The Cheese is Always Moving

* Please note, I intended to have an image and photos but it’s not allowing me to upload for some reason.

This is the post that I have been meaning to write ever since I arrived in Bangkok. Even before then, I had plenty to tell, but for some reason I couldn’t bring myself to write about it.

A few weeks before I left for Thailand I had my four wisdom teeth out. I was in a fair bit of pain for a few days after, and couldn’t eat much for around a week. It set me back about $1500, but it was better that I got it done in Australia, rather than over here.

After that I went to Sydney and stayed with my cousin Steve. I was there for my brother’s wedding. I was out drinking a fair bit most nights and didn’t really get any work done.

I went out clubbing one night with Steve and Carly which was a good time. We lot Steve for a little while though because he walked off and we couldn’t find him.

Jono’s wedding didn’t have any issues so that was alright. My Dad was there for the wedding itself, but left before the reception. I think it was a big step for him to actually attend because my Mum was there. He hasn’t seen her since the divorce and still has deep issues with something, even though they both have new partners.

It was at Bulli which is just near Wollongong. For the unfamiliar, it is about an hour south of Sydney. It had a panoramic view of the ocean which was awesome. I wasn’t impressed with the facilities themselves though. The place was a bit run down and the rooms we stayed in sucked balls. There was plenty of free grog though, even though I bought my own anyway. For some reason the beer sucked too.

I stayed with Steve for another few days after the wedding and ended up going home with some sort of stomach bug. It took me a fair few days to get over it and I was in quite a fair bit of pain.

I went and saw my Grandfather the following weekend and picked up my Sister from the airport. She had also been in Sydney for Jono’s wedding. It was actually raining for a lot of this time, which Alice (my Sister) wasn’t real impressed with. She had flown in from London and was hoping to catch a few rays.

I loved spending some more time with my Grandfather before I left. We get along great and it’s always a joy hanging around him. He is 88 years old and knows more about computers than most people I know. I have taught him to do a few things and have written out Word documents and printed them for him. He can now go to a torrent site, download a movie or TV show, burn it and then print a label onto it. Talk about a cool gramps!

I went back home for a couple of days and tied up some loose ends and packed my stuff for Melbourne and Thailand, then headed off. I didn’t even bother to say any goodbyes, have farewell drinks or anything like that. My whole life I have been like that, don’t really know why. I think it has something to do with keeping my business and life to myself, even though I don’t necessarily want to do that.

I arrive in Melbourne for 3 nights, and had a great time. The first night it was just my Sister and I staying at the hotel. We went for a BBQ and drinks at my cousins’ house, who was getting married (Steve’s Sister). Except for one guy who though it was necessary to be the attention seeker of the night, it was fun.

The second day we had my Mum there, and things get a little heated. My family has already been dysfunctional, and we started to get a bit on edge. That night we went to my other cousin’s house (Steve’s other Sister) and had another BBQ and drinks.

After doing the whole family thing all night, Steve and myself decided to get the party started. We hit the town and did a pub/club crawl. We had one drink at each place until we found a club that we liked and stayed for happy hour. Eight drinks later we went in search of something a bit more hardcore, but couldn’t find anything to suit the occasion. It was 1am and Steve had to walk to Sister down the aisle the next day so we called it a night.

The next day was off the chain. I had an intense argument with my Mum, over my bow tie of all things. She turns into a real bitch at events and stuff like that. She tends to dig up the past and make nasty comments. She turned me trying to put my bow tie on into how I left the Army. Whatever, way too childish for me.

The day of the wedding itself was just unlike I’ve ever seen. There was a massive hail storm and flash flooding. Some of my relatives couldn’t even get out of their hotel because of it, and missed the wedding.

The wedding was delayed for about half an hour but it went ahead and was great to be at. Everyone got a bus out to the property where the wedding was at. It took about an hour, but let me tell you it was well worth the wait.

The groom’s father got rich from pharmaceuticals back in the day and has an awesome property. Complete with a horse racing track for his trotters to train on and a croquet field/pitch or whatever you want to call it.

They had a marquee set up for the reception, but the biggest surprise was the wine. They announced that the groom had been collecting the finest wines for the past 23 years. That wine is all about sharing with friends, and what better occasion than to share it with friends at his wedding!

After a night of drinking the best red wines I have ever tasted, I said my goodbyes and got back on the bus to the hotel, which went forrrrrrrever.

I was actually going to meet up with one of my poker affiliate buddies and my business partner while I was in Melbourne but I left it too late to try or organise it. I really do suck at organising things.

After just a few hours sleep I got on my connecting flight to Brisbane. That flight was the worst I had ever experienced. I had a shocking hangover, and everyone on that flight was in a similar position. The guy on the other side of the aisle was throwing his guts up, it was bad. I did well not to spew myself.

My friend Henry was coming to Thailand with me for the first month was waiting at our departing gate. We were both pretty excited and soon after we were on our way. All I wanted to do was chat about Thailand, all he wanted to do was watch TV. Boring bastard.
We arrived at our hotel at about 4:30pm Sunday, 7th Match 2010. The first night was off the chain, hectic and just plain wild.

We started off eating dinner at some dodgy place and it tasted like shit. It ended with my spewing in my bathroom and passing out with a bottle of water in my hand (which was all over me when I woke up).

We met up with a poker affiliate buddy on the second night, well at least I did. Henry didn’t recover from the first night and couldn’t get off the toilet.

My English friend (who shall not be named because he doesn’t want to be) came over with a few friends as well. We went out to all the clubs and got pissed, danced talked poker affiliate stuff and had a big night out. The vodka Redbulls got the best of me at about 2am when I started dancing like a maniac. I was either super impressive, or terribly bad because everyone was watching me. I’d like to believe it’s just because I’m a sick dancer, but I can’t be sure of it.

I didn’t go out the third or fourth nights in Phuket. I just went to the hotel gym and pool and generally hung out. It was good to just relax and wind down from the activities of the first two nights.

Then we were off two Bangkok. We had a sweet hotel in Nana, which is in one of the main club districts. The first night we went out and explored the shopping centres and walked around. We got around on their impressive train service and took some tourist photos.

The second night we went out drinking. We started in our hotel room, and ended with a massage. There is nothing better than getting a massage after a night on the piss. We stumbled home and slept like babies.

The third day we came out to this condo complex and got a two bedroom place sorted. The complex has a pool, gym, laundry service, 24hr mini mart and a restaurant that delivers to your door. We have 3 air conditioners, so I can work at whatever temperature I feel most comfortable at.

For the next couple of weeks we pretty much didn’t do anything. We went out a few times, but that is basically it. It took me a few days to sort out the Internet, and another couple of days to buy things like sheets and pillows, general condo necessities.

I started off by going to the gym and pool everyday, then just the pool, then not going at all. The last week has been pretty rough, so I’ve found myself chilling out by the pool again and reading a book.

** Section removed due to personal nature**