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.