Back from the Wilderness

Hokey Chokey here i goes again!!

Its been a while i appreciate that (well its prob only been a week but once you hear what ive been up to you ll realise why it seems longer!!)

So we got to Koh Pangnan and got on another boat straight away to a beach called had tien - probably one of the scariest experiences of my life - 40 ft waves crashing down on this little boat with 8 people in thunder rolling and lightning flashing (not really but it felt like it) the waves truly were massive and it also meant we had to land on a different beach than the one we were staying at to get safely to shore.  then rucksack on back (for those of you who saw my rucksack you ll realise this was a major event in itself!) and soaking wet we had to hike over a vertical hill and flat on bum the other side to get to where we were staying.  needless to say we werent in the best of moods!  this is when i wrote my last email so for the abruptness of it i apologise but needs must! 

We checked in to the Sanctuary which is a sort health retreat type place - they have yoga and mediation and massage and steam room and spa etc - totally my sort of place then head to the Wellness centre which is the best part of this whole story because I, jennifer guilfoyle, for the past 7 days have not eaten - ha ha!  its also known as a fast - a full hardcore detox for 7 days and nights no eating, no drinking and colonics twice a day!  Now for those who know me this is no mean feat cos - im not gonna lie to you , i like a drink or two and abit of grub so i was expecting some hardcore reactions - and i wasnt disapointed!  the last 7 days has been exhausting, exhilarating, amusing, a drag, hard work, great fun, and every other oxymoron you can think of next to each other!  Ive met some amazing people from all walks of life and all
with a story to tell. - its been an experience.  The colonics themselves were an eye opener - never has a truer word been spoken - "you are what you eat" and the gunk that comes out of an intestine proves that all right!

Today I had a bowl of papaya (of which i ate 4 chunks - im not that keen i have to say!) and have now just experienced an apple.  Feeling pretty perky and we re kinda in limbo where to go next - the islands are our oysters!  We re thinking of heading up to Had Yao today which is supposed to be the prettiest beach on koh pangnan - and yknow if its not i might throw a little wobbly as the beaches over here leave a lot to be desired and its time to stop messing around and get down to some hard core tanning!!

For those of you who have emailed me over the last week your replies will be coming in une secondo separately and i thank you for giving me a laugh duriing some dark hours!!

lots of love to you all

Jen

Thailand

Right Guys here goes again! 

So we left Singapore and flew into Bangkok then flew straight down to Koh Samui where we had already booked into a place called Shambala on Boh rak beach just near the big Golden buddha (ans and al tried to get into secret garden but all booked up) so we rocked up to shambala and it starts pissing it down - like full bore no holds barred so obviously we were ecstatic but we had some dinner and settled in and got up the next day to beautiful sunshine so happy as larry again. 

We had to visit tescos (i know how hideous is that!) to buy a sim card which think i emailed you in the worlds shortest email! basically for the last few days we have been chillin and checkin out a few eaterie houses and everyones a winner!

The weather hasnt been the best and the beaches havent been anything to write home about im afraid but we have time yet.  we got to koh phangan today so will have to write some more when we ve settled in.

Hope youre all loving what youre doing and miss you loads.

Peeps who have emailed me recently thank you so much - i will get back to you individually but not today as the computer is slow and i am tetchy - but i appreciate your emails so much.  lots of love.xx

Jen

Happy New Year - again!

Ok Guys just a quicky to let you know the plans for Thailand cos a few of you have been emailling a bit worried.  We re flying on 9th Jan into Bangkok and then getting another flight straight down to Koh Samui.  We re going to spend a bit of time on Koh Samui and then head to Koh Phangan for a bit of R&R and then head to koh tao if we ve got time or inclination. 

So guys this is where you come in.  Seeing as the west coast is off the itinerary the East coast islands are by all reports - packed as everyone has piled on to them so any contacts you guys have on these islands would be greatly appreciated, email addresses, phone numbers - of accom or just anything you think we shouldnt miss out on please let me know.  I no longer have a phone out here so its all about emails now and i ll make sure i check them regularly and let you know im safe and sound and loving the sun!

I hope this finds you all well and not too much in the January Blues.  - Once again you know where i am if you fancy a post new year break! 

Lots of love and 2005 cheer to you all.

 

ps Phil - Is Dave of Harmony Beach over Thailand at the mo?  is it best if we try to book first? Hope youre enjoying Byron. safe journey home x


ps - Ben Hodgson - is this finally your email address??  i take it you dont use hodgy5 anymore? hope works going well and youre not missing living with me and steph too much!!

Jen

Happy New Year (last instalment from Oz)

Happy New Year one and all!!

The first update of 2005 will be catching you up on Sydney higlights and the last one from Australia as we fly to Singapore on 5th and then on to Thailand needless to say we re only going to the east coast islands.

So not quite sure where i got up to but we got to Sydney safe and sound and got the keys to the apartment that mum and dad rented in Mosman and settled in.  Checked out our local beach Balmoral and then the hords of Guilfoyles started arriving - first Lau and Joe rocked up then mum and dad and it was like we had seen them yesterday (admittedly it was only a few weeks since Rainbow beach!!) the day before christmas eve we started getting the provisions in and on crimbo eve Philly turned up so we had a good ol catch up aka drank all the wine we had bought for christmas day!! So christmas day turned out to be a wash out in alcohol and weather - it didnt feel like christmas at all!

 Boxing day we watched the start of Sydney to Hobart yacht race and in the evening made up for not drinking on xmas day and ended up in Darling harbour shooting sambuca and beautiful butterscotch scnapps and baileys - yum and lethal!  Next  we caught up with the irish lads we met on fraser and after a few false starts found a bar in the Orient Hotel which was worthy of Thursdays - which of course we loved!  Lau got into a dance off and of course won as the guys final and lasting move was to fall flat on his face!  Once we had abused that place to its fullest we headed to Cheers bar in town and carried on til 7am - we are craaazzeee!! New years eve day was spent marking out our spot on a prime location to watch the harbour fireworks which were fantastic.  they managed to coordinate 4 sets of fireworks down the harbour and we got to see all of them - amazing. 

We have started this year as we mean to go on - yesterday we chartered a 37ft yacht and sailed around the harbour - right up to the opera house and under the bridge supping champagne (alright fizzy wine!) and generally lording it up!!  I could get used to this!

All too soon though our time here has come to an end.  for the next two nights we re staying in Wake up hostel in the centre of town as lau and joe flew to hong kong today and mum and dad to New Zealand. 

Its not long til im home - 6 weeks will fly by and for those of you who have missed me incredibly my flight gets in on 18th Feb at 5.30 am terminal 4 - see you there with a big welcome home sign!!

Hope you ve all had a well deserved break and are looking to getting your noses back to the grindstone!  - for me 6 weeks lying on a beach in thailand will be hard work - making sure that im tanned evenly all over is an skill in itself! 

May the best of your last year be the worst of your new year! Enjoy.

x

Stephanie Fewings - How did your exams go?? when do you get the results?  bet youre pleased they re all over huh! x

Anna Mccoy - hope you had a brill time in Canada

Grils from home - Happy New Year!  I was expecting drunken phone calls from Thursdays at midnight - but i hear that you didnt go??!!  let me know what you did for the evening. HOllie Carr - didnt even realise you were going to canada - very sneaky - you love it!!

Law School girlies - bet crimbo has been a lovely break - i cant wait to start my training contract - no really i love having 20 days holiday a year!  Katie i ll email you separately - i hope everythings ok - love you.

Stephanie gray - how was new year in the bar?  got any ideas for living arrangements?

Amy Donahoe - You still coming out to Thailand?  When do you fly and where you going??

Morf - hope you had a wicked crimbo.

Martin - i really want to see some photos of you as Dick Whittington - you stunner!

Everyone else ive made a new years resolution for you - email Jen more!!

 

Merry Christmas!! (Australia part 3?)

Right Guys here I am again - its been a while - quite a bit has been happening.

I ll start where I left off.  We left Airlie and headed to Rainbow beach which was a 12 hour overnight trip on a bus - not the most comfortable.  Anyhoo we got in and booked in to our hostel and then got a phone call from Joe and Laulau saying they were on their way so we met them off the bus and checked them in and as we were heading to get some lunch got a phone call from the parents saying they had arrived too!  proper little family reunion - the only one missing was Philly (but dont worry we will be reunited as a complete family unit as of xmas eve!!) so we had a lovely couple of days catching up. 

then Kate joe lau and I were all in the same group for Fraser Island 4x4 self drive camping. Fraser is the worlds largest sand island and part national park so it is truly beautiful. we had 3 german girls and 3 irish guys in our group and by god the boys could drink!  The german girls were very quiet - but hardly surprising with us 4 and the 3 irish lads creating havoc!! We had a wicked time - we checked out the freshwater creek  which you could float down all the way to the sea and tehn went up to Indian Head for sunset to try and see the sharks feeding but they werent obliging - however we did see a turtle and the view was awesome. - we camped on the beach on the first night and got stuck into the copious amounts of alcohol and everything took a little longer in the morning to deal with as we had to take down the tents and pack up camp. So we took a leisurely drive to Lake Wabby which you have to walk through miles of jungle to get to and then is surrounded by sand dunes which was amazingly refreshing as everyone was starting to get a bit wiffy! then we headed to Lake Mackensie which I could have stayed at for the full 3 days. The water was the whole spectrum of blues and turquoise and the sand was brilliant white.  We stayed in a campsite near mackensie on the 2 nd night so we could spend the 3 morning there before heading back to the hostel.  however getting to the campsite proved an adventure - i was driving and it decided to rain - i dont mean piddling sort of rain i mean a torrential down pour which i couldnt see half a metre in front of the 4x4 and the windscreen started leaking and the windscreeen wipers worked sporadically - so all in all i was ready for a beer once we got to the campsite!

After leaving Fraser we returned to Rainbow beach for a night before heading to Noosa - Anna you were right - i did love and we should have had more time there but its just going sooo quickly! Joe and Lau came with us and we all stayed in Dolphins Hostel in Sunshine beach which  was so chilled and relaxing - the first day we pretty much just vegged and slept.  the next day we went to Steve Irwins Australia Zoo which was great - got to see croc shows and birds of prey and snakes (and stroke one!) and tiger cubs - we patted koalas and fed kangeroos and there was a kids petting zoo with piglets, lambs, calves, goats etc which i loved (maybe i should consider a career change - a farmers life for me!) All in all a brill day and rounded it off with treating ourselves to dinner at Jaspers, a piano bar in Noosa Heads supping Gin and Tonics and tucking into rib eye whilst being seranaded by a chap on the old ivory keys pretending we could afford it! Bliss.

We spent the day checking out the shops and trying to body board without losing bikini bottoms - no mean feat let me tell you - theres definitely a skill to it!  joe and lau left that eve to head to Airlie Beach as they were going on the Anaconda III the next eve. So kate and I joined in on the hostel bbq and were planning an early night as we were leaving for Brisbane the next day.  I dont know why we plan these things cos early nights never pan out - ended up staying up all night again - well if you cant do these things on holiday when can you do them!!

Kates friend Craig came to pick us up the next day and took us to stay with him and his wife Tania for a few days in Brissy.  theyve just had a baby who was 5 weeks premature and is the tiniest little thing!  boy could it scream though! Craig and Tania took us sightseeing and we went out in chinatown for dinner and Craig and his friends took us up to Queen Mary Falls on their motorbikes for the day which was awesome.  I spent the morning on the back of a Ducati 900 85BHP and the afternoon on a Honda 954 148BHP zipping up to 210Kmph - that almost wrenched my jaw apart!  We returned to a bbq the true ozzie style - meat and beer!

And now here we are in Byron Bay only for one night as we have another 13 hour trip down to Sydney in time for xmas festivities!

So guys this will prob be my last instalment before crimbo so good cheer and heartfelt warmth to the lot of ya.  Have an awesome day - i ll be missing out on the Hogs on xmas eve but im sure you ll cope! YOu know where i am if you miss me - ive always got the phone on.

Lots of christmas love

x

Jen

Australia Update (Part 1)

Yo Peeps!

Well here I is in Melbourne hanging wiv me posse! 

We ve been here nearly a week now and have thoroughly enjoyed being in the company of friends and fam here. (for those of you who dont know my bro Joe is living here with Laura his girlfriend (and my friend!) plus Jose who was living with us in Chichester over the summer lives here with his girlfriend clare) 

Its been brill to have a base for a week and Jos and clare have been hosts with the most.  Seen joe and lau everyday but wed when they were moving house. 

 went to the obligatory Neighbours night - was brill, Dr Karl Kennedy was there and I was getting very excited (Stef Gray - you understand my obsession!) and got quite drunk and had a 'serious' chat with Lyn Scully and got Toadie sat on my lap! ahhhh neighbours! oh then started singing the neighbours theme tune from the top of my lungs even though i had  a microphone - and all fro teh hopes of winning $50 worth of drinks ( i obviously didnt need any more alcohol at that point but it was the principle!) which is only about 20 quid... ahh the things we do when we re drunk ...like getting the guitarist of Dr KArls band to sing 'blue eyed girl' instead of 'brown eyed girl'  and then somehow ending up with his phone number!! hee hee!!

Anyway you ll be pleased to hear that we ve been shopping pretty much every single day as Melbourne has AMAZING shopping, plus we ve been properly treating ourselves by going out to dinner and not budgeting one little bit which has been ace - its been like a proper holiday!  although we fly to Cairns on Monday so will have to get back into the backpacker mentality then. but before that we ve still got a Great Ocean Road Trip this weekend to look forward to so its been a busy ol' time.

Anyhoo we are slowly working our way towards the sunshine so serious tanning is about to commence - shield your eyes from ma pasty white legs - bring on the bronzage!

Anyone whose interested - i passed my resit exam - which means ive no excuse not to be back in england in february now as i have to start my proper job on 28th Feb - just aswell as i ll have some debts to repay! felt properly sick the day the results came out (im fine now though mumma - sorry for blubbing when you told me!)

Keep in touch eveyone - hope england is treating you all well - if not - you know where i am if you want to escape!

Lots of love

jen

Louise Odell - Happy Birthday for 13th! have a wicked day/weekend - dont miss me too much - dont worry i ll def be around for your summer birthday celebrations!!!

Stephanie Gray - check with Jigs that he gets this email - if he doesnt ive got the wrong email address and i need his proper one please sweets. mwah

Anna McCoy - bout time you stopped trying to get a proper job and get yourself out here where you belong. love ya

naz - youve been very quite - espesh after such a promising start - surely youre reading my emails now theyve got drunken stories in them??

HOls - cheers for your emails - have you thought anymore about China?  I think you should go so i can plan my next trip visiting you!

Nanc - hows teaching going you little leg?? teaching any einsteins yet?  keep the updates coming sweetcheeks.

Martin HArris - didnt make it to Skippers Canyon sorry! but had an awesome time in Queenstown nonetheless.  Didint hear anything on the news about the Maori problem.  Hope it all sorts out though cos they seem properly sorted over there - New Zealand is awesome - theyve got everything covered - tourism, recycling, animal protection, country pride and support - england has a lot to learn.

 Everyone else email me and you might get a mention!!

x

The End of An Era (Part 5 - Final Instalment of New Zealand)

We re on route to Christchurch - we ve stopped at some hilbilly village with about 4 people BUT internet for $3 per hour so abusing the hospitality. 

Christchurch will be our last destination in NZ and so this will prob be the last update til we hit ozzy shores - Melbourne here we come!  Those who know them will be pleased to hear that Joe and Laura Bird are organising us a stormer of a stay - Great Ocean Road and Neighbours night!!  woo hoo!! Dr Karl Kennedy get ready!!

Anyway lets tell you what we ve been up to. 

We travelled to Milford Sound (which is not actually a sound it is a Fiord - go figure!) Got on a big ol' yacht and sailed into the wilderness.  We were lucky enough to see a Southern Right Whale and Bottlenose Dolphins.  Also got to see cute litty penguins waddling about whilst we were sea kayaking. Properly felt like we were eons away from civilisation - espesh once it got dark.

From Milford we hot-footed it to Queenstown for weekend alcohol abuse. Met some guys in our hostel two from london - one from Wales and two from Canada and we all went out for some drinks.  I have to say i LOVE queenstown - only here do they give away free alcohol to backpackers!  Had a rip roaring night on approx 10 quid between me and Kate!! Then Halloween did it all again!- in Witches costumes - we looked very fetching i have to say!  Met some locals who invited us out on their boat the next day for a bit of waterskiing/wakeborading action!  however drunkenly declined cos we were heading to the glaciers the next day and thought he was actually trying to get a different kind of action!

So hangovers in tow (youd have thought being upside down would mean that we got hangovers in our toes - toe-aches but no!) we headed to Wanaka to recover - had a thoroughly nice time vegging - went to the cinema and sat on sofas - what a brill idea that is!

Next stop Glaciers.  had booked to do a skydive from 12,000 ft 2 hours after we arrived there.  it was mental - started to properly feel a bit funny once we were up in the worlds smallest plane and then started panicking when i saw Kate being sucked out of the plane plunging to her death - but atch quite enjoyed it once id got over the stomach flipping similarity to the bungy and soaring through the air like youre invincible - nothing better.  got some awesome photos mid parachute and even a little video! 

Also had booked oursleves into doing a full day glacier hike so trundled off not really knowing what we were letting ourselves into. first off - the boots they gave us to wear were like concrete shoes they weighed a ton! then we had to scrabble through the rainforest - ape style - we were going practically vertical i wasnt letting go for dear life! then we hit the ice - very bizzarre - looked a bit like Krypton - y'know when Supermans dad is putting him into the space shuttle to bring him to earth and then clark kent chats to his mum with those icicles - I kept on expecting Lex Luther to pop out at any stage! ANyway wicked day totally knackered but well worth it.  had to get up this morning to drive the 6/7 hour journey to Christchurch via Arthurs Pass. We re half way through - next comes the windy bit...

Anyway peeps thanks for the emails (those of you who are emailling! - you know who you are! Alice Clough and Stephanie Fewings you still alive??)

Lots of kiwi love - next it ll be kanger-love!

x

Jen

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