Monkey Business

A God statue on Karon beach - near where we're staying at the moment.

Week three in Thailand and we have had some exciting times. Well, I suppose for readers of this blog, not all of them will thrill, but we got a kick out of them.

The Cat. For those of you who know Dave and Mel well, you will be aware of our devotion to the humble kitty. Happily, there are many kitties running around Thailand and most are friendly.





Our first encounter with a group of kitties was in our favourite restaurant in Khao Lak - DTime. There was a group of about 4 white kittens who were happy to come for a cuddle, climb the nearest tree or steal your chair (with you in it), while you ate your dinner. Thank you kitties, for your cute amusement.



The next kitty is the one in the photo above. This little feller joined us for dinner at our resort in Khao Lak one evening. He was a bundle of vocal affection and as you can see, Dave was the favoured person. When our mashed potatos came out covered in bacon (grrr), it was this little champion who bravely ate the dirty meaty bits for us. We salute you Khao Lak Kitty!

Our final kitty adventure was by far the most annoying. On our first morning at the Centara Villas in Karon Beach we had a furry companion in the restaurant who was determined to let everyone know he was there. Loudly, up a tree on some lattice-work in the ceiling, present at breakfast. Finally a brave waiter climbed up a ladder and 'rescued' the miaowing, biting and scratching feline. A memorable, but less attractive kitty memory.


Mel at dinner on the beach at Khao Lak.







And so on to Karon Beach. We are enjoying our time in Karon as it is slightly larger than the two other beaches we've stayed at. Less crazy than Patong, it still offers some nightlife and shopping, so there is plenty to do.

We made a foray into the exciting world of white water rafting the other day - cool. Dave and Mel were 'lucky' enough to make it into the raft with the craziest guide going. He made his entry to our vessel by jumping off a nearby bridge into the river and then climbing into our raft. Interesting. He incited his new crew members to spend the entire 5 km journey attacking other rafts by ramming them and splashing (somehow this particular word does not quite convey the violence that the water found its way into other rafts) other people.

Overall, really cool.

A beautiful Thai temple that we saw.

Finally, the title. We stopped at the Monkey Cave on the way to the rafting and met some cute and less cute critters. There were monkeys everywhere, and the call of "Banana monkey welcome!!!" was enough to drive Dave and Mel to insanity.

Anyway, we have posted a piccie of a monkey we saw. Unfortunately for him, seconds after this photo was taken he somehow managed to fall about 4 metres to the ground off his perch and landed with the most disturbing 'splat' either of us had ever heard. He seemed okay though and lived to eat another banana.





The cutest monkey was the one who slid on his back down a corrugated iron roof. It seems that fun can be found anywhere, especially if you're a monkey.