... the fiend on my shoulder.... shallow water

spent week on tropical island called Pulau Tioman. Went snorkellng with thousands of fish and canoed out to secret white beaches with only monitor lizards and monkeys for company. Spent evenings eating with the locals at the restaurants and drinking beer in the BB shack. One day we did the jungle walk to Juara, passing through a jungle we inhabited only by ourselves, our way blocked by falling trees, monkeys armed with coconuts and devious snakes with martian faces and poison hearts. Went swimming in fresh waterfalls and plunge pools and slept devilish nights in unbearable heat. The heat and humidity is difficult to get used to, at times oppressive, the cool ocean breeze is our only relief. Today we headed to Cherating half way up the east coast. A rustic lil town with a strange mis-mash of styles. Our chalet resembles some sort of pioneer's nebraskan farm house complete with stove....................................................................................................................................... then we head to beach , further to a bar hidden in the woods called the half moon at half past four...... the deadly nightshade....... an occultish, macrabre cottage with splintered ceiling that resembles some kind of new england hut, complete with pictures of ghouls, phantasmagoria, witchcraft collections and jagged almost incongruous trees that seem more artic than tropical... ............................ i drink two beers....... it cheap.... an offshore oil 'fisherman' called alan from great yarmouth drinks with our cambodian host.. from siem reap... ... he is mildly polemic in conversation but not enough to make me uncomfortable.......... the surroundings strange enough to save me from any yarn.... the beer making it more interesting than it would be.......... normally when i'm not drunk..... tomorrow we will try batik, a traditional malay form of art using wax and waterpaints..... maybe some horse riding.... booyakashah......... or even some turtle watching/voyeuring.....................................................................................................................................................................................