Day 187. Anjuna beach, Goa, India. Birthday boy.

A truly momentous occasion today. Dave's birthday. And we showed him exactly how much we love him by piling the breakfast table with cheap gifts, like a gaudy yellow Kingfisher t-shirt and a plastic toy tuk-tuk.

The kitchen staff joined in with the celebrations, wishing him 'Janum din Mubrak ho' which might mean 'Many happy returns' or - more likely - 'Why do you always moan about how long we take to serve the coffee you ungrateful English sod'.

They did however present him with a nice bouquet of fresh flowers and even attempted a bit of flattery by declaring he didn't look a day over 38.

Back to the Shore Bar at Anjuna in the evening for birthday drinks. At one point I thought Dave was coming over all emotional, but quickly realised the tears in his eyes had more to do with the chillies in the prawn vindaloo than any overbearing feeling of bonhomie.