In Between Two Places

For my last few days in Malaysia, I traveled to the island of Langkawi. All I knew going into it was it's the only place in Malaysia that is tax free on alcohol and cigarettes. I was surprised when greeted by one of the nicer beaches I've seen in my travels. Myself and a mate from Penang scouted out a cool highly recommended hostel featuring loads of cats and a mango tree that periodically dropped beautiful ripe mangoes onto the tin roof like a gunshot ready bell. 

Once settled, we hit the beach and enjoyed the company of tons of hermit crabs. The next day we ended up with a crew of six and rented motorbikes to cruise around the island. On our journey, we came across a really tall and drizzly waterfall, swimming hole and local kids doing tricks. Other than that, most of the day was spent enjoying the sun and feel of rippin' around the island. 

Side note: Most countries in SE Asia have a massive stray dog problem. However, all throughout Malaysia they seem to have been replaced by cats. Much cooler. 

From Langkawi, I caught a cheap flight to Chiang Mai, Thailand. Yes, I came back.. again... The plan was to stay for a few days then catch the slow boat to Laos. However, I learned that a few guys I met in back in January including Rob, a guy I traveled with for two weeks, were making their way back to Chiang Mai too. So I decided to extend my stay a bit longer. Not surprising. That's kinda how this place works... 

While revisiting Chiang Mai I decided to take a Thai cooking class and got to learn how to make some of my favorite dishes. Of course, I hit the Thai women's prison for a massage. Went to a lady boy cabaret show. Spent a day at the lake. And enjoyed the always good company of the people at SpicyThai. 

To add to the fun, when our shuttle van arrived to take us to the boarder it almost hit two of the people I am traveling with while pulling in. My mate kicked the side of the van to let the driver know we came too close. The driver immediately stopped the car, pulled out a machete (no fucking joke) and started chasing the him. Thankfully, there was a Thai guy at the hostel who could defuse the situation. Needless to say, we skipped that shuttle and are currently waiting the get the later one this evening. Ahhhh, traveling...