As you've probably gathered, the last few days has been spent in the noble pursuit of self indulgence and judging by my expanding waistline I thought it was time I did some exercise. Not merely walking from the room to restaurant and climbing a flight of rickety stairs, some proper physical exertion! So after breakfast (I only had muesli, an omelette and some fruit!) whilst Sue was grabbing herself a massage, I made enquiries at the hut with the beach activity boys about the possibility of some kayaking and sailing. From the hotel beach we can see the outline of some islands that belong to Thailand, at least when the Indonesians aren't burning their rain forests - I wasn't for one minute thinking of paddling that far but about 600 metres off shore are some smaller, uninhabited islands, well limestone outcrops really! Anyway I digress, the beach boys were very helpful and told me to come back when I could fit into one of their buoyancy aids! Cheeky I thought - so once Sue had returned pool side, I made the suggestion about a little paddle! Now Sue doesn't do water, unless of course its cascading from a shower head or being used to dilute whiskey! Reluctantly she agreed to the trip but not before I'd had to show her my Welsh Canoe Association Level 3 Coach Certificate! I managed to squeeze into the largest buoyancy aid - not that it would have been much good had I fallen in - and off we set!
With the morning over it was time for lunch - satay chicken and beef again! A little snooze on the beach and I was ready for a bit more action!
Back to the activity hut and the boys rigged a small Hobie Cat for me - "Had I sailed before? ". " Oh Yes - I sail all the time," I replied! I didn't admit that the last time I sailed a Catamaran was some years ago in New Zealand with my friends, John and Alan! The result was slightly embarrassing. John, Alan and I had won a TV quiz programme called "Busman's Holiday" and had appeared as The Lifeboatmen. I won't bore you with the details but the upshot was we had 2 weeks in NZ, all expenses paid. On arrival in the hotel we asked if we could take one of their boats out - sure thing, no problem, after all you are the Lifeboatmen from Wales! After about half an hour of charging around Auckland, we managed to pitch pole the catamaran - for the uninitiated, pitch poling is where the front of the boat gets buried in the sea and the back of the boat flips over the top so the mast is pointing vertically down to the bottom of the sea - Not a problem - we can get the boat the right way up - or so we thought! After another half an hour of trying to right the boat the shore crew had decided that enough was enough so sent the rescue launch to get us! Red faced, we returned to the shore, unhurt but a lesson learned!Surely lightning couldn't strike twice! With the consummate ease of a salty sea dog I eased the sheet, pushed down on the tiller bar and off I shot across the bay on a broad reach! It was all coming back to me, going about, gybing, running, goose winging and not a hint of a capsize! Back on the beach Sue was oblivious to my Captain Hornblower impersonation, she was still sound asleep!
The excitement of the day was finally topped off with dinner in the Sands Restaurant with a Thai meal - the Tom Yum soup was too hot for Sue so she had the chicken and sweetcorn soup - the rest of the meal was superb as was the service although we did notice that the table behind us were a little disgruntled - they left refusing to sign the bill - guess where they were from?!!
Hello Dave & Sue! I've just spent the last couple of hours reading your entire blog and highly informative and entertaining it has been too! It looks as if the two of you are enjoying a fine old time out in the far east. The little video clips are particularly entertaining.
ReplyDeleteI'm delighted that retirement is suiting you as much as it suits Sue. Her's has also combined blogging, pups and cooking!
I'm starting the slow down to retirement from September. Part time headship on 3 ays a week. I think 3 days work and 4 days rest and relaxation might just keep me going for a few more years! Plan A was to finish early in September and spend 4 months a year living somewhere different each year but what with Sue's cake business taking off and our youngest, James, announcing he was getting married in June 2012; I decided I needed a 'Plan B' to keep an income going and delaying taking a pension for a while longer! Governors jumped with joy and snatched my hand off when I told them I'd consider working 3 days a week instead of retiring!
Maybe we'll met up at one of the 'Fishes Gatherings' during the next year or two?
I'd be interested to learn more about your planning for this trip! When I do eventually retire completely we plan to undertake a similar trip. It was going to be a 'round the world' type thing but maybe spending more time in several areas of the world over a few years is a better plan?
With a bit of luck Sue will have backed off on the cakes by then and plan A can come back into play!
Anyway - all the best for the rest of your holiday of a lifetime! I look forward to reading about the rest of it!
Charlie Ellis (via Sue's blogger account)