Q U A L I T Y J O U R N A L I S M - ePISODE 1

Today, Feb 14, 2014 - Channel Nine News Australia Online:


Referring to the disruptive eruption of Mt. Kelud (Gunung Kelud) today in Indonesia, this was Channel Nine's opening gambit, in big letters..:



- "Flights from Australia to Bali, Jakarta and Phuket have been cancelled after a volcanic eruption on the Indonesian island of Jakarta..."


Now, I'm not Doctor Geography, but last time I checked, Jakarta was a city on the island of Java.

Reading on, however, I realised it was obviously a test, the great spirit of the Kerry Packer attempting to determine whether your viewership be worthy with a few simple spelling tests. Did you get "tomoroow" actually means "tomorrow" (as in the day after today), and "Surbaya" actually means "Surabaya", a major city in east Java?

But hey, they're just starting out. Give 'em a chance ;D



- T-flo Management, keeping it real (by using a catch phrase devised by peoples else in a distant land whom we've never really got to know personally). Let's try it again - Teflon Management, attempting to cast a light on the intelligence and spelling errors of a major Australian news network. Yes! Enjoy :D

P H I L O S O P H Y - Quote d'Jour

"Fool a man once, shame on.................. you?



fool a man twice, ..............shame ............shame...




afooledmancantbefooledagain!"




- George Dubya. - Dazzling us with his scalpel-like intellect prior to his re-election. It's a funny old world :)

Surf Report - Yallingup - WA

First surf back in Oz and it was...not flash. I slept in, caught the sea breeze and surfed 2-3ft mush in very cold "summer" waters at Yallingup Mainbreak. My own fault - coulda had fun waves at one of a number of swell magnets earlier in the morning when the winds were more favourable. Still nice to get wet though, and refreshing after Bali's wet season plastic bag fiesta :)

Rabbits left had a coupla little fun ones with only one guy out late morning. And Shallows had a few fun looking waves in the 2-4ft range, with a crowd of around 15 spread over 2 peaks.

Swell similar tomorrow and slightly smaller Sunday, so looks like a weekend for the swell magnets. Winds varying from SE to SW, so u might have to do a bit of manouevring between aspects to get the best of it.

Good luck! :D

Beautiful mushy Yallingup :)

And, not today, not Yallingup, not summer :)

P H I L O S O P H Y - Quote d'Jour

"It is folly for a (human) to pray to the gods for that which (they have) the power to obtain by (themselves)"



- Epicurus (341-270BC)



NB - The overuse of brackets and paraphrasing here is in response to the patricentric bent of the initial text. Teflon is all about equality :)

T R A V E L - Thailand - The Third and Final Leg - Phuket, Koh Tao, Bangkok

PHUKET


After 4 nights on Koh Phi Phi Don we jumped on a boat once again and set sail (motored) for the renowned diving island of Koh Tao, via Phuket.

I didn't hold high hopes for Phuket, being such an established tourist destination I figured it would be over-run with foreigners cavorting about in hi-vis "I love Phuket" singlets. Fortunately for us, however, we managed to avoid all that and Phuket ended up being a most enjoyable little surprise package.

First night we just grabbed a room in a random village (for which I know not the name) where not a tourist was to be seen. Very refreshing after four days of quite the opposite at Phi Phi Don.

Our trusty dog-eared Lonely Planet piqued our interest, and subsequently determined our movements, in the direction of old Phuket Town. We spent our second day and night there and it didn't disappoint.

Phuket Town, once a trading hub for seafaring merchants from as far as Portugal, and as nearby as China and surrounding parts of South East Asia, is rich in charm and history. The architecture is an interesting blend of classic European and Chinese styles, and the streets are littered with funky little cafes, bars and restaurants.
Fani and I were fortunate enough to be there on a Saturday night when a nearby main road was closed to accommodate a quirky night market, bustling with good vibes and delicious food.

One of the refreshing things about Phuket Town (depending on your perspective) is that it doesn't attract a throng of rowdy young revellers (I'm getting old), but a more relaxed and considerate local crowd.

Photos from top-to-bottom: 1-3. Fanzi checkin' out the streets in Phuket Town's CBD. 4. The sign writer tried, bless him, but just could not get a grasp on the spelling of "Murldog". 5. Colourful buildings may cause happiness. 6. Glastnost


But that was it for us and Phuket Island - 2 nights and we were out of there! Next stop, Koh Tao.



KOH TAO

5 hours on a bus, 4 hours in limbo, and 3 hours on a boat saw us traverse Thailand from west to east to be politely dumped on that most alluring diving locale that is Koh Tao.
Situated in the Gulf of Thailand, the island of Koh Tao ("Koh" means island, so I guess it's really the island of Tao..) has the enviable reputation of being one of the cheapest (around AUD$300) and best (due to agreeable bathymetry, lack of swell and a plethora of ATM's) destinations for learning scuba in the world. Unfortunately for us, as cheap as it was, our budget didn't allow for any scuba or freediving courses. Instead, we wiled the days away swimming, snorkelling, kayaking and trekking on this idyllic little gem.

It is very touristy here now, especially on the west coast, but it's not too hard to escape the crowd by going for a little wander across the island. An intra-island wander if you will. The steep hill that separates east from west seems to keep the crowd down. Fani and I did one such walk and found this fantastic little bar (Coco View Bar) perched high on a hill overlooking Koh Tao's east coast, where we rehydrated with coconut water and lemonade and laughed and remembered the time when we used to work ;D Sorry. We're working now. Nearly.

Photos from top to bottom: 1. Fanzi - One long haul from Phuket to Koh Tao and the tiger begins to emerge from within. Just 2 hours to go..:) 2-3. Views from right to left along Koh Tao's west coast. 4. A local fisherman perfecting the art of casting a net with the power of the mind. 5. Looking back to shore from the water. 6. Security at the plant was tight.. 7. After scaling the steep hill to reach the east coast we were rewarded with magnificent views.. 8..and a well-deserved coconut at Coco View Bar :) 9. The east coast's rocky goodness.


After 8 very enjoyable days relaxing (with a hint of frolicking) on Koh Tao, it was time for us to pull up stumps and begin our long journey back to Bali, via Bangkok.

We spent our second last night in Khao San, which is always fun, albeit extremely busy, and the final night, December 18th, where it all began in Don Muang, at our personal favourite "48Ville" Hotel, sampling some of Thailand's finest from the stupendous street stalls in the area.

Even a bright green and purple room for our last night in Don Muang couldn't keep Fanzi awake ;D


The following morning we were up at 3am and off to Don Muang International Airport for our return flight to Denpasar, Bali. We were heading back to our home and the fantastic surf and lifestyle of Bali, but it had been an unforgettable trip to Thailand for us. Beautiful islands, amazing food, and the purchase of the greatest tee-shirt of all time. A good trip :)

The End

S U R F - Kelly Wins Pipe. Again.

Well this is going to be a somewhat incoherent babble about the fact that in the early hours of this morning (WA time - twas yesterday afternoon in Hawaii) the Kelly Slater just won the prestigious Volcom Pipe Pro at pumping 10-12ft Pipe. Referring to Kelly as "the" was no mistake. Yes it de-humanises him, but that's for very good reason. It's now blatantly clear, and has been for some time, that the Kelly is not human. Yes, there will be naysayers, not many, but a few, but I'm a scientist, and I know a non-anthropological entity when I see it!

About 25 years ago the surfing world was in shock when KS arrived with his fancy moves and bar-setting performances. He won his six world titles, retired for three years, and the world said "well done. not bad. best yet I guess. next.. " And we thought "nexts" were coming. There were Shanes, Tajs, Andys and Joels, but they couldn't do it. Then there were Jordys, Danes, John-Johns and Medinas, but they couldn't do it either. In the year 2014, the man that owned the world of competitive surfing in 1992 is still doing it!! And not "just" doing it, but SMOKING them, all of them.

After Kelly had won his sixth world title in 1998, sports fans everywhere were comparing him to mainstream's greats - your Alis, Jordans, Armstrongs (not anymore), and Phelps (later, probly hadn't been born then). But now, 15 years, 5 world titles and a quagzillion incredible victories in epic waves later, Kelly Slater has 11 world titles (narrowly missing his 12th last year to Mick Fanning, and about another five from previous years due to broken feet and ribs and the like), and at the age of 42 has just won his second consecutive Pipe event this Hawaiian winter against the world's best, at EPIC Pipe. WTF!! OMG!! If you say my claims of inhumanity are false, I say "show me the evidence!"

That is all.


Highlights of this year's Volcom Pipe Pro can be viewed at www.volcompipepro.com


Enjoy!!



Le Froj

Teflon Phase 3 - Back to WA

Hello and welcome to Phase 3 of the Teflon journey thus far.

As the title suggests, Teflon headquarters has now relocated to the beautiful South West of Western Australia, so surf reports will now generally be from around the Yallingup - Margaret River region, and, hopefully, I'll be more focussed and dedicated and churn out more science, travel, stories and "other" stuff than ever before!

So strap yourself in, forget book club, quit your indoor soccer team and apologise to your mother coz this phase is gonna be a doozy!!


Hope u like it :)



Kind regards,


Murlfrog,


Editor, writer, cleaner, driver, kettle boiler-in-chief,


Teflon Endeavours Incorpserated

Your intrepid reporter on assignment in The Ments, hangin' on by his toe nails. We work hard here. Anything to get the story :) Photos by the mighty Joey Melroy