Back in Yacht Haven Marina, Phuket, 8’10.20N 98’20.49E  31^st December 2007

Well, actually just into 2008. What a month! Teddy and I came back at the beginning of December with Scouser John, who was on his first boat trip. Then Rahni joined from Israel and we were all off to the Marriot for Teddy’s birthday in style, in arguably the finest outlook hotel in Phuket, dining on a terrace overlooking Mai Khao beach and then nothing but the Andaman Sea – all the way to India. We got great bragging points by having My Way sung and played by two Pilipinos in an Italian restaurant in Thailand

Scouser John had been to the Himalaya a couple of times with me, and also with Ted into the deepest forests of Russia, so he knows the crazy Latchfords quite well. These days he spends much time in Belarus with Vadim studying wolves (and drinking moonshine, of course!)

Rahni we literally bumped into in Agathonissi when he berthed his cat against ours, followed by the obligatory swapping of hard liquor. Rahni was a Chief Engineer in the Israeli Navy, used to skipper a missile boat, then went commercial fishing in Alaska and now seems to own most of Tel Aviv. But, John and I secretly believe that he’s an undercover Mossad agent sent to find out the secrets of Liverpool FC’s success……. However, he is a truly superb cook so we over-ate every night.

So, all assembled, and the boat loaded with essentials (booze, food, more booze, diesel, yet more…. well, you get the picture) we set off for Langkawi; that is until we realised that with Rahni’s military background – and security rating, no doubt - checking into a fairly fundamental Muslim country perhaps not the best idea we had had. So we stopped at Butang; whence we could at least see Malaysia, a few miles away.

And what a nice journey – Hong hunting in Phang Nga Bay, overnighting at Ko Pak Bia, Krabi, Ko Lanta, Phi Phi Le (Maya Beach), Ko Mok with the wonderful Emerald Cave, Ko Rok and Ko Lipe in the Butang. Then gently back up north island by island. Great snorkelling and great food.

Highlight must have been midnight in the Emerald Cave – actually it’s a fully enclosed Hong that can only be reached by going through a very dark 80 metre tunnel in the dinghy, banging heads all the way – with a few beers, full moon overhead shining straight down into the hong through the narrow opening into the sky, the tiny but beautiful beach inside the hong glistening in the moonlight, skinny dipping with phosphorescent plankton all over our bodies in the seawater pool in the hong, doesn’t get much better than this! Straight out of Alex Garland, but without the Doors soundtrack. Where’d I leave my 1000 yard stare……..?

Back home and the geese scatter again. Rahni back to Israel on Christmas Day, John back to the Kop a little while later. New Year’s Eve was with a table of 40 or so mates and fellow yachties on the beach at Nai Yang, fireworks, bagpipes, the lot. In shorts and bare feet, sorry, you guys back in UK.

Seems like a lot has happened this year. Might be difficult to top that in 2008; but we’ll give it the good old college try! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

View from a hong, Ko Roi

Insde the Emerald Cave hong

La luna, la bella luna