... we boarded that plane in L.A. to begin this journey. A month ago when we passed the half way point it really hadn't sunk in all the way that we were on the 'back' half of the trip. This past month went by so fast that it's almost as if the trip is going to be over too soon. I'm sure as it gets even closer, it will be harder to believe. The first few months seemed to go by very slowly and it felt like we would be doing this forever. Now it feels like we didn't give ourselves enough time with only a year!

The past month we have been in four different countries which has probably contributed to the sense that everything is moving too fast. Each new border crossing has it's own system, a new language, and each country means learning a new currency and figuring out the exchange rate for it. Traveling though Europe used to be like this, but those currencies were always familiar to me. Here it's Rupiah, Ringots, Baht and Singapore Dollars. We still have the Kip and the Riel when we get into Cambodia and Laos. The Maldives have their own currency as well, but they won't even accept it in some places. They want US dollars or Euros. Some will take British Pounds as well. After figuring out the currency, it's the transportation systems, and always being sure we know enough of the local customs to be sure we don't offend anyone. There seem to be a lot of these, particularly related to feet and heads. Shoes need to come off all the time, and your position relative to another person is very important. I'm sure we have offended people unknowingly, but hopefully they won't hold it against us:)

Today is our last day on Phuket Island. Tomorrow we will catch a very long bus ride to Surat Thani and then an overnight ferry to Ko Tao. This should be an adventure! We are going to miss the 'Full Moon' party on Ko Pha-Ngan which is nearby to Ko Tao. This is legendary, but is probably a good thing we're going to miss it. Sounds like it would have been fun 10 years ago, but it's gotten a bit out of control in the past few years.

We haven't decided how long to stay on Ko Tao. Some people tell us it's a great place to just relax and hang out with beautiful beaches and cheap diving. Others tell us it's over-crowded and the place has gotten trashed from all the tourists. We'll see for ourselves and make a decision. If we don't like it, there are several other islands we can always head for.

That's about it for now. Check back again.

Eric and Val