it's christmas but there isn't a decorated tree in sight. the guys at the 7-11 painted a very sad looking snowman on the window. it's a crazy day because not only is it a holy holiday it is also a full moon. the asians are much more excited by a full moon than christmas.
koh phangan is home to the world famous full moon party which occurs, yep, you guessed it, every full moon. thousands of people come to the island for the few days around the full moon to celebrate and it's been going on for over 30 years. so the island population peaks then and traffic accidents and drug arrests go up but the actual party is on the east side of the island so it doesn't impact the west side so much.
my brother has been so supportive of all my travels and even took me along when he climbed Kilimanjaro ten years ago so it seems appropriate that i spent my last weekend in the US with his family before i am off on my next adventure - living in the shadow of Kilimanjaro. it was a great couple of days and he did my final pack to get all my bags within my 23kg allowance. plus cooked up some amazing vegetarian enchiladas and served up smores by the fire under a clear, star filled sky with an almost full moon. meanwhile, my nephew and i decided on matching tattoos... 
