temple to Helios by the sea. For me though, it resembles nothing more than Benidorm on steroids. But without Sticky Vicky.

JB at the summit. He has asked that I point out that, although he appears to be merely standing on a ledge, a few feet off the ground, it really is the summit.

Mount Sibayak

We took a 24 hour detour to Berastagi, in order to climb Mount Sibayak. At 2212m, it represents a personal altitude best for this author. Although the volcano hasn't erupted in over a century, it still has great jets of sulphurous steam gushing out from its slopes. Fortunately, having brought up two sons, I am no stranger to toxic gas vents, so it didn't pose a problem.

We couldn't ruin the garden though.

JB putting the boot in as we trash yet another hotel room.....

JB propelling himself across the raging torrent after our trek.

Indra, our guide, preparing lunch in the jungle kitchen. No mod cons, but plenty of running water.

This is the stream where we stopped for lunch. Also where we saw the turtle, though no matter how hard you look & how firm your belief, you won't see it in this picture.

We also saw, but have no photographic evidence to back it up, a wild pig, a turtle, and a troop of gibbons who were perched in the trees about 100 feet above us. That height became very important when they decided to relieve themselves on us! Fluid falling from that height could be lethal.

An orang-utan. (He is in the picture, I promise. You just have to look really hard and believe)

A Thomas Leaf monkey.

Next stop Bukit Langawi. A national park filled with rainforest & lots of wildlife. We spent a day trekking with our guide, Indra, and were lucky enough to see the following:

Our hotel in TukTuk, Samosir Island

Not a fruit, I know, but pretty.

Natures greatest gift- the cocoa pod

These are coffee berries. Now, if we can get our hands on a weasel, we could be in business.....

Fruit corner

Enough culture. Time for some agriculture. Samosir, being volcanic, is extremely fertile (think I may have grown a couple of inches myself during my stay). Anyway, hers's a selection of what's on offer.

The tombs have guardians placed around them, many carved with grotesque, demonic features. Scary stuff.

And as if by magic..... Vendors gone!

Stumbled upon (in my case literally) an ancient burial site for the Batak kings. An impressive, but not exactly regal setting.Although I don't suppose the T shirt stalls were there when he was interred.

The area is home to the Batak people. Their houses have a saddle shaped roof, and are decorated with red, black & white carvings. The motorbike is an optional extra.

Having managed to tear ourselves away from the delights of Medan, we arrived on Samosir Island, in the middle of Lake Toba, the largest volcanic lake in the world.

Sumatra: Just call us Frank & Nancy. (Pun fully intended)

How best to describe Medan, second city of Sumatra? It's dirty, noisy, and has a fragrance all of its own. It's rather like one would imagine Scunthorpe when the binmen are on strike. But without the charm. That said, there are apparently some interesting buildings & my travelling companion has seen both of them.

And finally.... A bit of blue for the dads.

It would appear that you can buy anything in Penang......

Hindu temple, top of Penang Hill.

Does what it says on the tin. It's a temple with a cave full of bats in it.

This is the Bats Cave Temple in Penang Hill. Contrary to what you may think, the temple is straight, the photographer is leaning.

Georgetown is split, broadly speaking into Chinatown & Little India, each with their own assortment of temples & markets. There's lots of evidence of its colonial past too. The town hall & law courts really wouldn't look out of place anywhere in Britain.
That said, I feel Georgetown is like a woman of a certain age: best viewed by candlelight. Daytime reveals peeling paint & crumbling plasterwork that again wouldn't look out of place anywhere in Britain. UNESCO world heritage? Anyway, here are some of the good bits.

Penang,

And so we found ourselves in Penang, self-styled "Pearl of the Orient". We stayed in the capital, Georgetown, yet another UNESCO world heritage site. Honestly, the Malaysians have got it pretty much sewn up on the heritage front. You can;t move for signs declaring UNESCO this, world heritage park that, whilst Blackburn & Darwen still go unrecognised. It's a travesty.

JB venting his fury at closed museum by crushing a few grains

The rice museum, Langkawi. (Not to be confused with the Rijksmuseum, which is in Amsterdam and has no rice memorabilia, to my knowledge) This museum is spoken of in hushed tones by all afficionados of the cooked grain. Was to have ben the highlight of JB's trip to Malaysia, but sadly, was closed.

JB displaying inner turmoil. Should he try & find a way to get through the next 4 weeks? Or just jump?

The view from the top was good though.

The Langkawi cable car system. Reputed to have the longest single span & be the steepest cable car system anywhere. Steep? I'll say it was steep. SIX English pounds each to ride on what is essentially a tin can on a bit of wire? Not in my lifetime flower....

A star is born

Hanging around in the ferry terminal at Satun, waiting to cross to Langkawi, JB was approached by a camera crew & asked to star in a "publicity film" they were making about the ferryport. Here we see him in action. Out soon at a cinema near you.

The vicious attacker unmasked.

Was walking through the jungle yesterday, on the way to the crag. Put my hand on a tree branch to steady myself. Was not tree branch, was lizard! With jaws firmly clamped around my finger! Luckily, in the ensuing panic, I managed to shake off the errant reptile. It drew blood from my finger. Fear for its survival, given my current blood alcohol levels. Expect its liver will pack up very soon.

They seek him here, they seek him there, those monkeys seek him everywhere! This one in our jungle garden.

Our jungle retreat in Tonsai. A better photographer could have proved it has a roof.

Tonsai Beach

We left the giddy excitement of Ko Lanta behind & set off to Ton Sai, for some serious climbing. (Or at least serious falling off)

These weird constellation-like shapes are formed by tiny crabs, who chew the sand and then roll it into balls. This one is re-creating the crab nebula. Obviously.