The whole idea behind the party being a hedonistic free for all has been totally sapped by the Thai people's desire to again bleed your wallet dry and in some cases take the wallet too! In the four years since I last came, the freedom of hopping off a boat into the sea and straight into the party has been scrapped for a civilised ticketing system (yes, you now have to pay to go!). Despite Thailand's best attempts, I did have a good time but it was definitely the people - the location and the event had very little significance which is a real shame, the magic of the Full Moon has definitely dissipated for me.

The following few days were fairly uneventful on account of the mother of all hangovers. The 2nd of April meant it was time to say goodbye to Claire, despite my better judgement I had decided to book a ticket to Koh Phi Phi which involved a bus to a coach to a ferry, back on the coach, onto another coach followed by a taxi to my final ferry. Door to door my trip was 12 hours, it was a joyous sweatfest! Yet again, despite having paid for my full ticket, Thailand still wanted more money - our bus was late which was clearly my fault which meant I had to pay for a seperate taxi to the ferry pier. 

As I'm sure you are sensing, I have become extremely disillusioned with Thailand and it's people, now I know it's purely because I have been loitering in the tourist hotspots but the changes this country has been through since my last visit are nothing short of disgusting. People keep telling me it's our fault, that tourists have made Thailand the place it is but tourism has been a major part of their culture for over twenty years - I fail to see how it has had such a profound affect in just four years. They have just totally disregarded any culture, morals and manners that may once have been there to become fat, greedy, money grabbers - Westerners essentially. I still can't get my head around how the Occident totally obliterates the Orient at every turn because they have such rich and diverse cultures!

Anyway, I arrived in Phi Phi to be greeted by Rachel. I checked into my hostel, which for me I had very cleverly booked the day before! It was nothing short of a Duke of Edinburgh expedition to get there from the beach. The evenings festivities were fuelled solely by a Benidorm-esque waterfall of free buckets throughout the night. I spent less than one pound on alcohol yet wound up retardedly inebriated - especially considering the perils of my hostel journey!

Rachel and I spent the day on Long Beach, a far superior beach to the main beach on Phi Phi on account of the fact there was no-one trying to get you hammered!

Obligatory Long Boat shot on Long Beach

I met a group of Woking ladies and wound up in bed circa 5 AM! I promptly checked out the next morning to a hostel closer to the beach....Now for some proper sight seeing!

Rachel and I booked ourselves onto a boat trip around the island on which we stopped off at Maya Beach, made famous by Mr Di Caprio and 'The Beach', it was pretty cool but definitely over-hyped. We spent the day snorkelling which I have found a new love for, the more time I spend in the sea with these funky looking beasts, the more comfortable and willing to explore nooks and crannies I become. The highlight by far was the two Clownfish I photographed just off Maya Beach.

I found Nemo!

After a short-lived yet essentially fulfilling stay in Koh Phi Phi we made arrangements to escape Thailand and all that is evil. We did so on our luxury bus which I was genuinely impressed with! 19 hours down the line and we have arrived in Kuala Lumpur - our first night was spent in a total dive, it was that or McDonald's but this morning we checked into a nice clean hostel behind the world's biggest indoor theme park! Good times!

"Where's the beach?