I only have a few more hours here in Beijing so I'm going to have to finish this later...BUT, the long and short of it was...we basically spent 12 hours aboard a tour bus full of Chinese people. No one spoke English, save for the 11 year old girl and 12 year old boy we met. We spent the day having NO IDEA where we were going, when we had to be back on the bus, etc. We went to the wall first, which was AMAZING. This was also where I got to experience my first real Beijing bathroom (which I'll elaborate on later for those who can handle it). Back on the bus to Chinese jade factory and lunch which consisted of masses of people scarfing down huge amounts of food in record time. Back on the bus to other sites that we honestly don't know what they were. We visited a Hindu/Buddhist temple of sorts...where I was hit on the head and blessed by a monk. We fought against the masses to try to get sodas at the meat-on-a-stick concession line outside the temple doors. And again, a jade factory where we got shooed out of room after room of jade. It was like we were on display the entire day. The workers seemed mesmerized by our presence. They attempted to talk to us in English and we attempted to communicate w/them with our phrase book, but in the end we never got our messages across. We waited and waited and waited. Eventually getting back on the freezing cold bus. While we waited some more to leave...we decided to sing "99 bottles of beer on the wall"...with that everyone went quite and just stared at us. We did end up teaching the little 11 y/o girl the lyrics to "wheels on the bus". When someone lit up a cigarette, Hadas tried her hand at Chinese characters and re-created the "smokeless market" sign we had taken a picture of at the jade factory on the steamed up bus window. We wanted to go to this middle-eastern restaurant which was like finding a needle in a haystack. The tour guide (who was probably just thankful to get rid of us) made us deboard the bus w/a Chinese couple who said they knew where it was. Instead, they took us to the subway. We blindly got on one of the metro lines and ended up meeting a really nice Enligsh speaking guy from ...Lithuania. He helped us the rest of the way and we eventually made it there, 2 hours later. The food was worth it though, as were the Asian and Arabian belly dancers.
All in all, a great 24 hours in Beijing, but now it's time to say goodbye to Asia all together...Have just a few more hours before my flight home! Going to soak up what I can of this city and am really looking forward to coming home! It's been a long, crazy ride, this trip...and I want to thank you all for sharing it with me by reading my blogs. The blogs aren't ending though. This has been a whirlwind of a trip and it's going to take me a few weeks to fully digest everything I've experienced so stay tuned. Also, have a full memory card of photos to share soon! Miss you all, can't wait to get back to the city of brotherly love...Philadelphia! :)
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Olympic Territory
After some last minute haggling on Khao San Road, I boarded a bus that they jam packed w/people for the airport. Checked in, went through customs and got a taste of what to expect in China (I thought the Chinese woman behind me was going to climb into my suitcase! She was so close I had to separate us with my carryon bag!)...I enjoyed a *real* cup of coffee, changed over my remaining Thai Baht to Chinese Yuan and headed for security...
Personal space issues were quickly becoming apparent as all the Chinese people rushed in a mad herd for the door the moment they opened the gate. I thought...'can't we all just settle down? The plane isn't going anywhere without us...'
On my Egypt Air flight, I sat next to a 22 y/o Thai kid who spoke minimal English. I silently laughed at him playing with a Rubix cube...'good luck, kid', I thought. I was in and out of sleep, reading my book, had a delicious vegetarian Egyptian meal and when we just about ready to land after 5 hours of flying I noticed the kid had completed the Rubix cube!!! I was enormously impressed...I shared w/him that my attempt at completing one of those was to switch the stickers around as a kid. Don't know if he fully understood my stupidity or if he was just smiling and nodding at the American's babbling...
Landed in Beijing airport and it was pretty quiet. We arrived to the huge terminal which felt more like a planetarium with enormous arched ceilings w/scattered white lights. Went through customs quickly and waited for what seemed like forever for my bag...all the while dealing w/people pushing and shoving to get to the baggage carriage. What is with them??
Wasn't sure how I was going to make it to my hotel since no one seemed to speak English. Fortunately I found a woman in line for the taxi stand that did. She called my hotel for me to ask for their "Chinese name" and she wrote down the 3 line-long name on my confirmation paper. Thank God! I had no problems getting a taxi after this! We drove the 20+ kilometers to the Courtyard Marriot (after my last experience I was definitely not messing around w/any Chinese so-called "perfect" hotels). It's Chinese New Year so everyone was setting off fireworks all throughout the city. Red lanterns decorated the streets and windows of people's apartments. There were lots of highrise buildings...even more so than Bangkok.
I arrived at the Marriot and Hadas was of course, in the business center checking her email. It was so nice to meet up again after being apart for a week. We decided to go to K-TV Party World...a place down the street, karaoke and dinner buffet. We got our own private room and dinner buffet...was very similar to Yakatori Boy in Philadelphia but w/more music selection! The buffet was not good. I don't know what the food even was. I picked at the rice, and tried some vegetable dish but everything else just looked a little too scary...too many bones, covered in an unidentifiable gelatinous substance, are those tenacles??
Karaoke was awesome as usual...but even more so b/c it was Beijing! We paid for one hour but of course that wasn't long enough. The classics...beatles, madonna, beyonce. It was just the 2 of us but we had a great time!
Afterwards we stopped at 711 b/c I was starving! By the way, did I mention that 711's have replaced the Starbucks of the states? Instead of a Starbucks on every corner, there is a 711 on every corner here. Starbucks are every Other corner. Anyway, 711 was bare. For a moment, I wondered if there was a report of an upcoming natural disaster or storm? There was literally nothing on an entire wall of shelves. Alongside mixed nuts and raisens were dried meats and fish. All were expired. They had rows of authentic ramen noodles...and in the end I opted for a box of chips ahoy cookies. They taste different in China, but still a nice filler ;)
Then we moved on "XX". At first I was like, 'Hadas, where are you taking me??', but turns out in Chinese, XX means internet, not porn. We took the elevator up to the 3rd floor, cheap, non-smoking, internet cafe. Except everyone was smoking. The girl who helped us is studying Business English in Beijing and said that it's no use to even ask them to stop smoking b/c no one listens. I couldn't stand it (which is why I'm late on blogging...). I almost used the bathroom there until I noticed a sickening stench of urine about 20 feet away from it. Decided to wait till we got back to the safety of our Westernized marriot bathroom...
It was sooo nice to go back to our carpeted, luxurious room! My bed had a thick, white fluffy duvet and 2 REAL pillows! On trip advisor someone had complained about the beds being hard here...obviously they haven't traveled throughout the rest of Southeast Asia! The beds were wonderful...I slept like a baby, for all 4 hours. In the morning, I enjoyed the best shower of the trip...burning hot water, water pressure that could power wash your driveway. And a hairdryer!!
The girls had booked a trip to the Great Wall and the Ming Tombs through the hotel that was going to cost 470 CNY (or more than $70 USD). In my Lonely Planet book, it said that hotels charge an infuriating price of up to 300 CNY. With this, we decided to cancel the trip and go at it on our own...
Personal space issues were quickly becoming apparent as all the Chinese people rushed in a mad herd for the door the moment they opened the gate. I thought...'can't we all just settle down? The plane isn't going anywhere without us...'
On my Egypt Air flight, I sat next to a 22 y/o Thai kid who spoke minimal English. I silently laughed at him playing with a Rubix cube...'good luck, kid', I thought. I was in and out of sleep, reading my book, had a delicious vegetarian Egyptian meal and when we just about ready to land after 5 hours of flying I noticed the kid had completed the Rubix cube!!! I was enormously impressed...I shared w/him that my attempt at completing one of those was to switch the stickers around as a kid. Don't know if he fully understood my stupidity or if he was just smiling and nodding at the American's babbling...
Landed in Beijing airport and it was pretty quiet. We arrived to the huge terminal which felt more like a planetarium with enormous arched ceilings w/scattered white lights. Went through customs quickly and waited for what seemed like forever for my bag...all the while dealing w/people pushing and shoving to get to the baggage carriage. What is with them??
Wasn't sure how I was going to make it to my hotel since no one seemed to speak English. Fortunately I found a woman in line for the taxi stand that did. She called my hotel for me to ask for their "Chinese name" and she wrote down the 3 line-long name on my confirmation paper. Thank God! I had no problems getting a taxi after this! We drove the 20+ kilometers to the Courtyard Marriot (after my last experience I was definitely not messing around w/any Chinese so-called "perfect" hotels). It's Chinese New Year so everyone was setting off fireworks all throughout the city. Red lanterns decorated the streets and windows of people's apartments. There were lots of highrise buildings...even more so than Bangkok.
I arrived at the Marriot and Hadas was of course, in the business center checking her email. It was so nice to meet up again after being apart for a week. We decided to go to K-TV Party World...a place down the street, karaoke and dinner buffet. We got our own private room and dinner buffet...was very similar to Yakatori Boy in Philadelphia but w/more music selection! The buffet was not good. I don't know what the food even was. I picked at the rice, and tried some vegetable dish but everything else just looked a little too scary...too many bones, covered in an unidentifiable gelatinous substance, are those tenacles??
Karaoke was awesome as usual...but even more so b/c it was Beijing! We paid for one hour but of course that wasn't long enough. The classics...beatles, madonna, beyonce. It was just the 2 of us but we had a great time!
Afterwards we stopped at 711 b/c I was starving! By the way, did I mention that 711's have replaced the Starbucks of the states? Instead of a Starbucks on every corner, there is a 711 on every corner here. Starbucks are every Other corner. Anyway, 711 was bare. For a moment, I wondered if there was a report of an upcoming natural disaster or storm? There was literally nothing on an entire wall of shelves. Alongside mixed nuts and raisens were dried meats and fish. All were expired. They had rows of authentic ramen noodles...and in the end I opted for a box of chips ahoy cookies. They taste different in China, but still a nice filler ;)
Then we moved on "XX". At first I was like, 'Hadas, where are you taking me??', but turns out in Chinese, XX means internet, not porn. We took the elevator up to the 3rd floor, cheap, non-smoking, internet cafe. Except everyone was smoking. The girl who helped us is studying Business English in Beijing and said that it's no use to even ask them to stop smoking b/c no one listens. I couldn't stand it (which is why I'm late on blogging...). I almost used the bathroom there until I noticed a sickening stench of urine about 20 feet away from it. Decided to wait till we got back to the safety of our Westernized marriot bathroom...
It was sooo nice to go back to our carpeted, luxurious room! My bed had a thick, white fluffy duvet and 2 REAL pillows! On trip advisor someone had complained about the beds being hard here...obviously they haven't traveled throughout the rest of Southeast Asia! The beds were wonderful...I slept like a baby, for all 4 hours. In the morning, I enjoyed the best shower of the trip...burning hot water, water pressure that could power wash your driveway. And a hairdryer!!
The girls had booked a trip to the Great Wall and the Ming Tombs through the hotel that was going to cost 470 CNY (or more than $70 USD). In my Lonely Planet book, it said that hotels charge an infuriating price of up to 300 CNY. With this, we decided to cancel the trip and go at it on our own...
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Ready to go
After leaving the internet cafe last night, I had to walk through the streets one last time to get back to the D&D Inn. There was a man leading a baby elephant through the road...everyone was going crazy taking pictures with him, etc. Then out of nowhere, it was like a mass exodus. All of the people with their food carts, vendors, etc started pushing their carts down the block and through an alleyway...as if they were running from something? I didn't know what was going on...just knew to get out of their way before I was run over! Turns out the police were driving down the block, apparently the carts and vendors are supposed to close up shop at midnight. I guess that was their warning...but everyone basically hid out in the alleyways for about 10 mins and by the time I made it back to my place, they were all trickling back onto Khao San Road.
Took me a while to get to sleep last night with all the noise...exhaustion got the best of me eventually though. I think sometime around 4am is when it finally started quieting down. The quiet was almost disturbing this morning when I woke up...I jumped up to look out my window and make sure everything was ok...It was like a scene from night of the living dead. Just as many people as last night except quieter...newcomers just arriving w/their backpacks, a few straglers leftover from last night squinting in the sunlight...
After showering I had breakfast at the restaurant behind my hotel. There's a small bridge filled w/huge white and yellow fish and it's set back off the main road so you're not constantly being harrassed by the vendors (which is a major plus). Then I waved down a taxi and asked to go to the Siam Paragon...the biggest mall Ever. I really didn't want to go there, but it was a good landmark b/c I remembered there was a smaller, more authentic Thai market nearby and figured if I walked around I would be able to find it...
2 hours later and no such luck!
I did however, stumble upon another market...more like a grocery store but with bras and underwear and a jewelry section, right next to cases of fanta and coke. I also happened to walk past some workers just opening their shops and cleaning out front...I wasn't sure what they were doing, seemed to be on their hands and knees scrubbing at the sidewalk with metal scrapers and oils...? Turns out they were trying to get the blackened, flattened, chewed up wads of gum off of their sidewalk. Now that's some serious stuff.
I gave up on finding my market and defeated, I hopped back in a cab and headed back to my ghetto where I ended up doing some last minute shopping...I am so tired of bargaining. Please just tell me how much it is, this game is getting a little ridiculous!
I hung out at the pool for a little bit...it's a small rectangle up on the roof with a view of Bangkok under a heavy grey sky. I thought maybe it was going to storm, but then realized it was just a thick layer of smog settled above the city...pleasant huh? The pool was packed with people, there were no free chairs. I laid out my sarong on the wooden boards by the rim of the pool and finished "Lovely Bones". The book honestly just annoyed me (sorry Hadas). About a young girl who dies and it's from her perspective in "her heaven". They never found her body, except for an elbow. The entire time I just kept thinking...an elbow is not a bone in and of itself, it is a joint...a "Joining" of 2 bones. It just didn't make sense and every time they mentioned the elbow I was irritated. What do editors get paid to do?
Oh, then I tried to sell 4 books to these used book stores which are everywhere. All 4 books cost me around...$66 USD or 2254 B and these vendors tried to give me 350B for all 4! I laughed in their faces and smuggly took my books back. It's a Catch 22 though b/c I want to get rid of them b/c I have no room in my luggage (and will probably have to pay even more money to Continental on my way home if my bag exceeds their weight limit) but I'd rather give them away free than sell them for pennies just so these vendors can turn around and rip off another unsuspecting traveler...
I eventually gave up on that idea and found a cute vegetarian restaurant to have dinner...away from the torturous frog sellers. I had massaman curry with chicken and vegetables. The curry is a little spicy but also flavored with peanuts which gives it a sweet flavor too. It was so good. I am really going to miss this food!
I decided I really needed a coat. It's below 0 in China right now and after wearing tank tops and flip flops for the past 3 weeks it's going to be a rough transition. Especially without a coat! Thailand, as it turns out, is a difficult place to buy a coat. It makes sense...I mean the country only has 2 seasons really...summer and rainy. I guess now would be their "winter" but it's still 30-35 degrees celcius! Not much of a winter! Hadas said there was a market in China where she bought a coat, but in a later email she told me how much she spent and it was a fortune! I decided to go back to Siam Paragon to look around...
The Siam Paragon is an enormous complex that is quite honestly the biggest mall I've ever seen. Imagine the ritzy side of King of Prussia, elevate the ceilings about 20 feet, add lots more light and shiny glass, triple it's size, divide it into 3 sections, add an outdoor area between each and you'll come close to envisioning what the Siam Center is like. It's 500,000 sqm, has 350 stores, also is home to an aquarium with 20,000 marine life species, and a cinema with 16 screens. It's ridiculous. And everything is super expensive. For Thailand. For the US. I went into Northface and the cheapest thing was a vest which was priced at 6500B, or $191 USD! Forget it!
I made my way across the street to MKB, the "Thai" version of the Paragon. I walked into the department store on the end, picked up the first coat I saw and at 3000B it seemed like a sweet deal. Without a second thought I just got it. I didn't feel like wasting my entire night in this place! Anyone who knows me knows I'm not much of a shopper anyway...I'm the type of person to scan the store and can size up their inventory in a matter of seconds to determine if it's really worth my time and/or effort...if the place has anything remotely like what I'm looking for...but it was pretty overwhelming to be in a mall with 3 different sections, 3-6 levels each with huge outdoor verandas in between and about a thousand teenagers running around.
Afterwards, of course, I had to avoid being scammed by tuk-tuk drivers and taxis...all trying to charge me 200B when the real price is around 70B. I wasn't getting anywhere though. There was a formal taxi stand but even still, the drivers were refusing to use their meters b/c of "traffic". I left the taxi stand line and asked around...the best I got was 150B from a tuk-tuk driver, but I was determined. Eventually a woman on a motorbike offered to take me for 100B. I had bags, wasn't sure how I was going to do it on a motorbike, but she just grabbed them and said 'no problem'...then I said, 'well I don't have a helmet', and she magically produced one for me. Well, with that, how could I say no? I strapped on the helmet and hopped on the back...and squeezed my legs into her and closed my eyes as we zipped in between buses and taxis and motorbikes alike. I tried not to think about the statistic I read earlier which was that ---don't read this mom--- there are 38 motorbike related deaths every day in Bangkok alone. Now that's a scary thought. Fortunately, I made it back to Khoa San intact.
A trip to southeast Asia just isn't complete if you don't ride on a motorbike at least once. It's just surreal. There are so many of them, they drive on the left side of the road (which I still can't wrap my head around), they zip through traffic and through spaces you would never imagine fitting through...it's just, it's just...you just will have to try it for yourself if you are ever here.
Anyway. I'm about to negotiate my way through the madness that is Khoa San Road one last time...in search of ear plugs. Tomorrow morning I'll be boarding a bus to the airport (to avoid the expense, but moreso the hassel of dealing w/taxi drivers) and will be off to China with my new Thai coat :) I can't believe it's already the last leg of this trip...time really flies!
Took me a while to get to sleep last night with all the noise...exhaustion got the best of me eventually though. I think sometime around 4am is when it finally started quieting down. The quiet was almost disturbing this morning when I woke up...I jumped up to look out my window and make sure everything was ok...It was like a scene from night of the living dead. Just as many people as last night except quieter...newcomers just arriving w/their backpacks, a few straglers leftover from last night squinting in the sunlight...
After showering I had breakfast at the restaurant behind my hotel. There's a small bridge filled w/huge white and yellow fish and it's set back off the main road so you're not constantly being harrassed by the vendors (which is a major plus). Then I waved down a taxi and asked to go to the Siam Paragon...the biggest mall Ever. I really didn't want to go there, but it was a good landmark b/c I remembered there was a smaller, more authentic Thai market nearby and figured if I walked around I would be able to find it...
2 hours later and no such luck!
I did however, stumble upon another market...more like a grocery store but with bras and underwear and a jewelry section, right next to cases of fanta and coke. I also happened to walk past some workers just opening their shops and cleaning out front...I wasn't sure what they were doing, seemed to be on their hands and knees scrubbing at the sidewalk with metal scrapers and oils...? Turns out they were trying to get the blackened, flattened, chewed up wads of gum off of their sidewalk. Now that's some serious stuff.
I gave up on finding my market and defeated, I hopped back in a cab and headed back to my ghetto where I ended up doing some last minute shopping...I am so tired of bargaining. Please just tell me how much it is, this game is getting a little ridiculous!
I hung out at the pool for a little bit...it's a small rectangle up on the roof with a view of Bangkok under a heavy grey sky. I thought maybe it was going to storm, but then realized it was just a thick layer of smog settled above the city...pleasant huh? The pool was packed with people, there were no free chairs. I laid out my sarong on the wooden boards by the rim of the pool and finished "Lovely Bones". The book honestly just annoyed me (sorry Hadas). About a young girl who dies and it's from her perspective in "her heaven". They never found her body, except for an elbow. The entire time I just kept thinking...an elbow is not a bone in and of itself, it is a joint...a "Joining" of 2 bones. It just didn't make sense and every time they mentioned the elbow I was irritated. What do editors get paid to do?
Oh, then I tried to sell 4 books to these used book stores which are everywhere. All 4 books cost me around...$66 USD or 2254 B and these vendors tried to give me 350B for all 4! I laughed in their faces and smuggly took my books back. It's a Catch 22 though b/c I want to get rid of them b/c I have no room in my luggage (and will probably have to pay even more money to Continental on my way home if my bag exceeds their weight limit) but I'd rather give them away free than sell them for pennies just so these vendors can turn around and rip off another unsuspecting traveler...
I eventually gave up on that idea and found a cute vegetarian restaurant to have dinner...away from the torturous frog sellers. I had massaman curry with chicken and vegetables. The curry is a little spicy but also flavored with peanuts which gives it a sweet flavor too. It was so good. I am really going to miss this food!
I decided I really needed a coat. It's below 0 in China right now and after wearing tank tops and flip flops for the past 3 weeks it's going to be a rough transition. Especially without a coat! Thailand, as it turns out, is a difficult place to buy a coat. It makes sense...I mean the country only has 2 seasons really...summer and rainy. I guess now would be their "winter" but it's still 30-35 degrees celcius! Not much of a winter! Hadas said there was a market in China where she bought a coat, but in a later email she told me how much she spent and it was a fortune! I decided to go back to Siam Paragon to look around...
The Siam Paragon is an enormous complex that is quite honestly the biggest mall I've ever seen. Imagine the ritzy side of King of Prussia, elevate the ceilings about 20 feet, add lots more light and shiny glass, triple it's size, divide it into 3 sections, add an outdoor area between each and you'll come close to envisioning what the Siam Center is like. It's 500,000 sqm, has 350 stores, also is home to an aquarium with 20,000 marine life species, and a cinema with 16 screens. It's ridiculous. And everything is super expensive. For Thailand. For the US. I went into Northface and the cheapest thing was a vest which was priced at 6500B, or $191 USD! Forget it!
I made my way across the street to MKB, the "Thai" version of the Paragon. I walked into the department store on the end, picked up the first coat I saw and at 3000B it seemed like a sweet deal. Without a second thought I just got it. I didn't feel like wasting my entire night in this place! Anyone who knows me knows I'm not much of a shopper anyway...I'm the type of person to scan the store and can size up their inventory in a matter of seconds to determine if it's really worth my time and/or effort...if the place has anything remotely like what I'm looking for...but it was pretty overwhelming to be in a mall with 3 different sections, 3-6 levels each with huge outdoor verandas in between and about a thousand teenagers running around.
Afterwards, of course, I had to avoid being scammed by tuk-tuk drivers and taxis...all trying to charge me 200B when the real price is around 70B. I wasn't getting anywhere though. There was a formal taxi stand but even still, the drivers were refusing to use their meters b/c of "traffic". I left the taxi stand line and asked around...the best I got was 150B from a tuk-tuk driver, but I was determined. Eventually a woman on a motorbike offered to take me for 100B. I had bags, wasn't sure how I was going to do it on a motorbike, but she just grabbed them and said 'no problem'...then I said, 'well I don't have a helmet', and she magically produced one for me. Well, with that, how could I say no? I strapped on the helmet and hopped on the back...and squeezed my legs into her and closed my eyes as we zipped in between buses and taxis and motorbikes alike. I tried not to think about the statistic I read earlier which was that ---don't read this mom--- there are 38 motorbike related deaths every day in Bangkok alone. Now that's a scary thought. Fortunately, I made it back to Khoa San intact.
A trip to southeast Asia just isn't complete if you don't ride on a motorbike at least once. It's just surreal. There are so many of them, they drive on the left side of the road (which I still can't wrap my head around), they zip through traffic and through spaces you would never imagine fitting through...it's just, it's just...you just will have to try it for yourself if you are ever here.
Anyway. I'm about to negotiate my way through the madness that is Khoa San Road one last time...in search of ear plugs. Tomorrow morning I'll be boarding a bus to the airport (to avoid the expense, but moreso the hassel of dealing w/taxi drivers) and will be off to China with my new Thai coat :) I can't believe it's already the last leg of this trip...time really flies!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
The Backpacker's Ghetto
Dubbed the "Backpacker's Ghetto" by Rough Guides, today, I cannot think of a better description for Khao San Road. It is really living up to its reputation. I'm kinda wishing I spent the extra 200B so I could get a good night's sleep...oh well, too late for that now. Guess I'll have to go with Plan B and buy a pair of ear plugs!
It's the kind of place you have to be in the mood for...I'm just not into it tonight. Very similar to Phuket, the street is just crammed w/people and vendors and bars and clubs (except here you can also ride your motorbike, taxi, or tuk-tuk down it as well). Fruit vendors, Pad Thai vendors, Mango/sticky rice vendors, deep fried bug vendors...all with carts on wheels. Some parked on the sides of the street, some mobile and trying to negotiate the road which is next to impossible. Promotors for various clubs stand along the sidelines forcing you to take their slips of paper for the specials tonight, even though you have no intention of going there. Music is blaring from every vendor/shop/bar/club and all bleeding into each other in a haphazard collision of sound in the middle of the street. The heat, exhaust, smoke, trash, tiger balm, insence hits your nose like a mack truck. Everyone seems to be drunk (or otherwise impaired), and everyone is smoking cigarettes and carelessly waving them around in one hand, while the other works to balance their drinks (or buckets of alcohol) filled to the brim. You're getting banged into left and right and someone is always stepping on your toes or in my case, the back of my flip flops...you can't look at anything without someone being right on top of you..."what you like lady? I make good price for you"...when you ask, "how much", their response is always, "how much you pay"...if you happen to get close to the end of the street you're attacked by the taxi/tuk-tuk army...these guys slip in unnoticed just yards away from their vehicles whispering before their competition can hear them...'taxi? tuk-tuk? where you go lady?' ARGH. If I had to sum up Khoa San Road in one word, today it would be: overwhelming.
And I swear, if one more hilltribe lady shoves the wooden frog in my face again I am seriously going to FLIP out! You'd really have to be here to fully understand, but there are these stupid wooden frogs that come with a stick, crafted by the hilltribes of Northern Thailand. When you rub the stick over the back of the frog it makes a noise that sounds like a frog. Genius, right? Wrong. BY FAR, the most annoying toy Ever. Ok, ok, so in and of itself, it's not a terrible toy I suppose. However, say you have about 30-40 women dressed in traditional hilltribe gear walking up and down the same street (approximately 3 city blocks distance) rubbing the frogs constantly and pushing them in your face every 2 feet or so, well that's when it gets annoying. In fact, I joked with one guy about getting a group together and just buying them out...just buy up their entire supply...and then ceremoniously burn them in a bonfire in the center...sweet sweet revenge. Even if it was a few hundred dollars...it would be worth it to never see one of those things again!
I apologize for my negative tone...I'm just a little overstimulated tonight. I guess going from Ko Lanta to Phuket helped ease the transition back to Bangkok...but still. I'm missing the quiet, peaceful beaches of Ko Lanta...dreaming of being back in my hammock...
It's the kind of place you have to be in the mood for...I'm just not into it tonight. Very similar to Phuket, the street is just crammed w/people and vendors and bars and clubs (except here you can also ride your motorbike, taxi, or tuk-tuk down it as well). Fruit vendors, Pad Thai vendors, Mango/sticky rice vendors, deep fried bug vendors...all with carts on wheels. Some parked on the sides of the street, some mobile and trying to negotiate the road which is next to impossible. Promotors for various clubs stand along the sidelines forcing you to take their slips of paper for the specials tonight, even though you have no intention of going there. Music is blaring from every vendor/shop/bar/club and all bleeding into each other in a haphazard collision of sound in the middle of the street. The heat, exhaust, smoke, trash, tiger balm, insence hits your nose like a mack truck. Everyone seems to be drunk (or otherwise impaired), and everyone is smoking cigarettes and carelessly waving them around in one hand, while the other works to balance their drinks (or buckets of alcohol) filled to the brim. You're getting banged into left and right and someone is always stepping on your toes or in my case, the back of my flip flops...you can't look at anything without someone being right on top of you..."what you like lady? I make good price for you"...when you ask, "how much", their response is always, "how much you pay"...if you happen to get close to the end of the street you're attacked by the taxi/tuk-tuk army...these guys slip in unnoticed just yards away from their vehicles whispering before their competition can hear them...'taxi? tuk-tuk? where you go lady?' ARGH. If I had to sum up Khoa San Road in one word, today it would be: overwhelming.
And I swear, if one more hilltribe lady shoves the wooden frog in my face again I am seriously going to FLIP out! You'd really have to be here to fully understand, but there are these stupid wooden frogs that come with a stick, crafted by the hilltribes of Northern Thailand. When you rub the stick over the back of the frog it makes a noise that sounds like a frog. Genius, right? Wrong. BY FAR, the most annoying toy Ever. Ok, ok, so in and of itself, it's not a terrible toy I suppose. However, say you have about 30-40 women dressed in traditional hilltribe gear walking up and down the same street (approximately 3 city blocks distance) rubbing the frogs constantly and pushing them in your face every 2 feet or so, well that's when it gets annoying. In fact, I joked with one guy about getting a group together and just buying them out...just buy up their entire supply...and then ceremoniously burn them in a bonfire in the center...sweet sweet revenge. Even if it was a few hundred dollars...it would be worth it to never see one of those things again!
I apologize for my negative tone...I'm just a little overstimulated tonight. I guess going from Ko Lanta to Phuket helped ease the transition back to Bangkok...but still. I'm missing the quiet, peaceful beaches of Ko Lanta...dreaming of being back in my hammock...
Coming full circle
I started my trip to Thailand right here in Bangkok a few weeks ago and am concluding it here as well...right on Khoa San Road. My flight, only an hour in duration, felt like forever with this annoying Egyptian child behind me on her father's lap kicking my seat constantly. The plane was scheduled to take off at 1300, but we sat and waited for the late Egyptian family to board...thought that was extra nice of Thai airways! The 6 of them were sitting directly behind me and this little kid had her own seat behind her mother but insisted on sitting on her father's lap. I thought..."I'll just endure it, it's really not that long", but 40 minutes into the flight I just could not stand it anymore and had to say something to the father. I just don't get it. How do you think it's ok to let your child sit in your lap and kick the seat the ENTIRE flight?!
They served this really weird "snack" which was basically a triangular shaped thing made of seaweed with rice inside and strips of shrimp. I passed...enjoyed my nescafe instead.
Grabbed my backpack and hopped in a cab which seemed to take longer to navigate through Bangkok than the flight to get here. The driver tried to charge me 300B for a ride that was 225B. I felt like screaming, "this is my 3rd time in Bangkok, I'm not as gullible as you think I am!!!". I paid him exactly what I owed, and not a baht more. Besides, I think he took the "long route" anyway...it definitely was a different than the last time...
I walked over to D&D Inn, ideally located right smack in the middle of all the action of Khoa San Road...and which the guidebooks say is a great place to meet people with rooftop pool. They emailed to say that they could not hold a room for me but I might get lucky and arrive before they're all gone. The woman (I think?) at the lobby said that the cheapest room they had available was 750B. I said I wanted their single room for 550, but she kept saying the more expensive one was their "last room available". Suddenly when I was about to leave, they miraraculously "found" a cheaper room...550B just as it quoted in the guidebook. Wow, here less than an hour and they're at it already!
So I'm all checked in and the room is not bad, except it faces the street and I have already been warned that it will be loud, but I'm only here for 2 nights, surely it can't be that bad...
Anyway...excited to be back in the city of cheap eats! Heading out to grab some streetside Pad Thai for dinner and see where the night takes me...
They served this really weird "snack" which was basically a triangular shaped thing made of seaweed with rice inside and strips of shrimp. I passed...enjoyed my nescafe instead.
Grabbed my backpack and hopped in a cab which seemed to take longer to navigate through Bangkok than the flight to get here. The driver tried to charge me 300B for a ride that was 225B. I felt like screaming, "this is my 3rd time in Bangkok, I'm not as gullible as you think I am!!!". I paid him exactly what I owed, and not a baht more. Besides, I think he took the "long route" anyway...it definitely was a different than the last time...
I walked over to D&D Inn, ideally located right smack in the middle of all the action of Khoa San Road...and which the guidebooks say is a great place to meet people with rooftop pool. They emailed to say that they could not hold a room for me but I might get lucky and arrive before they're all gone. The woman (I think?) at the lobby said that the cheapest room they had available was 750B. I said I wanted their single room for 550, but she kept saying the more expensive one was their "last room available". Suddenly when I was about to leave, they miraraculously "found" a cheaper room...550B just as it quoted in the guidebook. Wow, here less than an hour and they're at it already!
So I'm all checked in and the room is not bad, except it faces the street and I have already been warned that it will be loud, but I'm only here for 2 nights, surely it can't be that bad...
Anyway...excited to be back in the city of cheap eats! Heading out to grab some streetside Pad Thai for dinner and see where the night takes me...
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Hedonistic Phuket
Phuket has several beachs but as I was only here for one night I decided to stay put...walked around downtown Patong which in addition to being the most frequently visited beach, I've been told is also the homosexual hot spot in Phuket.
Past tons of sidewalk cafes and bars, eventually I came upon a hedonistic strip not unlike Vegas...an entire street completely blocked off to traffic filled with bars and clubs and tattoo parlours and lady boys dressed to the nine that you could get your picture taken with for a mere 50 B. I considered it but in the end spent my money on more worthwhile things, such as a spur of the moment nose piercing ;)
The air was so heavy last night...the heat combined with exhaust fumes from the millions of motorbikes, cars, tuk-tuks, etc...not to mention the fish being grilled on the sides of the road, the smells of raw sewage wafting up from the (thankfully covered) sewage grates...it was almost too much to bear.
After walking around for a while I decided to have dinner at an Indian restaurant...the food was excellent, if only I hadn't burned the roof of my mouth on the first bite! I didn't realize till after I was already waiting for my food that it was also a hooka (sp?) bar also so as you can imagine, I wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible...
I kept walking past tattoo places and body piercing stalls and eventually stopped at a place on the sidewalk a bit down the road...I had always wanted my nose pierced, why not? When I inquired about the price and found out it was only $6, how could I say no? I carefully inspected the equipment for sterility and before I knew it was being seated in a blue plastic lawn chair just behind the table of body jewelry...a few steps away from the street...and a few Westerners lingering around to watch...I chose a tiny blue stud and watched as the guy cut the ring's post and shaved it down into a point...the anxiety was welling up inside me! The worst part was having my nose clamped with a ring forceps, ouch! But 1, 2, 3 and it was done...just a little red, slightly sore...but most importantly, reversible. Unlike the enormous tiger beer logo tattoo I watched a drunken Irish guy get...I thought, 'couldn't his friends just convince him to get the Tshirt instead?'
Anyway...I was mostly an observer last night...although I did stop in a few book stores since I've already finished my 6th book! However, I cannot bring myself to purchase used books in Thailand for more money than they are brand new at Borders! I guess the laws of economics are at work here when it comes to books...there aren't that many bookstores, and people do want to read on the beach...the Thai people are not stupid and take full advantage of that. Most shops boast that they "trade" books, but in the end they survey your book and decide it's only worth abuot 150 B when the book you want costs 500 B. Argh. But they do have books in multiple languages...
I purchased a pair of imitation Puma shorts last night for 100B and woke up early this morning to go for a run...the beach here is perfect for it...the sand is really soft but packed down by the water...and there weren't too many shells which is good because since I lost my hiking shoes somewhere along the line, my only choice was to go running barefoot. I asked a nice woman at a fruit stand to mind my flip flops and ran the length of the beach and back...it was nice in the morning when it wasn't so crowded. There were a few other people down there power walking or running as well while the workers cleaned off the beach chairs and began setting up the umbrellas for "another day in paradise"...
It felt good to get some official exercise for the first time this month ;) I found my flip flops and took one last look at Patong...it seems utterly unbelieveable that just a few years ago a wave of pure destruction destroyed this exact beach...sweeping everything away with it along with thousands of lives. I cannot begin to imagine the terror those people felt that day...it gave me the chills. And yet, everything seems to be completely back to normal...I'm sure if I asked around more, it would be a different story entirely.
Anyway...Bangkok bound. Stay tuned.
Past tons of sidewalk cafes and bars, eventually I came upon a hedonistic strip not unlike Vegas...an entire street completely blocked off to traffic filled with bars and clubs and tattoo parlours and lady boys dressed to the nine that you could get your picture taken with for a mere 50 B. I considered it but in the end spent my money on more worthwhile things, such as a spur of the moment nose piercing ;)
The air was so heavy last night...the heat combined with exhaust fumes from the millions of motorbikes, cars, tuk-tuks, etc...not to mention the fish being grilled on the sides of the road, the smells of raw sewage wafting up from the (thankfully covered) sewage grates...it was almost too much to bear.
After walking around for a while I decided to have dinner at an Indian restaurant...the food was excellent, if only I hadn't burned the roof of my mouth on the first bite! I didn't realize till after I was already waiting for my food that it was also a hooka (sp?) bar also so as you can imagine, I wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible...
I kept walking past tattoo places and body piercing stalls and eventually stopped at a place on the sidewalk a bit down the road...I had always wanted my nose pierced, why not? When I inquired about the price and found out it was only $6, how could I say no? I carefully inspected the equipment for sterility and before I knew it was being seated in a blue plastic lawn chair just behind the table of body jewelry...a few steps away from the street...and a few Westerners lingering around to watch...I chose a tiny blue stud and watched as the guy cut the ring's post and shaved it down into a point...the anxiety was welling up inside me! The worst part was having my nose clamped with a ring forceps, ouch! But 1, 2, 3 and it was done...just a little red, slightly sore...but most importantly, reversible. Unlike the enormous tiger beer logo tattoo I watched a drunken Irish guy get...I thought, 'couldn't his friends just convince him to get the Tshirt instead?'
Anyway...I was mostly an observer last night...although I did stop in a few book stores since I've already finished my 6th book! However, I cannot bring myself to purchase used books in Thailand for more money than they are brand new at Borders! I guess the laws of economics are at work here when it comes to books...there aren't that many bookstores, and people do want to read on the beach...the Thai people are not stupid and take full advantage of that. Most shops boast that they "trade" books, but in the end they survey your book and decide it's only worth abuot 150 B when the book you want costs 500 B. Argh. But they do have books in multiple languages...
I purchased a pair of imitation Puma shorts last night for 100B and woke up early this morning to go for a run...the beach here is perfect for it...the sand is really soft but packed down by the water...and there weren't too many shells which is good because since I lost my hiking shoes somewhere along the line, my only choice was to go running barefoot. I asked a nice woman at a fruit stand to mind my flip flops and ran the length of the beach and back...it was nice in the morning when it wasn't so crowded. There were a few other people down there power walking or running as well while the workers cleaned off the beach chairs and began setting up the umbrellas for "another day in paradise"...
It felt good to get some official exercise for the first time this month ;) I found my flip flops and took one last look at Patong...it seems utterly unbelieveable that just a few years ago a wave of pure destruction destroyed this exact beach...sweeping everything away with it along with thousands of lives. I cannot begin to imagine the terror those people felt that day...it gave me the chills. And yet, everything seems to be completely back to normal...I'm sure if I asked around more, it would be a different story entirely.
Anyway...Bangkok bound. Stay tuned.
Safe Travels by Waterway
I really did not want to peel myself out of bed so early this morning (615), but I had to pack up and rearrange my backpack again and get down to the pier for my ferry to Phuket. My backpack is super heavy at this point and awkward to carry around...especially uncomfortable since I have fresh sunburn and the straps dig into it in exactly the worst possible spots...
Anyway, had a quick breakfast of "Cornflacks and milk" at the Thai Cat restaurant before jumping on the back of a pickup truck along with a group of other weary eyed travelers...I was sorry to leave Ko Lanta today...aside from the weird-ness of last night, I really enjoyed the quiet of this island. It would have been SO nice to just climb into my hammock and fall back asleep. The weather was perfect once again...sun shining brightly and not a cloud in the sky...but I knew I had to get going for Phuket, as it was I was only going to have half a day there anyway...
Boarded the ferry and fell asleep almost immediately...after about an hour I woke up when the boat started slowing down. I looked out the window and saw an island right before me, 'could we be there already' I wondered? It looked familiar...? Turns out it was Koh Phi Phi. The boat was slowing down so that the Phuket passengers could hop onto a different boat!! It was totally crazy...we pulled up alongside another ferry mid-sea, and they threw a walkway down and ushered everyone w/the green circle stickers on their shirts (one-way to Phuket) onto the new boat. I'm just glad I woke up in time to make the switch!
Settled into an over-air-conditioned section of the new ferry and finished my new book... Phuket, the largest of the Thai islands, appeared to be pretty developed from a distance, much more so than Ko Lanta. We pulled into the dock and it was pure chaos as the staff started tossing backpacks onto the pier and I was practically attacked by taxi drivers and motorbike drivers all wanting to know "Where you go?" "You need taxi" "I take you there", etc etc etc.
I sifted through the growing pile of bags and eventually found mine. Getting it on my back was another story...you'd think all these insistent taxi drivers might help a woman in distress...? As I wandered around the pier in seach of affordable transportation, I couldn't help but notice a large number of homosexual and transgendered people...one person, sporting huge bright yellow sunglasses (which made him resemble a bee) was even carrying a clear plastic case filled with be-jeweled tiaras! I am in for some good people watching today!
Eventually I discovered a mini bus station which seemed to be my cheapest option at getting to my hotel at 150B (about $5). After waiting about 10 minutes our driver started loading us and our bags into his van...it was then that I noticed the enormous board of rules, or (and I quote): "Suggestions for Safe Travels by Waterway" (I jotted down a few highlights...)
1) Don't wear clothes that confine, thick and too weight. For example: jeans.
2) Don't be afraid wet and sun because when you avoid the spray or change your seat to avoid the sun it can make the boat lose its balance. (since when does the weight of one person disrupt the balance of a huge ferry?)
3)The passenger should can swim to help another one and yourself. (what???!)
4) Avoid take the patient that can't help themselves to travel by boat. (???)
In addition to this helpful advice, I also learned that "breaking, removing or possessing coral from any beaches in Phuket is subject to 40,000 B fine and/or up to 4 years in prison". Good to know.
We drove through Phuket town which was reminiscent of Bangkok, but on a much smaller scale. I was the only one on the van who already had my accomodations booked so I got dropped off first :) I walked into the hotel and was greeted by an older Thai woman...I noticed baby formula on her desk and realized that she had a baby sleeping on the floor next to her desk chair. Next to the desk was a line of washers and dryers, not to mention all the noise on the streets with the motorbikes and people yelling...we were only steps away. "How can that kid sleep through all this noise...?" At first she handed me a key for room 508...I was hoping there was an elevator, there was no way I was making it up 5 flights w/this backpack! There was no elevator, but the woman doing laundry noticed that I wasn't happy about being on the top floor and told me to wait...she took my key from me and switched my room to the 2nd floor...Thank God!
My room is really basic...fake hard wood floors, fan, very small bathroom. I quickly changed into my bathing suit and headed down to the beach...Patong beach, or the most frequented beach in Phuket and also, the most devastated by the tsunami...however, 4 years later you would never know it.
This beach was very different from the beaches of Ko Lanta, or Koh Phi Phi for that matter. I had to cross a busy street and then a concrete pathway following the curves of Patong. There seemed to be many Thai locals spralled out on Bamboo mats having lunch (how sweet is that?)...there were also numerous food carts serving up everything from fresh coconuts to Pad Thai to meat on a stick. I maneuvered my way through the plethora of yellow umbrellas to get down to the water...I walked down part of the beach just to see if I could get a deal on a chair...but seems they're all in on it with each other...100B was the going price. All the "front row" (aka beach front) chairs were taken, but the guy promised that as soon as someone got up, I could move up...
It was sweltering hot, I was already sunburned, and running out of my imitation Hawaiian tropic. I bought a fresh coconut and laid under my very own yellow umbrella. The water was clear but there were so many people in it! The swimming area was sectioned off with rope and just beyond it jet skiis whizzed back and forth...so many that I was sure I would witness a collision. People were parasailing as well and of course many people were trying to sell things on the beach...sarongs, watches, aloe vera, t-shirts, ice cream, temporary tatoos...you name it.
After about an hour, a couple moved from the front row so I was able to move up. Unfortunately, I was placed right next to 2 German guys and a very annoying Thai woman who did not shut up the entire time! I'm not sure what their deal was, but she kept saying she wanted "chick-in, chick-in, you want some chick-in too? let's get some chick-in" and a guy with a huge tray of roasted chickens came over...once she had the chicken she wanted to talk about them helping her with her visa...woman: 'you go with me to bangkok and bring your passport so i get visa. i get visa for 90 days. ok? you go with me right?' german guy: 'maybe, we'll see tomorrow', woman: 'why not just tell me now if you go with me?'. And so she went on and on. Chick-in and visa. And then she talked about how she flies to Bangkok, buys a whole bunch of stuff, then comes back here to sell it on the beach at an inflated price. Then the 2 German guys would start speaking to each other in German so she couldn't understand them. Damn I wish I knew what they were saying!
Around 5 pm I had had more than enough of Patong (I'm so thankful I took a detour to Ko Lanta instead of being here for 4 days). Was absolutely delighted to have a hot water shower...my first proper shower in weeks! Venturing down to the Patong Bazaar now for some dinner. Think I'm going to bed early tonight, leaving for Bangkok bright and early tomorrow morning...
Anyway, had a quick breakfast of "Cornflacks and milk" at the Thai Cat restaurant before jumping on the back of a pickup truck along with a group of other weary eyed travelers...I was sorry to leave Ko Lanta today...aside from the weird-ness of last night, I really enjoyed the quiet of this island. It would have been SO nice to just climb into my hammock and fall back asleep. The weather was perfect once again...sun shining brightly and not a cloud in the sky...but I knew I had to get going for Phuket, as it was I was only going to have half a day there anyway...
Boarded the ferry and fell asleep almost immediately...after about an hour I woke up when the boat started slowing down. I looked out the window and saw an island right before me, 'could we be there already' I wondered? It looked familiar...? Turns out it was Koh Phi Phi. The boat was slowing down so that the Phuket passengers could hop onto a different boat!! It was totally crazy...we pulled up alongside another ferry mid-sea, and they threw a walkway down and ushered everyone w/the green circle stickers on their shirts (one-way to Phuket) onto the new boat. I'm just glad I woke up in time to make the switch!
Settled into an over-air-conditioned section of the new ferry and finished my new book... Phuket, the largest of the Thai islands, appeared to be pretty developed from a distance, much more so than Ko Lanta. We pulled into the dock and it was pure chaos as the staff started tossing backpacks onto the pier and I was practically attacked by taxi drivers and motorbike drivers all wanting to know "Where you go?" "You need taxi" "I take you there", etc etc etc.
I sifted through the growing pile of bags and eventually found mine. Getting it on my back was another story...you'd think all these insistent taxi drivers might help a woman in distress...? As I wandered around the pier in seach of affordable transportation, I couldn't help but notice a large number of homosexual and transgendered people...one person, sporting huge bright yellow sunglasses (which made him resemble a bee) was even carrying a clear plastic case filled with be-jeweled tiaras! I am in for some good people watching today!
Eventually I discovered a mini bus station which seemed to be my cheapest option at getting to my hotel at 150B (about $5). After waiting about 10 minutes our driver started loading us and our bags into his van...it was then that I noticed the enormous board of rules, or (and I quote): "Suggestions for Safe Travels by Waterway" (I jotted down a few highlights...)
1) Don't wear clothes that confine, thick and too weight. For example: jeans.
2) Don't be afraid wet and sun because when you avoid the spray or change your seat to avoid the sun it can make the boat lose its balance. (since when does the weight of one person disrupt the balance of a huge ferry?)
3)The passenger should can swim to help another one and yourself. (what???!)
4) Avoid take the patient that can't help themselves to travel by boat. (???)
In addition to this helpful advice, I also learned that "breaking, removing or possessing coral from any beaches in Phuket is subject to 40,000 B fine and/or up to 4 years in prison". Good to know.
We drove through Phuket town which was reminiscent of Bangkok, but on a much smaller scale. I was the only one on the van who already had my accomodations booked so I got dropped off first :) I walked into the hotel and was greeted by an older Thai woman...I noticed baby formula on her desk and realized that she had a baby sleeping on the floor next to her desk chair. Next to the desk was a line of washers and dryers, not to mention all the noise on the streets with the motorbikes and people yelling...we were only steps away. "How can that kid sleep through all this noise...?" At first she handed me a key for room 508...I was hoping there was an elevator, there was no way I was making it up 5 flights w/this backpack! There was no elevator, but the woman doing laundry noticed that I wasn't happy about being on the top floor and told me to wait...she took my key from me and switched my room to the 2nd floor...Thank God!
My room is really basic...fake hard wood floors, fan, very small bathroom. I quickly changed into my bathing suit and headed down to the beach...Patong beach, or the most frequented beach in Phuket and also, the most devastated by the tsunami...however, 4 years later you would never know it.
This beach was very different from the beaches of Ko Lanta, or Koh Phi Phi for that matter. I had to cross a busy street and then a concrete pathway following the curves of Patong. There seemed to be many Thai locals spralled out on Bamboo mats having lunch (how sweet is that?)...there were also numerous food carts serving up everything from fresh coconuts to Pad Thai to meat on a stick. I maneuvered my way through the plethora of yellow umbrellas to get down to the water...I walked down part of the beach just to see if I could get a deal on a chair...but seems they're all in on it with each other...100B was the going price. All the "front row" (aka beach front) chairs were taken, but the guy promised that as soon as someone got up, I could move up...
It was sweltering hot, I was already sunburned, and running out of my imitation Hawaiian tropic. I bought a fresh coconut and laid under my very own yellow umbrella. The water was clear but there were so many people in it! The swimming area was sectioned off with rope and just beyond it jet skiis whizzed back and forth...so many that I was sure I would witness a collision. People were parasailing as well and of course many people were trying to sell things on the beach...sarongs, watches, aloe vera, t-shirts, ice cream, temporary tatoos...you name it.
After about an hour, a couple moved from the front row so I was able to move up. Unfortunately, I was placed right next to 2 German guys and a very annoying Thai woman who did not shut up the entire time! I'm not sure what their deal was, but she kept saying she wanted "chick-in, chick-in, you want some chick-in too? let's get some chick-in" and a guy with a huge tray of roasted chickens came over...once she had the chicken she wanted to talk about them helping her with her visa...woman: 'you go with me to bangkok and bring your passport so i get visa. i get visa for 90 days. ok? you go with me right?' german guy: 'maybe, we'll see tomorrow', woman: 'why not just tell me now if you go with me?'. And so she went on and on. Chick-in and visa. And then she talked about how she flies to Bangkok, buys a whole bunch of stuff, then comes back here to sell it on the beach at an inflated price. Then the 2 German guys would start speaking to each other in German so she couldn't understand them. Damn I wish I knew what they were saying!
Around 5 pm I had had more than enough of Patong (I'm so thankful I took a detour to Ko Lanta instead of being here for 4 days). Was absolutely delighted to have a hot water shower...my first proper shower in weeks! Venturing down to the Patong Bazaar now for some dinner. Think I'm going to bed early tonight, leaving for Bangkok bright and early tomorrow morning...
Last night in Ko Lanta
So I ran into Theodor, my Swedish acquaintance from Koh Phi Phi on the beach the other day. We decided to grab dinner and have a few drinks last night. I met up with him at one of the beach bars and while I was waiting for him to arrive, I was molested by a toddler! This cute little baby walked over to me (presumably the owner's son)...wearing only a T-shirt (babies around here, especially on the islands, tend not to wear diapers). He was saying something in baby Thai and I was a little worried he might pee on me, but then he just started grabbing my left breast! Repeatedly! I didn't even know what to do! I tried to gently remove his hand but he just kept grabbing me again. I looked around with pleading eyes for SOMEone to notice and get this demon child away from me, but all of the staff seemed preoccupied waiting on tables...I was like, 'where's your mommy?...go find your mommy!' realizing afterwards that surely this kid doesn't understand English...I turned my head to try to wave down one of the staff members and that's when he straight up bit me! Thank god for padded push up bras!!! I jumped out of my seat and just then of course, his father came running after him with an apologetic smile...I can totally understand why his mother weaned him!!
Anyway, aside from that whole incident, dinner was otherwise good and under $4 USD. Then we headed to "No Name Bar" for a drink where we met a group of people that invited us to join them. A few locals, including the bartender were sitting there as well as a guy from Spain, a guy from England and a girl who just completed her military service in Israel. At first it was just fun, we were having a good time, just talking and getting to know each other when Matt, the British guy, began insisting that we all try his Thai liquor concoction...it smelled horrific and I had no intentions of trying it. Nevertheless he kept filling up a shot glass and placing it in front of me...I just kept politely refusing and passing it off to the others. I started to raise my guard though b/c I noticed that he himself wasn't drinking very much but he seemed much too eager to share it with everyone else. And never in my life have I been asked so many times why I didn't want to take a shot?! "But why not? You're on holiday! Who cares if you have to get up early! You should have fun tonight!" and so it went on and on. I don't have to explain myself to you!! I swear I felt like I was in an after school special! We finished our beers and managed to get out of there...Theo went on to try to find the "Dark side of the moon" party and I headed back to my bungalow...it was already 1 am and I was exhausted...
Anyway, aside from that whole incident, dinner was otherwise good and under $4 USD. Then we headed to "No Name Bar" for a drink where we met a group of people that invited us to join them. A few locals, including the bartender were sitting there as well as a guy from Spain, a guy from England and a girl who just completed her military service in Israel. At first it was just fun, we were having a good time, just talking and getting to know each other when Matt, the British guy, began insisting that we all try his Thai liquor concoction...it smelled horrific and I had no intentions of trying it. Nevertheless he kept filling up a shot glass and placing it in front of me...I just kept politely refusing and passing it off to the others. I started to raise my guard though b/c I noticed that he himself wasn't drinking very much but he seemed much too eager to share it with everyone else. And never in my life have I been asked so many times why I didn't want to take a shot?! "But why not? You're on holiday! Who cares if you have to get up early! You should have fun tonight!" and so it went on and on. I don't have to explain myself to you!! I swear I felt like I was in an after school special! We finished our beers and managed to get out of there...Theo went on to try to find the "Dark side of the moon" party and I headed back to my bungalow...it was already 1 am and I was exhausted...
Monday, January 26, 2009
Mai Pen Rai
I slept ok last night underneath my thin pink mosquito net...although I had to kill 2 mosquitos on the inside of the net first. And next time I travel like this, someone please remind me to bring my own sheets! Every place I've slept has only had one fitted sheet and a nasty blanket. This place didn't even have a blanket...slept with a towel instead, but it's so freakin hot here I really don't need a blanket anyway. It's funny how you start to get adjusted to a different standard of living while traveling...
For instance...in the city formerly known as Saigon, at the very beginning of our trip...we freaked out b/c there were these little tiny bugs that looked like ants crawling up the walls of the bathroom. Ok ok, we did see one or 2 on the bed which is what did it for us and we got our money back and switched hotel rooms. But now that I'm on the last leg of this trip I could not care less about those bugs...they're crawling all over my sink, up the walls of the last 3 bathrooms I've been in. I'm not bothered by it anymore...Hell I'm even tolerating frogs in my bathroom at this point! Perhaps I'm embracing the Thai's way of life that is evident all throughout this country? As the Thai saying goes: "Mai Pen Rai" meaning it's no matter, or it doesn't matter...etc
And surely it doesn't. Everything about this country is haphazard and kind of careless. Buildings seem to be half built here and there, it's like construction started and the people just got bored and deserted the project all together. Today after thoroughly burning myself in an even more tie-dyed fashion (so much for "evening" myself out), I decided to check out the downtown market. I took a tuk-tuk there and then worked my way back to my hotel...about 3-4 miles.
I just wandered in and out of shops (Still too expensive to buy anything here, especially when I know everything is going to be 1/3 of the price back in Bangkok). So I just "window-shopped" and was taking in my surroundings. While my original impression of Ko Lanta was that it was clean, I've discovered that's not really true. The main road just off the beach is pretty dirty with trash strewn about; definitely not as much as in Koh Phi Phi, but enough...
I was just walking along, looking around when I almost fell a frightening 10 feet into a pleasant elixer of Ko Lanta's sewage system...I caught my balance--and my breath--and looked up to see that all down the road were 5 X 5 foot square openings directly into the sewer! I looked to my right and there was a fancy looking Thai restaurant with an open air seating section about 1 foot away from this massive hole in the ground. Could this really be possible? There were at least 40 of these holes lining the sidewalks all the way back to my bungalow. They're huge! And if you fall in, it's a good 7-10 feet down into steamy, frothy, pure sewage. Did I mention the smell?? On the beach all you can smell is the salty sea air intermingling with the Thai dishes being cooked up at the various beachside grills...but on the streets it's a lovely concoction similar to that of Koh Phi Phi...dead fish and feces. It's difficult to cover up the smell of wide open sewer grates when it's 90+ degrees...
Anyway, I carefully watched my step the rest of the way back...a perfect example of a project left undone. Some shop owners threw pieces of cardboard or scraps of wood over the holes, bless them, but none were nearly big enough to cover them completely...
I'm just thanking God that I didn't fall in...
I had lunch at the beach today...the menu I was given was creatively held together with strips of banana leaves and seashells. "Thank you rery much" was written at the bottom of every single page. Then I noticed that everything that should have said "French" instead said "France". They apparently serve 'france fries' and 'france toast'. I thought about telling them of the mistakes, but decided against it...it's endearing :)
Despite the Mai Pen Rai attitude that penetrates this country, this particular island is very conservative...with a large proportion (~30%) being Muslim as opposed to the predominant Buddhism in other regions. It is illegal through most of Thailand to go topless on the beaches. Nevertheless, I've seen many women tourists here bearing all. Some are even letting their children run around naked as well. Aside from the fact that I personally consider it rude not to observe the specific cultural practices of the country you're traveling through...isn't it interesting that these people seem so oblivious to the law here?? I've seen "Broke Down Palace", I'm not about to do ANYthing illegal here...
I stopped in my hotel's reception earlier to ask for the tuk-tuk. The "lobby" is basically the porch of their house. No one was there so I peered in through their living room and saw the woman laying on the floor...at first I was worried about her, thinking she had fallen or something, but she must have sensed my presence and woke up...apparently taking a nap flat on the living room floor is a normal thing around here! She didn't even bother to get up...went on explaining where to get a tuk-tuk and how much it should cost, etc...all without even a thought of rising from her nap...mai pen rai.
I got back to my bungalow just in time to see the sun set. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and the sun was a perfect yellow, melting into a steaming orange ball of fire...it was really cool to see it dip, dip, dip, dip below the horizon until it was gone leaving only a trace of pinks and purples behind. Shortly thereafter I endured yet another cold shower which wasn't so comfortable with my fresh sunburn...
There's supposed to be a "dark side of the moon" party tonight...whatever that means. I'm excited that SOMEthing will be going on at night around here. Otherwise, I abandoned my book after reading 200 pages. I thought Jane Green was good but I kept waiting for this book to actually catch my attention which it never did...in the end I decided the final 200 pages just wasn't worth my time. Life is too short to persist through boring books. I picked up a new book called "Tatty", from the perspective of a little girl growing up in Ireland. It reminded me of "Angela's Ashes" right away and so far I'm breezing through it...
On to Phuket tomorrow, bright and early!
For instance...in the city formerly known as Saigon, at the very beginning of our trip...we freaked out b/c there were these little tiny bugs that looked like ants crawling up the walls of the bathroom. Ok ok, we did see one or 2 on the bed which is what did it for us and we got our money back and switched hotel rooms. But now that I'm on the last leg of this trip I could not care less about those bugs...they're crawling all over my sink, up the walls of the last 3 bathrooms I've been in. I'm not bothered by it anymore...Hell I'm even tolerating frogs in my bathroom at this point! Perhaps I'm embracing the Thai's way of life that is evident all throughout this country? As the Thai saying goes: "Mai Pen Rai" meaning it's no matter, or it doesn't matter...etc
And surely it doesn't. Everything about this country is haphazard and kind of careless. Buildings seem to be half built here and there, it's like construction started and the people just got bored and deserted the project all together. Today after thoroughly burning myself in an even more tie-dyed fashion (so much for "evening" myself out), I decided to check out the downtown market. I took a tuk-tuk there and then worked my way back to my hotel...about 3-4 miles.
I just wandered in and out of shops (Still too expensive to buy anything here, especially when I know everything is going to be 1/3 of the price back in Bangkok). So I just "window-shopped" and was taking in my surroundings. While my original impression of Ko Lanta was that it was clean, I've discovered that's not really true. The main road just off the beach is pretty dirty with trash strewn about; definitely not as much as in Koh Phi Phi, but enough...
I was just walking along, looking around when I almost fell a frightening 10 feet into a pleasant elixer of Ko Lanta's sewage system...I caught my balance--and my breath--and looked up to see that all down the road were 5 X 5 foot square openings directly into the sewer! I looked to my right and there was a fancy looking Thai restaurant with an open air seating section about 1 foot away from this massive hole in the ground. Could this really be possible? There were at least 40 of these holes lining the sidewalks all the way back to my bungalow. They're huge! And if you fall in, it's a good 7-10 feet down into steamy, frothy, pure sewage. Did I mention the smell?? On the beach all you can smell is the salty sea air intermingling with the Thai dishes being cooked up at the various beachside grills...but on the streets it's a lovely concoction similar to that of Koh Phi Phi...dead fish and feces. It's difficult to cover up the smell of wide open sewer grates when it's 90+ degrees...
Anyway, I carefully watched my step the rest of the way back...a perfect example of a project left undone. Some shop owners threw pieces of cardboard or scraps of wood over the holes, bless them, but none were nearly big enough to cover them completely...
I'm just thanking God that I didn't fall in...
I had lunch at the beach today...the menu I was given was creatively held together with strips of banana leaves and seashells. "Thank you rery much" was written at the bottom of every single page. Then I noticed that everything that should have said "French" instead said "France". They apparently serve 'france fries' and 'france toast'. I thought about telling them of the mistakes, but decided against it...it's endearing :)
Despite the Mai Pen Rai attitude that penetrates this country, this particular island is very conservative...with a large proportion (~30%) being Muslim as opposed to the predominant Buddhism in other regions. It is illegal through most of Thailand to go topless on the beaches. Nevertheless, I've seen many women tourists here bearing all. Some are even letting their children run around naked as well. Aside from the fact that I personally consider it rude not to observe the specific cultural practices of the country you're traveling through...isn't it interesting that these people seem so oblivious to the law here?? I've seen "Broke Down Palace", I'm not about to do ANYthing illegal here...
I stopped in my hotel's reception earlier to ask for the tuk-tuk. The "lobby" is basically the porch of their house. No one was there so I peered in through their living room and saw the woman laying on the floor...at first I was worried about her, thinking she had fallen or something, but she must have sensed my presence and woke up...apparently taking a nap flat on the living room floor is a normal thing around here! She didn't even bother to get up...went on explaining where to get a tuk-tuk and how much it should cost, etc...all without even a thought of rising from her nap...mai pen rai.
I got back to my bungalow just in time to see the sun set. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and the sun was a perfect yellow, melting into a steaming orange ball of fire...it was really cool to see it dip, dip, dip, dip below the horizon until it was gone leaving only a trace of pinks and purples behind. Shortly thereafter I endured yet another cold shower which wasn't so comfortable with my fresh sunburn...
There's supposed to be a "dark side of the moon" party tonight...whatever that means. I'm excited that SOMEthing will be going on at night around here. Otherwise, I abandoned my book after reading 200 pages. I thought Jane Green was good but I kept waiting for this book to actually catch my attention which it never did...in the end I decided the final 200 pages just wasn't worth my time. Life is too short to persist through boring books. I picked up a new book called "Tatty", from the perspective of a little girl growing up in Ireland. It reminded me of "Angela's Ashes" right away and so far I'm breezing through it...
On to Phuket tomorrow, bright and early!
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Frogs in my bathroom
When I got home last night after the internet cafe, my bathroom was still draining from my shower...there are no "bathtubs" here in Thailand, basically the shower is a hand held thing on the wall and EVERYthing gets wet. In this bathroom there's a hole in the concrete at the corner serving as the drain...anyway, when I walked in there I saw something move in the water...I was too freaked out to get any closer so I took a picture...frogs! They must have come in through the drain...but I'll take them over roaches any day that's for sure!
Yesterday on the beach I ran into a guy I met in Koh Phi Phi...a young guy from Sweden traveling for 4 months. I overheard the travel agent in Koh Phi Phi tell him there were no more rooms on the whole of the island, but I knew my place had some...(I think that people just avoided walking past the landfill to get there). Anyway, he did find a room in Koh Phi Phi and we didn't run into each other again until Ko Lanta on the beach. Small world. It was nice to have someone other than the Thai bartenders to hang out with though...don't get me wrong, the Thais are more than welcoming and nice, but I didn't feel like explaining to everyone that I was traveling alone...
Anyway, it's great here, but there's not much to do at night. We even closed down the bar and it was barely 11pm!
But that gives me an early start today...which is good b/c I have to even out my wacky sunburn. I'm burnt in small circle in the middle of my back, guess I just couldn't reach. And just the back of my legs and around my knees in the front. I swear, I don't know how this happens! Wish me luck :) btw, my arms are KILLING me from climbing...even worse today than yesterday! Muscles I never knew I had hurt...
Yesterday on the beach I ran into a guy I met in Koh Phi Phi...a young guy from Sweden traveling for 4 months. I overheard the travel agent in Koh Phi Phi tell him there were no more rooms on the whole of the island, but I knew my place had some...(I think that people just avoided walking past the landfill to get there). Anyway, he did find a room in Koh Phi Phi and we didn't run into each other again until Ko Lanta on the beach. Small world. It was nice to have someone other than the Thai bartenders to hang out with though...don't get me wrong, the Thais are more than welcoming and nice, but I didn't feel like explaining to everyone that I was traveling alone...
Anyway, it's great here, but there's not much to do at night. We even closed down the bar and it was barely 11pm!
But that gives me an early start today...which is good b/c I have to even out my wacky sunburn. I'm burnt in small circle in the middle of my back, guess I just couldn't reach. And just the back of my legs and around my knees in the front. I swear, I don't know how this happens! Wish me luck :) btw, my arms are KILLING me from climbing...even worse today than yesterday! Muscles I never knew I had hurt...
Ko Lanta
I arrived by ferry and was picked up by Reece in a tuk-tuk. It's funny how the tuk-tuks change depending on the region. In Cambodia, the tuk-tuk was basically a little wooden box haphazardly attached to the back of a motorbike. In Bangkok, tuk-tuks were more like cabs...with metal outlining the passenger portion, but still open-air. In Chiang Mai, they were not quite as enclosed as in Bangkok, but seemed more secure than the rudimentary ones of Cambodia. Now here, in Ko Lanta, they're getting fancy...the tuk-tuk passenger compartment is a booth like seat that swings around to the left side of the motor bike. In any case, I made it safely to my hotel which was only about 10 minutes away.
Right away I could tell Ko Lanta was different. Approaching the island by ferry you could see high trees bordering the white sand beaches and hills in the background. More rugged looking then Koh Phi Phi...
I arrived at the hotel and was shown to my bungalow. A thatched roof hut made of bamboo (what else?) and banana leaves...A hammock draped the entire front porch, padlocked door, full size bed with pink mosquito netting and a bathroom made of concrete, resembling what I would envision for a prison bathroom. I have a manual toilet here...must fill a bucket of water and pour it into the bowl to get it to flush, but at least it's not a squat toilet ;)
I changed into my bathing suit and headed for the beach...The beach stretched out about 2 miles in either direction...appropriately named "Long Beach" being the longest beach on Ko Lanta island. I spread out my sarong and settled in to read my book but the sun was unbearably hot! The water here was perfectly clear with gentle waves and much cooler than the bays at Koh Phi Phi. Still, even after going in it was much too hot to stay in the sun...
I ventured up to the "Cat Thai" restaurant...where there was a disproportionate amount of servers to customers. It was an open air establishment and I took a seat at the bar. Immediately was befriended by the English speaking staff. Enjoyed a fresh coconut adorned with a bright purple orchid and fruit salad for lunch. Met an old French guy on "holiday" who insisted he didn't know any English but then proceeded to talk my ear off...
After lunch I took a walk to the end of the beach...the trash from Koh Phi Phi is replaced here by shells of various colors, rocks, and broken pieces of coral. The beach is lined with restaurants and resorts, but doesn't have the party party party atmosphere of Koh Phi Phi. There are people around, but they're more civilized ;)
I headed back to my resort and fell asleep on the beach...woke up just in time to see the sun setting and turning the sky various shades of pink and purple.
Showered, changed and nestled myself into my hammock to read my book...this place is serene and peaceful, a striking contrast to Koh Phi Phi. And hammocks have got to be the greatest thing ever. They are so relaxing. I need one at home.
Well I'm going to grab some dinner and head down to the market. It just wouldn't be Thailand without a market!
Right away I could tell Ko Lanta was different. Approaching the island by ferry you could see high trees bordering the white sand beaches and hills in the background. More rugged looking then Koh Phi Phi...
I arrived at the hotel and was shown to my bungalow. A thatched roof hut made of bamboo (what else?) and banana leaves...A hammock draped the entire front porch, padlocked door, full size bed with pink mosquito netting and a bathroom made of concrete, resembling what I would envision for a prison bathroom. I have a manual toilet here...must fill a bucket of water and pour it into the bowl to get it to flush, but at least it's not a squat toilet ;)
I changed into my bathing suit and headed for the beach...The beach stretched out about 2 miles in either direction...appropriately named "Long Beach" being the longest beach on Ko Lanta island. I spread out my sarong and settled in to read my book but the sun was unbearably hot! The water here was perfectly clear with gentle waves and much cooler than the bays at Koh Phi Phi. Still, even after going in it was much too hot to stay in the sun...
I ventured up to the "Cat Thai" restaurant...where there was a disproportionate amount of servers to customers. It was an open air establishment and I took a seat at the bar. Immediately was befriended by the English speaking staff. Enjoyed a fresh coconut adorned with a bright purple orchid and fruit salad for lunch. Met an old French guy on "holiday" who insisted he didn't know any English but then proceeded to talk my ear off...
After lunch I took a walk to the end of the beach...the trash from Koh Phi Phi is replaced here by shells of various colors, rocks, and broken pieces of coral. The beach is lined with restaurants and resorts, but doesn't have the party party party atmosphere of Koh Phi Phi. There are people around, but they're more civilized ;)
I headed back to my resort and fell asleep on the beach...woke up just in time to see the sun setting and turning the sky various shades of pink and purple.
Showered, changed and nestled myself into my hammock to read my book...this place is serene and peaceful, a striking contrast to Koh Phi Phi. And hammocks have got to be the greatest thing ever. They are so relaxing. I need one at home.
Well I'm going to grab some dinner and head down to the market. It just wouldn't be Thailand without a market!
Final morning on Koh Phi Phi
I woke up early today to be sure I had enough time to get up to the top of Koh Phi Phi...the viewpoint. Had breakfast at my hotel and then ventured down the road to see if I could find this "hidden staircase" that takes you to the highest point of the island...I did eventually find it. I was told it was hidden, but I don't know how you could miss the 5 X 5 foot sign which read "Viewpoint of Koh Phi Phi" just at the bottom...?
344 stairs in all, not counting the slanting walkway that seemed to go on forever (probably at least a mile) once reaching the top of the steps. I had to count on my way down b/c I just couldn't believe how many stairs there were! Too bad I didn't discover this days ago, it was a good workout! I was kicking myself for leaving so late (830 am) it was already hot and steamy and I was being attacked by mosquitos. There were lots of coconut trees up there with large piles of dried up coconuts just laying in a pile at the base of them. Also a chicken coop with lots of little chicks running around...
Eventually I made it to the top and the view was amazing...you could see both bays of the island clearly, just like on all the postcards. This view was similar from the views I saw yesterday climbing that rock (but from the other side of the island)...but I could enjoy it more this time as I wasn't as distracted hanging off the side of a cliff 80+ feet from the ground! There was a shop up there but aside from the guy setting up his stand, I was alone. I stayed long enough to take some photos and then headed back down...passing a very very Very long line of marching termites I believe...these things definitely were definitely not ants...but I can't be sure what they were. I just didn't want them on me is all I know...
I decided to wander through the village just one last time...walked down to the beach which was high tide and empty. I guess 9am was much too early for all the hung over party goers from last night. There are no "streets" on Koh Phi Phi but I took some photos of the trash that lined the narrow roads...Snapped a shot of a street sign warning tourists that "alcohol can impair judgement" along with a photo of a guy underwater kissing a fish??
I grabbed a snack...banana rolled in black sticy rice and coconut...and headed back to my hotel for my "transfer". One of the Bamboo Mountain Resort's staff strapped my backpack on his back to walk me 15 minutes to the pier. I was grateful as my bag is getting a bit heavy...
The ferry to Ko Lanta took about an hour and I kept dozing off...the lack of sleep is definitely taking its toll! Onto the next chapter...
344 stairs in all, not counting the slanting walkway that seemed to go on forever (probably at least a mile) once reaching the top of the steps. I had to count on my way down b/c I just couldn't believe how many stairs there were! Too bad I didn't discover this days ago, it was a good workout! I was kicking myself for leaving so late (830 am) it was already hot and steamy and I was being attacked by mosquitos. There were lots of coconut trees up there with large piles of dried up coconuts just laying in a pile at the base of them. Also a chicken coop with lots of little chicks running around...
Eventually I made it to the top and the view was amazing...you could see both bays of the island clearly, just like on all the postcards. This view was similar from the views I saw yesterday climbing that rock (but from the other side of the island)...but I could enjoy it more this time as I wasn't as distracted hanging off the side of a cliff 80+ feet from the ground! There was a shop up there but aside from the guy setting up his stand, I was alone. I stayed long enough to take some photos and then headed back down...passing a very very Very long line of marching termites I believe...these things definitely were definitely not ants...but I can't be sure what they were. I just didn't want them on me is all I know...
I decided to wander through the village just one last time...walked down to the beach which was high tide and empty. I guess 9am was much too early for all the hung over party goers from last night. There are no "streets" on Koh Phi Phi but I took some photos of the trash that lined the narrow roads...Snapped a shot of a street sign warning tourists that "alcohol can impair judgement" along with a photo of a guy underwater kissing a fish??
I grabbed a snack...banana rolled in black sticy rice and coconut...and headed back to my hotel for my "transfer". One of the Bamboo Mountain Resort's staff strapped my backpack on his back to walk me 15 minutes to the pier. I was grateful as my bag is getting a bit heavy...
The ferry to Ko Lanta took about an hour and I kept dozing off...the lack of sleep is definitely taking its toll! Onto the next chapter...
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Rock Climbing...
Got to hotel breakfast early this morning and was finishing up my coffee, reading an autobiographical account of the 2004 tsunami (book #5) when 2 German guys asked if they could join me...apparently all the tables at the guesthouse were full. Of course we started talking. Turns out the one guy lives in Phuket and has been there for 10 years. Nevertheless he didn't have much good to say about Thailand...or America for that matter. I resisted my urge to challenge him and just let him go on with his ranting. In the end, they told me about a viewpoint just a little up the hill from my hotel where you can see the whole of the island. Who knew? So that's on the agenda for tomorrow morning, they said the vista is best early morning.
After running into them, I ran into the 2 Dutch couples that we cooked with all the way up in Chiang Mai. Such a small world!
As I walked down to the tour agency to meet my group...I couldn't help but notice a woman cradling what looked like a really hairy baby...? Turns out it was a freakin monkey! She was holding a monkey with a t-shirt and bonnet on. #1, what is up with the Thai people dressing their pets?? (In Chiang Mai there were stalls selling only pet clothing and I saw a dog wearing jeans)...and #2, who keeps pet monkeys??I felt sorry for the monkey, all dressed up looking so silly when all his friends are having a blast doing their own thing just a little ways down the island on Monkey Island...
Shortly thereafter, I climbed this rock: http://img6.travelblog.org/Photos/19888/281744/t/2379441-Blick-auf-die-rechte-Seite-der-Ton-Sai-Bay-0.jpg
I joined up with the group, many also first time rock climbers, and we walked to the other side of the island, Ton Sai Bay with equipment in hand. We hiked up a steep and rocky pathway to get to the base of the rock that we were about to climb...flip flops weren't the best choice this morning! I watched our guides practically run up this vertical wall with ease to set up our ropes...the highest point was 25 meters (82 feet)!
It must have been 100 degrees today and the humidity was ridiculous. Before we even started climbing we were all dripping with sweat...The owner of the rock climbing school was there...this thin, pleasant Thai man seemingly in his late 30s. Apparently he hurt his shoulder recently so while he wasn't doing any climbing or belaying, he served as an excellent coach.
They helped me put on my harness and clipped the back of it with a bag of chalk dust. Then my guide helped me tie a figure 8 knot through the center loop of my harness. We pulled on it to ensure it was tight enough...my rope went all the way up the rock to the highest point, looped through ropes at the top and then ended back down beside me with my Australian guide who was belaying. She holds onto the other end of the rope to support me as I climb, and then will let me down slowly...The first climb was supposed to be the "easy" one, but it was tough! The rock jutted out such that I had to lean backwards and hang on by my fingers...using the last reserves of my upper body strength to pull me up. Once over this one rocky protrusion the rest was pretty simple...my guide was really helpful in coaching me on where to put my feet and hands when I didn't think I could get any higher...Before I knew it I was at the top! I couldn't believe I did it or how high up I was! I was too distracted to even notice the stunning views of the island in the background...
I waited patiently for the next climb...it was a group of 8-10 people so it took a while between, which was good b/c my hands were pretty shaky! The second one was pretty easy...mostly because the owner's brother, Tome, was belaying me and was pulling me so tight that I barely had to use my arm strength this time. Also the owner, whose name is escaping me, coached me through this one. It was the highest and got difficult about halfway through when I had to manuver myself around a rock that protruded out more than 2 feet. This climb was much higher than the first...approximately 82 feet! I did take a moment once at the top to look around...it was amazing! I could see both sides of this island! Now I know where the postcard shots are taken!
Coming down was even more fun than going up! Basically you just bounce off the wall the whole way down...
Moving right along, I got to the toughest climb...approximately the same height, but wasn't a straight shot up...you had to clip your harness a couple times on the way up and move to the right and left. I didn't make it all the way up this one...just about 5 feet shy from the top I could not find a place to put my feet and my hands were shaking so bad I just couldn't hold on any longer :( I carried my camera this time though and fortunately was able to snap a few shots before the Swedish guy who was belaying me let me down...
I climbed once more with Tome and then back to the Australian girl...they had re-arranged the ropes and although it was in the same spot as my first climb, it was a different route up and much higher. I was the last one to climb this and she asked if I could pull off the clips on my way down...I was having a tough time getting up there as this rock jutted out so far that I was leaning backwards once again relying completely on my upper body strength to pull me up. I just kept thinking that someone else was going to have to follow me to get the clips off cause I wasn't even going to make it up to them! But I rested for a moment and regained my strength. She helped direct my feet and hands into secret crevices in the rocks and I made it! This one was definitely the most challenging, but also the most fun...
This rock seems like it was there specifically for people to climb it! There are flat plates all the way up that made it really easy to slip your hands and feet into...of course there were some tricky spots, but it surprised me how easy it was. Are there any rocks to climb in PA??? I think I discovered a new hobby :)
Afterwards, I felt really gross. Covered in sweat and dirt and chalk dust. Yuck. I could not wait to jump in the pool back at the hotel! I walked back with the Swedish guy and helped him carry the ropes...then picked up my laundry, grabbed a yogurt and some rambutans for lunch and hiked back up the hill to the Bamboo Mountain resort. Even the pool at the hotel wasn't exactly refreshing in today's heat. I finished book #5 and fell asleep...was woken up by a sudden rainfall...decided to shower and change and head out for dinner...
I had dinner at Ciao Bella, an Italian restaurant on the beach that was completely demolished during the tsunami and has since been rebuilt. The book I finished today was written by the owner, an Italian man who fell in love with this island after losing the love of his life...a story of his survival and how he had to start all over again from scratch. I had buffalo mozzarella salad...very atypical food for Thailand. But it was delicious, if not overpriced. I did catch a glance at the owner sitting in an office off to the side of the bar...I recognized him from the back of his book. All the proceeds from the book are supposed to support the rebuilding process here on Koh Phi Phi...
After dinner I just wandered through the village once again. I've just about had my fill of Koh Phi Phi. Stopped in a few book stores where they're trying to sell crusty old used books for $10 each. I'm reading "Lovely Bones" right now, but it's kinda depressing and not really my kinda book. But I just can't bring myself to buy a dirty, tattered used book for more than what I would pay on Amazon! I had a coffee and browsed through a few titles...laughed to myself at the sections of the bookstore..."CHICK LIT" was one of them and was an entire wall of "Bridget Jones' Diary" type books.
At least the storm earlier cleared the air and now there's a slight breeze...despite this, the air temperature---even at this hour still feels balmy and pretty close to body temperature. I'm enjoying it though, I'll take this over winter any day!
Tomorrow morning I'll be boarding a ferry bound for Ko Lanta...which I've heard is a really relaxing but boring island. I'll take boring after being here for 4 days!
After running into them, I ran into the 2 Dutch couples that we cooked with all the way up in Chiang Mai. Such a small world!
As I walked down to the tour agency to meet my group...I couldn't help but notice a woman cradling what looked like a really hairy baby...? Turns out it was a freakin monkey! She was holding a monkey with a t-shirt and bonnet on. #1, what is up with the Thai people dressing their pets?? (In Chiang Mai there were stalls selling only pet clothing and I saw a dog wearing jeans)...and #2, who keeps pet monkeys??I felt sorry for the monkey, all dressed up looking so silly when all his friends are having a blast doing their own thing just a little ways down the island on Monkey Island...
Shortly thereafter, I climbed this rock: http://img6.travelblog.org/Photos/19888/281744/t/2379441-Blick-auf-die-rechte-Seite-der-Ton-Sai-Bay-0.jpg
I joined up with the group, many also first time rock climbers, and we walked to the other side of the island, Ton Sai Bay with equipment in hand. We hiked up a steep and rocky pathway to get to the base of the rock that we were about to climb...flip flops weren't the best choice this morning! I watched our guides practically run up this vertical wall with ease to set up our ropes...the highest point was 25 meters (82 feet)!
It must have been 100 degrees today and the humidity was ridiculous. Before we even started climbing we were all dripping with sweat...The owner of the rock climbing school was there...this thin, pleasant Thai man seemingly in his late 30s. Apparently he hurt his shoulder recently so while he wasn't doing any climbing or belaying, he served as an excellent coach.
They helped me put on my harness and clipped the back of it with a bag of chalk dust. Then my guide helped me tie a figure 8 knot through the center loop of my harness. We pulled on it to ensure it was tight enough...my rope went all the way up the rock to the highest point, looped through ropes at the top and then ended back down beside me with my Australian guide who was belaying. She holds onto the other end of the rope to support me as I climb, and then will let me down slowly...The first climb was supposed to be the "easy" one, but it was tough! The rock jutted out such that I had to lean backwards and hang on by my fingers...using the last reserves of my upper body strength to pull me up. Once over this one rocky protrusion the rest was pretty simple...my guide was really helpful in coaching me on where to put my feet and hands when I didn't think I could get any higher...Before I knew it I was at the top! I couldn't believe I did it or how high up I was! I was too distracted to even notice the stunning views of the island in the background...
I waited patiently for the next climb...it was a group of 8-10 people so it took a while between, which was good b/c my hands were pretty shaky! The second one was pretty easy...mostly because the owner's brother, Tome, was belaying me and was pulling me so tight that I barely had to use my arm strength this time. Also the owner, whose name is escaping me, coached me through this one. It was the highest and got difficult about halfway through when I had to manuver myself around a rock that protruded out more than 2 feet. This climb was much higher than the first...approximately 82 feet! I did take a moment once at the top to look around...it was amazing! I could see both sides of this island! Now I know where the postcard shots are taken!
Coming down was even more fun than going up! Basically you just bounce off the wall the whole way down...
Moving right along, I got to the toughest climb...approximately the same height, but wasn't a straight shot up...you had to clip your harness a couple times on the way up and move to the right and left. I didn't make it all the way up this one...just about 5 feet shy from the top I could not find a place to put my feet and my hands were shaking so bad I just couldn't hold on any longer :( I carried my camera this time though and fortunately was able to snap a few shots before the Swedish guy who was belaying me let me down...
I climbed once more with Tome and then back to the Australian girl...they had re-arranged the ropes and although it was in the same spot as my first climb, it was a different route up and much higher. I was the last one to climb this and she asked if I could pull off the clips on my way down...I was having a tough time getting up there as this rock jutted out so far that I was leaning backwards once again relying completely on my upper body strength to pull me up. I just kept thinking that someone else was going to have to follow me to get the clips off cause I wasn't even going to make it up to them! But I rested for a moment and regained my strength. She helped direct my feet and hands into secret crevices in the rocks and I made it! This one was definitely the most challenging, but also the most fun...
This rock seems like it was there specifically for people to climb it! There are flat plates all the way up that made it really easy to slip your hands and feet into...of course there were some tricky spots, but it surprised me how easy it was. Are there any rocks to climb in PA??? I think I discovered a new hobby :)
Afterwards, I felt really gross. Covered in sweat and dirt and chalk dust. Yuck. I could not wait to jump in the pool back at the hotel! I walked back with the Swedish guy and helped him carry the ropes...then picked up my laundry, grabbed a yogurt and some rambutans for lunch and hiked back up the hill to the Bamboo Mountain resort. Even the pool at the hotel wasn't exactly refreshing in today's heat. I finished book #5 and fell asleep...was woken up by a sudden rainfall...decided to shower and change and head out for dinner...
I had dinner at Ciao Bella, an Italian restaurant on the beach that was completely demolished during the tsunami and has since been rebuilt. The book I finished today was written by the owner, an Italian man who fell in love with this island after losing the love of his life...a story of his survival and how he had to start all over again from scratch. I had buffalo mozzarella salad...very atypical food for Thailand. But it was delicious, if not overpriced. I did catch a glance at the owner sitting in an office off to the side of the bar...I recognized him from the back of his book. All the proceeds from the book are supposed to support the rebuilding process here on Koh Phi Phi...
After dinner I just wandered through the village once again. I've just about had my fill of Koh Phi Phi. Stopped in a few book stores where they're trying to sell crusty old used books for $10 each. I'm reading "Lovely Bones" right now, but it's kinda depressing and not really my kinda book. But I just can't bring myself to buy a dirty, tattered used book for more than what I would pay on Amazon! I had a coffee and browsed through a few titles...laughed to myself at the sections of the bookstore..."CHICK LIT" was one of them and was an entire wall of "Bridget Jones' Diary" type books.
At least the storm earlier cleared the air and now there's a slight breeze...despite this, the air temperature---even at this hour still feels balmy and pretty close to body temperature. I'm enjoying it though, I'll take this over winter any day!
Tomorrow morning I'll be boarding a ferry bound for Ko Lanta...which I've heard is a really relaxing but boring island. I'll take boring after being here for 4 days!
Friday, January 23, 2009
Saying goodbye to Hadas
We arrived back at the main island just after sunset which is around 6:30 pm. Back to our hotel and the cold showers, and within the hour we were dressed and ready to go...we were starving and I was craving some cashew nut chicken...
We decided on a simple restaurant on the way down to the beach. We sat in plastic lawn chairs that the wooden tables were awkwardly too high for. Noticed that orchids lined the entire right side of the restaurant...how amazing. I cannot even keep one orchid alive in Philadelphia!
Anyway, I did get my cashew chicken and mixed veggies...long before Hadas got her meal. It didn't take me long to give up on waiting for hers and dig in. This had become routine around here....with my meals always coming first. The Thai people serve the food as soon as it's ready without regard to whether anyone else at the table has their meal. Much different from Western culture...
Eventually Hadas' food arrived and then we wandered on through the village. We got some gelato for dessert which was on the icy side, but otherwise good, browsed through a few bookstores, then moved on to Thai foot massages...a great way to end the evening.
We still ended up getting to bed very late...cause the night is never complete without hitting the internet cafe! Today was the first day in a long stretch of days that we actually had no plans and could therefore sleep in! Was wonderful even though I couldn't sleep much after 9am...something about the humidity and the mosquito netting and the sunlight breaking in through our windows. I packed up my stuff and moved into my new, single room, B11 just next door.
I headed down for breakfast, poolside, while Hadas packed up...then lounged by the pool and swam a few laps (gotta start that triathlon training!) while she did some last minute shopping. We met up again just before her ferry was due to leave for Phuket. The hotel supplied the same 70 lb 14 y/o boy to carry her luggage. Poor kid. We made our way through the village with this huge metal cart and the boy literally yelling "beep beep" the whole way to get people out of our path. After he did it I can't help but notice it's what everyone around here does on bikes or with carts, etc. Kinda funny.
It was sad to say goodbye to Hadas...but I knew it was just way too expensive for me to continue on to Bali and Singapore. And although I enjoyed our time together over the past few weeks, I think it'll also be nice to just be on my own for a little bit, especially here in the islands!
I spent the rest of the day browsing for more books and reading on the beach. It was actually really interesting...I went down to the beach around 3pm...the same beach where the tsunami wrecked so much havoc just a few years ago. The water was really far away...much farther than 2 days ago when we were on this beach. There was a thin strip of water and then a long, long sandbar where people were playing frisbee with dogs, etc. I was surprised at how quiet the beach was as well...much different from the lights and fire throwing activities at night! But all of a sudden, around 515 pm, the water began a slow rush towards the beach...it was really strange...like a pool filling up. It was almost like someone had removed invisible gates in the distance and the water was now able to flow freely fowards. I guess this happens everyday, but it just seemed so much more sudden than the gradual change of high and low tides of the Jersey shore...for example...
I stopped by a travel agency to change a few things on my itinerary...instead of heading right for Phuket I'm going to take a ferry to Ko Lanta...another island nearby. I'll be there for 2 nights, then Phuket just for one and Bangkok for 2...then onto China.
Tonight I had dinner at "Thai restaurant". Creative. The women in there spoke absolutely no English. I pointed to the dinner I wanted on their menu, mixed vegetables with chicken...in English with it's corresponding name in Thai. I ended up with Pad Thai which was awesome and served with a little pile of ground peanuts, dried chili, sugar and a lime but it's totally not what I ordered...
I ended up at 007 bar tonight in the village. Owned by Ben, a British guy who couldn't afford a house in England so figured he'd buy property here. Also met a Thai guy, Bus, and his girlfriend Debbie from England. Hilarious to meet a Thai guy with an English accent and using British expressions like bloody hell, etc. They invited me to another bar around the corner where there was a Thai cover band playing rock music. It was ok for a little bit. I'm not sure if it was the young American frat boys ordering a round of "muff diver" shots or the obnoxious American guy who refused to leave with his bucket of red bull and vodka, but shortly after we arrived I decided I had had enough...
Waking up early tomorrow...only one more day in Koh Phi Phi...better live it up :)
We decided on a simple restaurant on the way down to the beach. We sat in plastic lawn chairs that the wooden tables were awkwardly too high for. Noticed that orchids lined the entire right side of the restaurant...how amazing. I cannot even keep one orchid alive in Philadelphia!
Anyway, I did get my cashew chicken and mixed veggies...long before Hadas got her meal. It didn't take me long to give up on waiting for hers and dig in. This had become routine around here....with my meals always coming first. The Thai people serve the food as soon as it's ready without regard to whether anyone else at the table has their meal. Much different from Western culture...
Eventually Hadas' food arrived and then we wandered on through the village. We got some gelato for dessert which was on the icy side, but otherwise good, browsed through a few bookstores, then moved on to Thai foot massages...a great way to end the evening.
We still ended up getting to bed very late...cause the night is never complete without hitting the internet cafe! Today was the first day in a long stretch of days that we actually had no plans and could therefore sleep in! Was wonderful even though I couldn't sleep much after 9am...something about the humidity and the mosquito netting and the sunlight breaking in through our windows. I packed up my stuff and moved into my new, single room, B11 just next door.
I headed down for breakfast, poolside, while Hadas packed up...then lounged by the pool and swam a few laps (gotta start that triathlon training!) while she did some last minute shopping. We met up again just before her ferry was due to leave for Phuket. The hotel supplied the same 70 lb 14 y/o boy to carry her luggage. Poor kid. We made our way through the village with this huge metal cart and the boy literally yelling "beep beep" the whole way to get people out of our path. After he did it I can't help but notice it's what everyone around here does on bikes or with carts, etc. Kinda funny.
It was sad to say goodbye to Hadas...but I knew it was just way too expensive for me to continue on to Bali and Singapore. And although I enjoyed our time together over the past few weeks, I think it'll also be nice to just be on my own for a little bit, especially here in the islands!
I spent the rest of the day browsing for more books and reading on the beach. It was actually really interesting...I went down to the beach around 3pm...the same beach where the tsunami wrecked so much havoc just a few years ago. The water was really far away...much farther than 2 days ago when we were on this beach. There was a thin strip of water and then a long, long sandbar where people were playing frisbee with dogs, etc. I was surprised at how quiet the beach was as well...much different from the lights and fire throwing activities at night! But all of a sudden, around 515 pm, the water began a slow rush towards the beach...it was really strange...like a pool filling up. It was almost like someone had removed invisible gates in the distance and the water was now able to flow freely fowards. I guess this happens everyday, but it just seemed so much more sudden than the gradual change of high and low tides of the Jersey shore...for example...
I stopped by a travel agency to change a few things on my itinerary...instead of heading right for Phuket I'm going to take a ferry to Ko Lanta...another island nearby. I'll be there for 2 nights, then Phuket just for one and Bangkok for 2...then onto China.
Tonight I had dinner at "Thai restaurant". Creative. The women in there spoke absolutely no English. I pointed to the dinner I wanted on their menu, mixed vegetables with chicken...in English with it's corresponding name in Thai. I ended up with Pad Thai which was awesome and served with a little pile of ground peanuts, dried chili, sugar and a lime but it's totally not what I ordered...
I ended up at 007 bar tonight in the village. Owned by Ben, a British guy who couldn't afford a house in England so figured he'd buy property here. Also met a Thai guy, Bus, and his girlfriend Debbie from England. Hilarious to meet a Thai guy with an English accent and using British expressions like bloody hell, etc. They invited me to another bar around the corner where there was a Thai cover band playing rock music. It was ok for a little bit. I'm not sure if it was the young American frat boys ordering a round of "muff diver" shots or the obnoxious American guy who refused to leave with his bucket of red bull and vodka, but shortly after we arrived I decided I had had enough...
Waking up early tomorrow...only one more day in Koh Phi Phi...better live it up :)
Island Exploration...same same, but different
Everyone here says "Same same, but different". There are even Tshirts. I guess you'd have to be here to really get it, but with their limited Enlish it's a very common Thai phrase...so common that even bars have adopted it as their name...anyway, an island is an island...we visited several today...they're all islands, but all unique in their own special way...so different. The phrase works for almost anything...go ahead, try it ;)
Waking up was rough after our late night last night, but we managed to do it on time. We had breakfast at our hotel...I'm on the western kick since I've been here and had cornflakes with milk. The milk here is super creamy (must be whole) and doesn't seem to be refrigerated...but indulging in cereal for breakfast was a nice change. Of course, breakfast is not complete in Thailand without a little nescafe. I have issue with Nestle as a corporation (that's a whole nother blog) but it's pretty popular in Thailand and difficult to boycott here...
Anyway, Hadas convinced me to pay extra to take a full day trip (vs a half day trip) with an English speaking guide (vs a Thai-speaking local)...the "extra" really isn't that much money when we're talking about baht, but it is when I'm trying to stretch out my money to the end of the trip...in the end the extra B was all well worth it. Mr. Dong was our tour guide for the day and we had a small group...only 6-7 people. Overall, we had a wonderful day.
Our first stop was Monkey Island...to the right of the main pier at Koh Phi Phi. This was my highlight of course! Monkeys were everywhere...baby monkeys, mommy monkeys, big fat monkeys. And everyone was feeding them. At first the whole thing was cute, monkeys eating bananas and pieces of watermelon. Then it just got ridiculous. People were giving monkeys bottles of coke! And they were just chugging them. Some monkeys were playing in plastic bags...those things are Everywhere. As soon as I noticed the trash all over the place, it was all I could see. There was trash everywhere. The monkeys were stepping on plastic bottles and bottle caps, foil bags from candy bars and chips, soda cans. I couldn't help but think what kind of savages go on vacation here? Are people that ignorant about proper disposal of trash? And it's not just here on Monkey Island where this is a problem...it seems to be a big problem on the main island, but I will save my rant for a different blog. The issue seems to be much much bigger than just careless tourists...
At any rate, the monkeys were fun, and Hadas has a video of a mommy monkey drinking coke if any of you are interested in it on her blog: http://www.hakuproductions.com/
After the monkeys we headed over to shark point for some snorkeling. I was assured that the sharks at shark point are harmless and Mr. Dong said we probably wouldn't see any anyway cause they like to come out early in the morning...Mr. Dong tossed a huge chunk of bread in the water as we were gearing up and an onslaught of tropical fish practically jumped out of the water to get at it. It was insane. The fish were beautiful but I can only handle so much snorkeling. I don't know what's wrong with me but I have a real difficult time getting my breathing coordinated. I was considering trying scuba diving while I was here, but I think that's probably a bad idea...anyway, fish, snorkeling, same same...but different.
Anyway, the fish were really cool. Some were even coming straight for me. It was like they thought I was food and then got close enough to see it was just a mask and a human and scurried off. Does a fish scurry?
In any case, I was the first to climb out of the water...started toweling off and noticed that my entire abdomen was covered with an allergic like rash...like a million mosquito bites but not itchy. I was quite a spectacle for the next hour as the Swedes wondered what it could be from...'did you touch the fish? graze some coral?". I don't know if I had a reaction to the Thai sunblock or the Thai water, but was relieved that it went away on it's own after about an hour...
After that we swung by Viking cave which was somewhat disturbing. Apparently people live in it which is why tourists can no longer trek through it. Which is fine by me (the not trekking through it part)...I just can't understand why people would live in a cave? Someone please enlighten me.
For lunch we stopped by Maya Bay, the infamous beach featured in "The Beach" with good old Leonardo. It was quite beautiful...white sand, crystal clear water. Same same, but different. You can even camp out on Maya Bay but I heard it's freezing at night this time of year. I think I'll pass on that. My hour long lunch break there was plenty ;)
Moving right along we went to a different Monkey Island where we got to snorkle again...this time there were different fish...same same, but different. Are you getting as sick of this phrase as I am yet?? I skimmed the surface all the way out to the beach and the monkeys here were straight up obese. If there was a monkey growth chart, they would be off the scale. In fact, some of us were wondering...'is that one pregnant? does that one have a tumor...?' Afterwards, Mr. Dong simply said that this Monkey Beach is the more famous tourist spot, hence the fat monkeys. Mr. Dong said "they're just like people, monkeys can get fat too."....haha!
We sailed a ways away...I love being on boats btw. I find them really relaxing. Well, aside from the sound of the motor and the exhaust fumes that is. Maybe I would like a sail boat best. Ahh, I think I'm too impatient for a sailboat. Unless I'm not trying to go anywhere in particular that is. Anyhow, on our speed boat, we eventually arrived at our destination: Bamboo Island...my favorite. A sleepy fishing village (why is that such a common description for fishing villages?) with small bamboo huts lining the edge of the vegetation on the island...Basically a desolate beach, soft white sand, crystal clear waters...just beautiful. Vitually untouched and best of all, no trash. I spread out my sarong and laid down to take in the scenery...breathe in the sticky, sweet, warm tropical air, taste the saltiness of the sea and just listen to the sound of silence...a welcome escape from the hectic island of Koh Phi Phi.
Much too soon we heard the loud honk of the boat's horn...it was time to go. The sun was descending in the distance and we were due to get back to Koh Phi Phi by sunset...Reluctantly we all boarded for our trip back...
I immersed myself in my book on the ride back...figuring I've seen all the scenery I need to see for one day right...? Same same? At one point I did happen to look up from my book and absolutely could not believe how beautiful everything was...it was nothing but water for endless miles and miles, but the water was an iridescent purple perfectly matching and melting into the sky...the sun was dipping deeper and the sky had turned into beautiful hues of various pinks and purples...the water was so glassy it looked like you could just stretch your whole body out on top of it and float...it was as shiny and smooth as Thai silk...I took a million pictures, but I don't think anything will ever be able to do it justice...
So, so very different.
Waking up was rough after our late night last night, but we managed to do it on time. We had breakfast at our hotel...I'm on the western kick since I've been here and had cornflakes with milk. The milk here is super creamy (must be whole) and doesn't seem to be refrigerated...but indulging in cereal for breakfast was a nice change. Of course, breakfast is not complete in Thailand without a little nescafe. I have issue with Nestle as a corporation (that's a whole nother blog) but it's pretty popular in Thailand and difficult to boycott here...
Anyway, Hadas convinced me to pay extra to take a full day trip (vs a half day trip) with an English speaking guide (vs a Thai-speaking local)...the "extra" really isn't that much money when we're talking about baht, but it is when I'm trying to stretch out my money to the end of the trip...in the end the extra B was all well worth it. Mr. Dong was our tour guide for the day and we had a small group...only 6-7 people. Overall, we had a wonderful day.
Our first stop was Monkey Island...to the right of the main pier at Koh Phi Phi. This was my highlight of course! Monkeys were everywhere...baby monkeys, mommy monkeys, big fat monkeys. And everyone was feeding them. At first the whole thing was cute, monkeys eating bananas and pieces of watermelon. Then it just got ridiculous. People were giving monkeys bottles of coke! And they were just chugging them. Some monkeys were playing in plastic bags...those things are Everywhere. As soon as I noticed the trash all over the place, it was all I could see. There was trash everywhere. The monkeys were stepping on plastic bottles and bottle caps, foil bags from candy bars and chips, soda cans. I couldn't help but think what kind of savages go on vacation here? Are people that ignorant about proper disposal of trash? And it's not just here on Monkey Island where this is a problem...it seems to be a big problem on the main island, but I will save my rant for a different blog. The issue seems to be much much bigger than just careless tourists...
At any rate, the monkeys were fun, and Hadas has a video of a mommy monkey drinking coke if any of you are interested in it on her blog: http://www.hakuproductions.com/
After the monkeys we headed over to shark point for some snorkeling. I was assured that the sharks at shark point are harmless and Mr. Dong said we probably wouldn't see any anyway cause they like to come out early in the morning...Mr. Dong tossed a huge chunk of bread in the water as we were gearing up and an onslaught of tropical fish practically jumped out of the water to get at it. It was insane. The fish were beautiful but I can only handle so much snorkeling. I don't know what's wrong with me but I have a real difficult time getting my breathing coordinated. I was considering trying scuba diving while I was here, but I think that's probably a bad idea...anyway, fish, snorkeling, same same...but different.
Anyway, the fish were really cool. Some were even coming straight for me. It was like they thought I was food and then got close enough to see it was just a mask and a human and scurried off. Does a fish scurry?
In any case, I was the first to climb out of the water...started toweling off and noticed that my entire abdomen was covered with an allergic like rash...like a million mosquito bites but not itchy. I was quite a spectacle for the next hour as the Swedes wondered what it could be from...'did you touch the fish? graze some coral?". I don't know if I had a reaction to the Thai sunblock or the Thai water, but was relieved that it went away on it's own after about an hour...
After that we swung by Viking cave which was somewhat disturbing. Apparently people live in it which is why tourists can no longer trek through it. Which is fine by me (the not trekking through it part)...I just can't understand why people would live in a cave? Someone please enlighten me.
For lunch we stopped by Maya Bay, the infamous beach featured in "The Beach" with good old Leonardo. It was quite beautiful...white sand, crystal clear water. Same same, but different. You can even camp out on Maya Bay but I heard it's freezing at night this time of year. I think I'll pass on that. My hour long lunch break there was plenty ;)
Moving right along we went to a different Monkey Island where we got to snorkle again...this time there were different fish...same same, but different. Are you getting as sick of this phrase as I am yet?? I skimmed the surface all the way out to the beach and the monkeys here were straight up obese. If there was a monkey growth chart, they would be off the scale. In fact, some of us were wondering...'is that one pregnant? does that one have a tumor...?' Afterwards, Mr. Dong simply said that this Monkey Beach is the more famous tourist spot, hence the fat monkeys. Mr. Dong said "they're just like people, monkeys can get fat too."....haha!
We sailed a ways away...I love being on boats btw. I find them really relaxing. Well, aside from the sound of the motor and the exhaust fumes that is. Maybe I would like a sail boat best. Ahh, I think I'm too impatient for a sailboat. Unless I'm not trying to go anywhere in particular that is. Anyhow, on our speed boat, we eventually arrived at our destination: Bamboo Island...my favorite. A sleepy fishing village (why is that such a common description for fishing villages?) with small bamboo huts lining the edge of the vegetation on the island...Basically a desolate beach, soft white sand, crystal clear waters...just beautiful. Vitually untouched and best of all, no trash. I spread out my sarong and laid down to take in the scenery...breathe in the sticky, sweet, warm tropical air, taste the saltiness of the sea and just listen to the sound of silence...a welcome escape from the hectic island of Koh Phi Phi.
Much too soon we heard the loud honk of the boat's horn...it was time to go. The sun was descending in the distance and we were due to get back to Koh Phi Phi by sunset...Reluctantly we all boarded for our trip back...
I immersed myself in my book on the ride back...figuring I've seen all the scenery I need to see for one day right...? Same same? At one point I did happen to look up from my book and absolutely could not believe how beautiful everything was...it was nothing but water for endless miles and miles, but the water was an iridescent purple perfectly matching and melting into the sky...the sun was dipping deeper and the sky had turned into beautiful hues of various pinks and purples...the water was so glassy it looked like you could just stretch your whole body out on top of it and float...it was as shiny and smooth as Thai silk...I took a million pictures, but I don't think anything will ever be able to do it justice...
So, so very different.
Koh Phi Phi
Our ferry to hotel "transfer" which was included in the price of the tour we arranged in Bangkok consisted of a Thai boy who looked like he was no more than 14 and weighing in at much less than 100 pounds. He insisted on carrying our bags...but before we even got off the dock he recruited another worker, a much bigger guy to assist. I was surprised at the sights of Koh Phi Phi...The dock seemed to be situated in a valley between 2 large limestone formations on either side. It was as if the island was pinched in the middle with bordering mountains...
We headed straight towards the "village" (looks like every other market in Thailand except with prices 3 times what we're used to) where Hadas and I bought coconut and banana fruit shakes. We thought we were headed towards a vehicle, but no...we found ourselves walking, and walking, and walking some more...the roads were small with vendors lining the sides. We were almost run over several times by entire families perched on ancient bicycles with little bells warning us much too late to move out of their way...and every time we methodically insist on moving to the right side even though we know by now they drive on the left! Every other vendor was a tour agency or diving shop. And we quickly realized that we were in fact going to 'walk' all the way to our hotel...
We turned a corner and on the right side was a hill with shacks haphazardly placed above what appeared to be a cesspool of garbage with an indescribable odor. If I really had to nail down this particular scent, I would say it resembled dead fish mixed with human feces. Altogether, overwhelmingly unpleasant...but a clear reminder that while the island may seem to be back in full swing, it hasn't yet fully recovered from the tsunami of 2004. That and the fact that tourism is booming here and maybe this small island just can't keep up? On the left side was a beautiful garden which seems to be some type of 'water conservation project'. We eventually came to the bottom of a steep incline where we loaded our bags onto a pickup truck and hopped on ourselves for the remaining 20 feet to the top of the hill and our resort..."Bamboo Mountain Resort", rightfully named. We checked in and received our key attached to a shiny piece of wood. There was a beautiful blue pool with cushioned chairs to the right and a nice restaurant with wooden tables and chairs which also served as the lobby.
Climbing the stairs to our room was reminiscent of the delapidated stairs of the ancient temples of Angkor Wat. By the time we reached our level we were both out of breath and sweating in the heat...and we weren't even carrying our bags! These poor guys deserved medals!
We were led down a narrow walkway made only of bamboo slabs that felt as if my foot would pierce through at any moment. Our room consisted of thin bamboo double doors attached with a padlock. Yes that's right, we lock our door with a padlock. But the views of the rest of the island were just breathtaking. We had two beds topped with mosquito netting and a bathroom with a concrete floor leaning towards the hole which served as the shower's drain. Cold water only of course, but it is so damn hot I cannot even imagine getting a hot shower!
We ran down to the beach just in time to watch the sun dip below the limestone cliff on the left side of Loh Dalam Bay. The water was calm and clear and the beach was full of tourists and locals alike. A large group of locals spoke loudly in Thai while they played hacky sack. I was disappointed to see so much littering all over this beautiful beach...and it was sobering to think that this was the beach that suffered so much destruction during the tsunami...
We walked back to our hotel stopping at various tour agencies to see what our best deal would be to explore the surrounding islands. We stopped by Anita hotel and jumped when we saw that someone had chained their pet monkey to one of the booths at the outdoor restaurant! Poor monkey was going crazy on that short leash!
We showered in ice cold water and for the first time it was actually really refreshing! We headed down to the village for dinner and chose an Italian/Thai restaurant. I had planned on getting Thai food but after smelling the pizza I just couldn't resist...proudly, it was my first indulgence in western food this entire trip! And it was delicious...
We saw the same 2 girls wandering through the village that we saw hours ago with their backpacks still strapped to their backs looking for accomodation. We had booked in advance and didn't have a problem, but these girls were stuck. We told them of our hotel (which no one knows about apparently because it's behind the waste management site and you practically have to be a rockclimber to reach it)...they were pessimistic, but at our suggestion went up there to check anyway...just as we were finishing up dinner, they came back down to thank us...there was in fact a room and they were relieved to be able to spend the night instead of getting on another ferry to Phuket...that's the disadvantage of such a small island...they run out of rooms and sooner or later you're just stranded here until the next ferry...there's no other way off.
We wandered around the village for a bit, and bought a banana and chocolate Thai pancake for dessert. This is a delectable treat which is similar to a crepe...after watching her slather it in oil and some orange stuff...presumably some sort of lard...I wasn't all that excited about it anymore, but couldn't let it go to waste and it was absolutely delicious :)
We headed to the beach and sat at a relatively tame bar set between 2 huge parties going on at "Ibiza" and some other beach dance club...I got a pina colada with an extra shot of vodka. I don't know if it was the alcohol or the enflamed jumping rope but we soon found ourselves dancing the night away at Ibizas...I chose not to partake in the fire activities, but it was fun to watch. You can check out a video of it on Hadas' blog at http://www.hakuproductions.com/
It was 3 am when we finally headed back to our hotel but the party was still going strong on the beach...I cannot even begin to imagine what the full moon parties must be like. Every full moon there is a huge event in Koh Phangan (a different Thai island) where 55,000 people descend in a place that can only comfortably sleep 3000. Apparently there is a psychiatric hospital on the island that is up-staffed just for this event. And every month they get a surge of patients who are travelers indulging in various hallucinogenics. I've heard from other travelers that there's a place you can buy a "special shake" laced with hallucinogenic mushrooms...also read in rough guide that there is some plant that has yet to be deemed illegal that the locals pass off as magic mushrooms to unsuspecting travelers---except it's effects last for several days instead of just a few hours...kind of scary. I've met a lot of young travelers...18, 19...just out of high school traveling for months at a time...probably not making the best decisions. Anyway, vodka is where I draw the line, no worries ;) goodnight!
We headed straight towards the "village" (looks like every other market in Thailand except with prices 3 times what we're used to) where Hadas and I bought coconut and banana fruit shakes. We thought we were headed towards a vehicle, but no...we found ourselves walking, and walking, and walking some more...the roads were small with vendors lining the sides. We were almost run over several times by entire families perched on ancient bicycles with little bells warning us much too late to move out of their way...and every time we methodically insist on moving to the right side even though we know by now they drive on the left! Every other vendor was a tour agency or diving shop. And we quickly realized that we were in fact going to 'walk' all the way to our hotel...
We turned a corner and on the right side was a hill with shacks haphazardly placed above what appeared to be a cesspool of garbage with an indescribable odor. If I really had to nail down this particular scent, I would say it resembled dead fish mixed with human feces. Altogether, overwhelmingly unpleasant...but a clear reminder that while the island may seem to be back in full swing, it hasn't yet fully recovered from the tsunami of 2004. That and the fact that tourism is booming here and maybe this small island just can't keep up? On the left side was a beautiful garden which seems to be some type of 'water conservation project'. We eventually came to the bottom of a steep incline where we loaded our bags onto a pickup truck and hopped on ourselves for the remaining 20 feet to the top of the hill and our resort..."Bamboo Mountain Resort", rightfully named. We checked in and received our key attached to a shiny piece of wood. There was a beautiful blue pool with cushioned chairs to the right and a nice restaurant with wooden tables and chairs which also served as the lobby.
Climbing the stairs to our room was reminiscent of the delapidated stairs of the ancient temples of Angkor Wat. By the time we reached our level we were both out of breath and sweating in the heat...and we weren't even carrying our bags! These poor guys deserved medals!
We were led down a narrow walkway made only of bamboo slabs that felt as if my foot would pierce through at any moment. Our room consisted of thin bamboo double doors attached with a padlock. Yes that's right, we lock our door with a padlock. But the views of the rest of the island were just breathtaking. We had two beds topped with mosquito netting and a bathroom with a concrete floor leaning towards the hole which served as the shower's drain. Cold water only of course, but it is so damn hot I cannot even imagine getting a hot shower!
We ran down to the beach just in time to watch the sun dip below the limestone cliff on the left side of Loh Dalam Bay. The water was calm and clear and the beach was full of tourists and locals alike. A large group of locals spoke loudly in Thai while they played hacky sack. I was disappointed to see so much littering all over this beautiful beach...and it was sobering to think that this was the beach that suffered so much destruction during the tsunami...
We walked back to our hotel stopping at various tour agencies to see what our best deal would be to explore the surrounding islands. We stopped by Anita hotel and jumped when we saw that someone had chained their pet monkey to one of the booths at the outdoor restaurant! Poor monkey was going crazy on that short leash!
We showered in ice cold water and for the first time it was actually really refreshing! We headed down to the village for dinner and chose an Italian/Thai restaurant. I had planned on getting Thai food but after smelling the pizza I just couldn't resist...proudly, it was my first indulgence in western food this entire trip! And it was delicious...
We saw the same 2 girls wandering through the village that we saw hours ago with their backpacks still strapped to their backs looking for accomodation. We had booked in advance and didn't have a problem, but these girls were stuck. We told them of our hotel (which no one knows about apparently because it's behind the waste management site and you practically have to be a rockclimber to reach it)...they were pessimistic, but at our suggestion went up there to check anyway...just as we were finishing up dinner, they came back down to thank us...there was in fact a room and they were relieved to be able to spend the night instead of getting on another ferry to Phuket...that's the disadvantage of such a small island...they run out of rooms and sooner or later you're just stranded here until the next ferry...there's no other way off.
We wandered around the village for a bit, and bought a banana and chocolate Thai pancake for dessert. This is a delectable treat which is similar to a crepe...after watching her slather it in oil and some orange stuff...presumably some sort of lard...I wasn't all that excited about it anymore, but couldn't let it go to waste and it was absolutely delicious :)
We headed to the beach and sat at a relatively tame bar set between 2 huge parties going on at "Ibiza" and some other beach dance club...I got a pina colada with an extra shot of vodka. I don't know if it was the alcohol or the enflamed jumping rope but we soon found ourselves dancing the night away at Ibizas...I chose not to partake in the fire activities, but it was fun to watch. You can check out a video of it on Hadas' blog at http://www.hakuproductions.com/
It was 3 am when we finally headed back to our hotel but the party was still going strong on the beach...I cannot even begin to imagine what the full moon parties must be like. Every full moon there is a huge event in Koh Phangan (a different Thai island) where 55,000 people descend in a place that can only comfortably sleep 3000. Apparently there is a psychiatric hospital on the island that is up-staffed just for this event. And every month they get a surge of patients who are travelers indulging in various hallucinogenics. I've heard from other travelers that there's a place you can buy a "special shake" laced with hallucinogenic mushrooms...also read in rough guide that there is some plant that has yet to be deemed illegal that the locals pass off as magic mushrooms to unsuspecting travelers---except it's effects last for several days instead of just a few hours...kind of scary. I've met a lot of young travelers...18, 19...just out of high school traveling for months at a time...probably not making the best decisions. Anyway, vodka is where I draw the line, no worries ;) goodnight!
Krabi, Thailand
We overslept the next morning, no surprises there, and I was just really happy to have remembered that I needed to pick up the laundry I had dropped off the previous night. As it was, I had just discovered I lost my hiking shoes somewhere along the line. Oh well, good thing I'm headed for the beaches! I ran up the street to the laundromat where they charged 20B/kilo. There was a little old man there, this was our second meeting. He was very sweet and excited to hear me say hello and thank you in Thai. He told me he was 81 years old, asked me where I was from, knew about the 76ers being from Philadelphia and then of course asked if I was married. Seems to be a popular question, at least amongst the older Thais.
Hadas and I had breakfast at our guesthouse and ran into a few of our friends from the night before...apparently the night continued well after we left and everyone seemed to be pretty hung over! After a few last hugs and goodbye, the hotel called for a driver to take us to the airport and we were once again, on our way...
We arrived just in time to check in (this is becoming a habit of ours) and boarded an enormous flight to Bangkok with Thai airways, one of my favorite carriers btw. An hour later we landed and then had 2 hours to kill before our next flight to Krabi. I browsed the bookstore and picked up a book called "The Road of Lost Innocence", an amazing autobiographical story of a Cambodian woman who was raped at 12 and then forced into prostitution at the age of 16 to pay off her 'grandfather's' debts...apparently a much too common scenerio in Cambodia. This woman's story was riviting and I read it in a matter of just a few hours (a huge feat for me!). An astounding 2-4 million women and children will be sold into sexual slavery every year. This book shed light on a horrific topic that demands our attention. The UN estimates that the Asian sexual industry earns between $7-12 billion dollars a year, roughly Cambodia's entire annual budget. I have the book if anyone is interested in reading it...but this woman is amazing and set up a wonderful organization that has saved over 4000 women to date get out of this horrific cycle of abuse. She shelters them, educates them and mentors them into transitioning to work and independence. Please read more about her organization here: http://www.somaly.org/
Leave it to me to pick such depressing topics to read about while on vacation!
Onto Krabi...it's unfortunate but Krabi is more of a "stopover" than a destination...surrounded by limestone cliffs on all sides, it is truly a beautiful place. We grabbed our bags and were happy to see our taxi driver holding a sign with our names on it...talk about service! He carried our bags and led us out to his car. We drove about 30 minutes to get to our hotel called the "Cashew Nut Bungalows". The guesthouse is run by a Muslim family. We checked in at their open air lobby and 3 tiny little kittens immediately were at our feet! SO freakin cute!
Our bungalow was simple, fan cooled and cold water shower, but who cares in this heat?? We changed into our bathing suits and headed for the beach...we were about a block away from Ao Nang beach...shell covered and bordered by 2 limestone cliffs on either side. There was hardly a breeze in the humid air, no clouds whatsoever, the water was crystal clear and I was able to finish up my book just in time to witness the beautiful sunset...
We packed up our stuff and headed back to our bamboo bungalow. After showering we ventured back to the main strip and decided to eat at "Hippies". We were led to a bamboo booth with cushions on the floor and a flat irregular shaped rock that served as our table. We had fruit shakes spiked with vodka and accidentally ate each other's dinners...oops! The food is all so delicious so it really didn't matter. Maybe it was the vodka??
We hit the internet cafe while listening to some live music at Hippies and then treated ourselves to our first official Thai massage. We were both wearing skirts so the girls gave us fisherman pants to change into. Thai massage is more like acupressure than typical Swedish massage and is designed to not only be relaxing, but also to redistribute energy. You start by laying flat on your back and the massage starts at your feet, then legs, then arms. Then you flip over and they again work on your feet/legs, arms, back, neck and shoulders. They also stand up and press into the backs of your knees giving your legs a really good stretch and it finishes off with you sitting upright so they can massage your neck and head. Afterwards we were served a steaming hot cup of spicy ginger tea...
The next morning we rose super early and packed our stuff once again. The cold shower was refreshing yesterday after the beach, but this morning it was just not happening. Instead I just washed my hair...this is becoming a much too common occurence for me. If there's one thing I truly miss, it's a good hot shower! We booked a kayaking tour of the island (according to "the rough guide" this is the thing to do in Krabi) and decided to take the later ferry out to Koh Phi Phi. The tour company picked us up right at 8 am and we joined 4 traveler's from Holland. We drove 40 minutes to the mangroves and Hadas and I jumped into a kayak. We kayaked through a cave and down some beautiful narrow waterways. Our guides led us to a beach where we got to see 'walking fish'...it was crazy! They actually walk right out of the water! It was unbelievable!
We got out of our kayaks to explore a cave that they believe was inhabited by an ancient prehistoric people, they assume this based on the drawings found inside. It amazes me that there are people out there who have jobs like this...to determine the time range of when something was etched inside cave walls? Amazing. Anyway, it was a cool cave to explore, mostly because there was no wooden walkway and no crowds of people like the cave in Halong Bay. It felt much more authentic. Our guide pointed out the water line which was a pale green color very high up in the cave. Apparently the water has permanently receeded to a point much lower than that now. Was a cool experience...if only I could ignore the chain smoking old man from Holland. Who smokes in a prehistoric cave? And then tries to throw his cigarette butt on the cave floor? After mentioning this behavior to the guide, he picked it up himself. It amazes me how inconsiderate some people can be...
We had lunch back at the dock which consisted of chicken and cashew fried rice with chicken soup and fanta of course. Dessert was fresh pineapple served with nescafe.
We boarded our van and for an extra 60B the driver took us to the pier where we Just missed our ferry to Koh Phi Phi...had to wait an extra hour...but fortunately there was an internet cafe and book exchange. Hadas managed to make an even exchange for one of her books, but apparently my book wasn't good enough and I'd have to pay an additional 300B. I wasn't giving up my new copy of "Eat Pray Love" that easy.
We boarded the ferry, dumped our bags inside and got prime seating right at the front of the deck. It was perfect weather with clear blue skies as far as you could see and a nice warm breeze coming off the ocean...it was smooth sailing for the 2 hour ferry ride and we finally decended upon the tiny island of Koh Phi Phi...one of the islands devastated only a few years ago by the tsunami...
Hadas and I had breakfast at our guesthouse and ran into a few of our friends from the night before...apparently the night continued well after we left and everyone seemed to be pretty hung over! After a few last hugs and goodbye, the hotel called for a driver to take us to the airport and we were once again, on our way...
We arrived just in time to check in (this is becoming a habit of ours) and boarded an enormous flight to Bangkok with Thai airways, one of my favorite carriers btw. An hour later we landed and then had 2 hours to kill before our next flight to Krabi. I browsed the bookstore and picked up a book called "The Road of Lost Innocence", an amazing autobiographical story of a Cambodian woman who was raped at 12 and then forced into prostitution at the age of 16 to pay off her 'grandfather's' debts...apparently a much too common scenerio in Cambodia. This woman's story was riviting and I read it in a matter of just a few hours (a huge feat for me!). An astounding 2-4 million women and children will be sold into sexual slavery every year. This book shed light on a horrific topic that demands our attention. The UN estimates that the Asian sexual industry earns between $7-12 billion dollars a year, roughly Cambodia's entire annual budget. I have the book if anyone is interested in reading it...but this woman is amazing and set up a wonderful organization that has saved over 4000 women to date get out of this horrific cycle of abuse. She shelters them, educates them and mentors them into transitioning to work and independence. Please read more about her organization here: http://www.somaly.org/
Leave it to me to pick such depressing topics to read about while on vacation!
Onto Krabi...it's unfortunate but Krabi is more of a "stopover" than a destination...surrounded by limestone cliffs on all sides, it is truly a beautiful place. We grabbed our bags and were happy to see our taxi driver holding a sign with our names on it...talk about service! He carried our bags and led us out to his car. We drove about 30 minutes to get to our hotel called the "Cashew Nut Bungalows". The guesthouse is run by a Muslim family. We checked in at their open air lobby and 3 tiny little kittens immediately were at our feet! SO freakin cute!
Our bungalow was simple, fan cooled and cold water shower, but who cares in this heat?? We changed into our bathing suits and headed for the beach...we were about a block away from Ao Nang beach...shell covered and bordered by 2 limestone cliffs on either side. There was hardly a breeze in the humid air, no clouds whatsoever, the water was crystal clear and I was able to finish up my book just in time to witness the beautiful sunset...
We packed up our stuff and headed back to our bamboo bungalow. After showering we ventured back to the main strip and decided to eat at "Hippies". We were led to a bamboo booth with cushions on the floor and a flat irregular shaped rock that served as our table. We had fruit shakes spiked with vodka and accidentally ate each other's dinners...oops! The food is all so delicious so it really didn't matter. Maybe it was the vodka??
We hit the internet cafe while listening to some live music at Hippies and then treated ourselves to our first official Thai massage. We were both wearing skirts so the girls gave us fisherman pants to change into. Thai massage is more like acupressure than typical Swedish massage and is designed to not only be relaxing, but also to redistribute energy. You start by laying flat on your back and the massage starts at your feet, then legs, then arms. Then you flip over and they again work on your feet/legs, arms, back, neck and shoulders. They also stand up and press into the backs of your knees giving your legs a really good stretch and it finishes off with you sitting upright so they can massage your neck and head. Afterwards we were served a steaming hot cup of spicy ginger tea...
The next morning we rose super early and packed our stuff once again. The cold shower was refreshing yesterday after the beach, but this morning it was just not happening. Instead I just washed my hair...this is becoming a much too common occurence for me. If there's one thing I truly miss, it's a good hot shower! We booked a kayaking tour of the island (according to "the rough guide" this is the thing to do in Krabi) and decided to take the later ferry out to Koh Phi Phi. The tour company picked us up right at 8 am and we joined 4 traveler's from Holland. We drove 40 minutes to the mangroves and Hadas and I jumped into a kayak. We kayaked through a cave and down some beautiful narrow waterways. Our guides led us to a beach where we got to see 'walking fish'...it was crazy! They actually walk right out of the water! It was unbelievable!
We got out of our kayaks to explore a cave that they believe was inhabited by an ancient prehistoric people, they assume this based on the drawings found inside. It amazes me that there are people out there who have jobs like this...to determine the time range of when something was etched inside cave walls? Amazing. Anyway, it was a cool cave to explore, mostly because there was no wooden walkway and no crowds of people like the cave in Halong Bay. It felt much more authentic. Our guide pointed out the water line which was a pale green color very high up in the cave. Apparently the water has permanently receeded to a point much lower than that now. Was a cool experience...if only I could ignore the chain smoking old man from Holland. Who smokes in a prehistoric cave? And then tries to throw his cigarette butt on the cave floor? After mentioning this behavior to the guide, he picked it up himself. It amazes me how inconsiderate some people can be...
We had lunch back at the dock which consisted of chicken and cashew fried rice with chicken soup and fanta of course. Dessert was fresh pineapple served with nescafe.
We boarded our van and for an extra 60B the driver took us to the pier where we Just missed our ferry to Koh Phi Phi...had to wait an extra hour...but fortunately there was an internet cafe and book exchange. Hadas managed to make an even exchange for one of her books, but apparently my book wasn't good enough and I'd have to pay an additional 300B. I wasn't giving up my new copy of "Eat Pray Love" that easy.
We boarded the ferry, dumped our bags inside and got prime seating right at the front of the deck. It was perfect weather with clear blue skies as far as you could see and a nice warm breeze coming off the ocean...it was smooth sailing for the 2 hour ferry ride and we finally decended upon the tiny island of Koh Phi Phi...one of the islands devastated only a few years ago by the tsunami...
Night out on the town, Chiang Mai
So after my quick nap, I was feeling refreshed although still really full from all the food! I met up with the group just in time. It was quite a sight to try to keep us all together...15 in total including our fearless leaders: Pat and Rambo.
We decided to walk downtown and should have probably paid a little more attention to the twists and turns of the alleyways leading from our "guesthouse" (slang for "slightly better than a hostel, but not quite as nice as a hotel"). We walked around the moat which surrounds the city center of Chiang Mai...gives it a very royal feel. The pictures of the king and his wife at every street corner, in every store, every hotel, etc also contributes to this vibe...
We walked and talked and eventually arrived at the bar that Rambo led us to...which was nothing more than literally a bar in the middle of the street! It had lights all strung up and they were serving the Thai beers (Chang and Singha...which I cannot tell the difference between) as well as a full list of cocktails and mixed drinks. We were crowding around this tiny bar, halfway on the pavement, halfway in the street. We were surrounded by little children selling floral necklaces made of jasmine and carnations. One little girl in particular was just too cute to resist. We all succumbed and bought out her entire supply at 20B each. She ran out before all the girls had their floral necklaces, disappeared shortly and returned with another armfull...
Everyone was having a great time; Darcy passed around these little buttons from the school she works at back home in Oregon...which quickly became our "gang symbol" :) After a little while we grew restless standing in the middle of the street. Rambo suggested we head down the street to the Thai boxing arena...apparently there were more bars there. After about 20 minutes we finally got it together and headed down the street...
Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you see it) we didn't find a karaoke bar. We did find the area Rambo directed us too though...the best way to describe it was an open air mall of bars with the center being a Thai boxing arena, instead of the traditional fountain full of pennies. It was pretty slow, probably because it was a Monday. Bar owners at "Same same but different" tried to entice us to come to theirs by shoving menus in our faces, but we eventually decided on the Irish bar. Which was anything but Irish.
Apparently the Irish bar was a popular spot for "Lady Boys", a new term for me which I was told refers to transvestites or transgendered people. Thailand is a popular place for this and one of the first countries to specialize in what has become known as "sex change operations". The surge in medical tourism fueled by expensive insurance rates throughout the rest of the world, combined with top-notch Western influenced medical centers and the privacy of going to a foreign country has probably all contributed to Thailand's popularity in this area. According to statistics from 2004, more than 30,000 men sought sex change operations in that year to go from male to female. Whereas far less females choose to be male...only 1 out of 100,000.
But I digress. We settled in at an outdoor table with 4 benches. After everyone had gotten their drinks, the little flower girl found us. She apparently walked allt he way down the road by herself to find us. Poor girl seemed like she was only 5-6 years old and it was pushing 10 o'clock. She instantly came over to me and leaned against me...seeming as if she didn't want to completely sit on my bench. Each table at this place had a connect 4 game in the center so we started playing...Of course I let her win every time :) She was really sweet...I have a few pictures of us which I'll post later. At one point she accidentally knocked over someone's beer right into the connect 4 game. Poor girl was really upset about it, but it was really no big deal. We continued playing and she smelled her hands and made a face at the bitter smell of the now sticky, dried beer on her fingers. I pulled out some instant hand sanitizer for her and held her flowers while I showed her how to use it. It was really cute...she wouldn't stop smelling her hands after using it!
We all just had a great time, hanging out, making conversation. It was great to have such a cohesive group. There was a couple from Oregon, a couple from Ireland, another couple from Australia and Brazil, a single girl from Netherlands as well as a couple of brother/sister duos. People were traveling from one month up to a full year and it was really interesting hearing all their stories and also sharing travel stories of my own. A few people were headed up to Cambodia and Vietnam which is where we had just come from so it was nice to give them some (hopefully) helpful travel advice.
The music bled from all the other bars...we tried to play pool but I'm terrible and the more people drank the less interest they had in the game. The music at our particular bar was an interesting mix. Push it and gin and juice were some of the better songs played :) Aside from our group I really didn't see too many groups of tourists. The place had a scandalous feel to it...with several groups of young Thai women sitting around all dressed up, and a few creepy looking single male travelers...
Our large group slowly dwindled down to a small group of only 6 or so...around midnight Hadas and I decided to head back, as we had to get up early for our flight to Krabi. We said goodbye to everyone and began the walk back to our place...which we remembered as being only 15-20 mins. We walked by several Thai massage places and passed up numerous offers from tuk-tuk drivers to take us home...
We walked around the moat and that's when it got a bit tricky..."was it this street or that one?", "do you remember this store?"... We decided to ask someone and a woman on a motorbike was driving slow enough for us to wave her down. We tried to speak English to her, and showed her the business card of our place but she wasn't able to explain how we could get there...instead, she invited us to hop on!
Against my better judgement we did so, but we weren't very far from our place. On the short ride she asked us where we were from and if we were enjoying Chiang Mai. She tried to ask us more but I had no idea what she was trying to say...she dropped us off at our place and refused to let us pay her...
The hotel owner pulled up the enormous metal gate and let us in...Off to bed after another full, and exhausting day...
We decided to walk downtown and should have probably paid a little more attention to the twists and turns of the alleyways leading from our "guesthouse" (slang for "slightly better than a hostel, but not quite as nice as a hotel"). We walked around the moat which surrounds the city center of Chiang Mai...gives it a very royal feel. The pictures of the king and his wife at every street corner, in every store, every hotel, etc also contributes to this vibe...
We walked and talked and eventually arrived at the bar that Rambo led us to...which was nothing more than literally a bar in the middle of the street! It had lights all strung up and they were serving the Thai beers (Chang and Singha...which I cannot tell the difference between) as well as a full list of cocktails and mixed drinks. We were crowding around this tiny bar, halfway on the pavement, halfway in the street. We were surrounded by little children selling floral necklaces made of jasmine and carnations. One little girl in particular was just too cute to resist. We all succumbed and bought out her entire supply at 20B each. She ran out before all the girls had their floral necklaces, disappeared shortly and returned with another armfull...
Everyone was having a great time; Darcy passed around these little buttons from the school she works at back home in Oregon...which quickly became our "gang symbol" :) After a little while we grew restless standing in the middle of the street. Rambo suggested we head down the street to the Thai boxing arena...apparently there were more bars there. After about 20 minutes we finally got it together and headed down the street...
Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you see it) we didn't find a karaoke bar. We did find the area Rambo directed us too though...the best way to describe it was an open air mall of bars with the center being a Thai boxing arena, instead of the traditional fountain full of pennies. It was pretty slow, probably because it was a Monday. Bar owners at "Same same but different" tried to entice us to come to theirs by shoving menus in our faces, but we eventually decided on the Irish bar. Which was anything but Irish.
Apparently the Irish bar was a popular spot for "Lady Boys", a new term for me which I was told refers to transvestites or transgendered people. Thailand is a popular place for this and one of the first countries to specialize in what has become known as "sex change operations". The surge in medical tourism fueled by expensive insurance rates throughout the rest of the world, combined with top-notch Western influenced medical centers and the privacy of going to a foreign country has probably all contributed to Thailand's popularity in this area. According to statistics from 2004, more than 30,000 men sought sex change operations in that year to go from male to female. Whereas far less females choose to be male...only 1 out of 100,000.
But I digress. We settled in at an outdoor table with 4 benches. After everyone had gotten their drinks, the little flower girl found us. She apparently walked allt he way down the road by herself to find us. Poor girl seemed like she was only 5-6 years old and it was pushing 10 o'clock. She instantly came over to me and leaned against me...seeming as if she didn't want to completely sit on my bench. Each table at this place had a connect 4 game in the center so we started playing...Of course I let her win every time :) She was really sweet...I have a few pictures of us which I'll post later. At one point she accidentally knocked over someone's beer right into the connect 4 game. Poor girl was really upset about it, but it was really no big deal. We continued playing and she smelled her hands and made a face at the bitter smell of the now sticky, dried beer on her fingers. I pulled out some instant hand sanitizer for her and held her flowers while I showed her how to use it. It was really cute...she wouldn't stop smelling her hands after using it!
We all just had a great time, hanging out, making conversation. It was great to have such a cohesive group. There was a couple from Oregon, a couple from Ireland, another couple from Australia and Brazil, a single girl from Netherlands as well as a couple of brother/sister duos. People were traveling from one month up to a full year and it was really interesting hearing all their stories and also sharing travel stories of my own. A few people were headed up to Cambodia and Vietnam which is where we had just come from so it was nice to give them some (hopefully) helpful travel advice.
The music bled from all the other bars...we tried to play pool but I'm terrible and the more people drank the less interest they had in the game. The music at our particular bar was an interesting mix. Push it and gin and juice were some of the better songs played :) Aside from our group I really didn't see too many groups of tourists. The place had a scandalous feel to it...with several groups of young Thai women sitting around all dressed up, and a few creepy looking single male travelers...
Our large group slowly dwindled down to a small group of only 6 or so...around midnight Hadas and I decided to head back, as we had to get up early for our flight to Krabi. We said goodbye to everyone and began the walk back to our place...which we remembered as being only 15-20 mins. We walked by several Thai massage places and passed up numerous offers from tuk-tuk drivers to take us home...
We walked around the moat and that's when it got a bit tricky..."was it this street or that one?", "do you remember this store?"...
Against my better judgement we did so, but we weren't very far from our place. On the short ride she asked us where we were from and if we were enjoying Chiang Mai. She tried to ask us more but I had no idea what she was trying to say...she dropped us off at our place and refused to let us pay her...
The hotel owner pulled up the enormous metal gate and let us in...Off to bed after another full, and exhausting day...
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
where were you when obama was sworn in...?
In a tiny convenience store, Krabi, Thailand...watching CNN in Thai on a TV suspended above the ice cream freezer :) Go Obama!
Pad Thai Cookery School and "Meow"
"Meow" came to pick us up at 930 am. Yes, her name is Meow, like the cat. In fact, she was even wearing a T-shirt with a cat on it, presumably to help us remember. We joined up with a British guy, Brazilian girl and 2 older couples from Holland. Meow let us choose the dishes we wanted to make on the ride to the market...
Once at the market, she compiled a grocery list and we went inside the local Thai grocery store...it was quite a place. She passed on her list to various vendors inside who got to work putting together her groceries (I think I'm going to suggest this to Superfresh when I get home), while she led us around and showed us various typical Thai ingredients...including fish pastes (yuck), oyster sauces, chilis, veggies, etc. About 30 minutes later the vendors had compiled all her ingredients and we packed back into the pick up for the 20 minute drive to the "Pad Thai Cookery School"...
It was a beautiful, open-air location. Aligned on the left side of the room were woks upon individual stove tops and a grated wooden window panel that stretched the length of the room. In the center was a wooden table with stools, and off to the right was a low-set table with cushions on the floor, affectionately called "The Party Room"...where we were to eat our creations...
We slipped off our shoes, as Meow is Buddhist, and got to work. First, she made name tags for all of us with our names written out in Thai. We each got an apron and a quick safety lesson and then it was to work!
First was Thai breakfast...I chose to make Pad Thai. Meow's boyfriend passed out trays with all our ingredients in it. She sat at the head of the table and instructed us on how to prepare the dish...cutting the veggies, shredding the spices, etc...(by the way, Meow's instruction was much more organized than the Resaurant School's "free for all" method)
Then she demonstrated the correct way to make Pad Thai...I took notes, it's complicated! How do the street vendors make it look so simple?! To my surprise, I did make my first Pad Thai and it was actually quite good :) could have been a bit spicier though...
Moving right along, I chose fresh noodle spring rolls as my appetizer. We cooked the veggies first, then learned the art of rolling the spring rolls (this section I failed). The rolled rolls then were placed in a huge steamer for 1o minutes and were pretty tasty even though mine were falling apart...
Instead of soup, I chose to make green papaya salad. Basically it's an unripe papaya (or mango for that matter), sliced cucumber, tomato, various spices, all mashed up and served as salad. Apparently you have to eat it ASAP or else the taste gets all bitter...I was getting pretty full by this point as you can imagine...
On to the curries. I learned how to make Red curry which ranks medium on the spicy scale...I turned mine up a notch with extra chili paste. Afterwards, I made stir-fried chicken with yellow curry. For this dish Meow showed us how to really set our woks on fire! It was quite a scene...but fortunately no one suffered any injuries! And the food was delicious...
Finally onto dessert. I learned how to make black sticky rice coconut pudding...yum! Other people made coconut milk banana or pumpkin, sticky rice w/banana, deep fried bananas...all delicious.
Needless to say we all felt like we were about to burst after eating so much food all day! It was great though. Meow gave us each a certificate of successful completion (despite my sorry excuse for spring rolls). Think Tamarind will hire me?? We also got a full recipe book with pictures! Next family dinner will be Thai-style, fyi ;)
Meow drove us back to our hotel where Hadas and I were excited to see all our friends from the previous day's trekking! They were all washed up and hanging out at the bar...ready for a night on the town...I decided to meet up with them later...I just needed a quick cat nap after the day with Meow. These Thais and their nicknames are hilarious...
Once at the market, she compiled a grocery list and we went inside the local Thai grocery store...it was quite a place. She passed on her list to various vendors inside who got to work putting together her groceries (I think I'm going to suggest this to Superfresh when I get home), while she led us around and showed us various typical Thai ingredients...including fish pastes (yuck), oyster sauces, chilis, veggies, etc. About 30 minutes later the vendors had compiled all her ingredients and we packed back into the pick up for the 20 minute drive to the "Pad Thai Cookery School"...
It was a beautiful, open-air location. Aligned on the left side of the room were woks upon individual stove tops and a grated wooden window panel that stretched the length of the room. In the center was a wooden table with stools, and off to the right was a low-set table with cushions on the floor, affectionately called "The Party Room"...where we were to eat our creations...
We slipped off our shoes, as Meow is Buddhist, and got to work. First, she made name tags for all of us with our names written out in Thai. We each got an apron and a quick safety lesson and then it was to work!
First was Thai breakfast...I chose to make Pad Thai. Meow's boyfriend passed out trays with all our ingredients in it. She sat at the head of the table and instructed us on how to prepare the dish...cutting the veggies, shredding the spices, etc...(by the way, Meow's instruction was much more organized than the Resaurant School's "free for all" method)
Then she demonstrated the correct way to make Pad Thai...I took notes, it's complicated! How do the street vendors make it look so simple?! To my surprise, I did make my first Pad Thai and it was actually quite good :) could have been a bit spicier though...
Moving right along, I chose fresh noodle spring rolls as my appetizer. We cooked the veggies first, then learned the art of rolling the spring rolls (this section I failed). The rolled rolls then were placed in a huge steamer for 1o minutes and were pretty tasty even though mine were falling apart...
Instead of soup, I chose to make green papaya salad. Basically it's an unripe papaya (or mango for that matter), sliced cucumber, tomato, various spices, all mashed up and served as salad. Apparently you have to eat it ASAP or else the taste gets all bitter...I was getting pretty full by this point as you can imagine...
On to the curries. I learned how to make Red curry which ranks medium on the spicy scale...I turned mine up a notch with extra chili paste. Afterwards, I made stir-fried chicken with yellow curry. For this dish Meow showed us how to really set our woks on fire! It was quite a scene...but fortunately no one suffered any injuries! And the food was delicious...
Finally onto dessert. I learned how to make black sticky rice coconut pudding...yum! Other people made coconut milk banana or pumpkin, sticky rice w/banana, deep fried bananas...all delicious.
Needless to say we all felt like we were about to burst after eating so much food all day! It was great though. Meow gave us each a certificate of successful completion (despite my sorry excuse for spring rolls). Think Tamarind will hire me?? We also got a full recipe book with pictures! Next family dinner will be Thai-style, fyi ;)
Meow drove us back to our hotel where Hadas and I were excited to see all our friends from the previous day's trekking! They were all washed up and hanging out at the bar...ready for a night on the town...I decided to meet up with them later...I just needed a quick cat nap after the day with Meow. These Thais and their nicknames are hilarious...
Bamboo rafting
So basically we arrived at a slow-moving river with a bus load of French people...I slathered on some SPF 30 and was escorted onto a flimsy raft made of long bamboo sticks hastily tied together in 3 sections...with 2 French guys, one of whom was wearing a speedo and was fondly referred to as "sexy man" any time we passed Thai people :)
It was interesting to say the least. I spent most of the ride awkwardly squatting down as to not be catapulted as we rode over rocks and such. The water was freezing! I really didn't want to get tossed in...once I got my balance though, I really started to enjoy it. We passed clearings where elephants were just grazing alongside the river...was way cool seeing elephants in the wild. After a while we started passing by these little bamboo huts lining the river bank. They were sectioned off and it looked like it was where the locals come to hang out...
Amazingly I stayed dry the entire ride...It was fun, but was getting a bit old after a while...I could see where we were getting off just up ahead. We started to pass another section of the bamboo huts except there appeared to be a particularly rowdy crowd of Thais drinking and splashing around in the water...and yes, sure enough, they decided to attack us, screaming sexy man the whole time. In the end I was completely drenched from head to toe, just a mere 20 feet from our drop-off point. Ugh.
I changed out of my sopping wet clothes to prepare for the hour ahead in the crammed pickup truck...it was an exhausting day!!! I fell asleep for most of the ride back to Chaing Mai...
That night we ventured to the "Sunday Market" which is even more elaborate that the already elaborate weekday night market. This time we stumbled upon a hidden corner of Thai food vendors...selling all sorts of Thai specialties. I had some deep fried bananas, so delicious, followed by bananas rolled in coconut sweetened sticky rice, then grilled inside banana leaves...even had a chocolate waffle. I decided I was having dessert for dinner :) Why not?
We stopped in a used book store and picked up a few beach reads and basically just wandered around aimlessly for a while. We hopped in a tuk-tuk who drove us back to out guesthouse, after getting lost twice and hesitating to ask for directions (apparently this trait is consistent across cultures)...
Slept poorly on my rock hard bed, but at least I enjoyed a lukewarm shower the following morning...can't really complain as I think our accomodations have been less than $10 USD/night...
It was interesting to say the least. I spent most of the ride awkwardly squatting down as to not be catapulted as we rode over rocks and such. The water was freezing! I really didn't want to get tossed in...once I got my balance though, I really started to enjoy it. We passed clearings where elephants were just grazing alongside the river...was way cool seeing elephants in the wild. After a while we started passing by these little bamboo huts lining the river bank. They were sectioned off and it looked like it was where the locals come to hang out...
Amazingly I stayed dry the entire ride...It was fun, but was getting a bit old after a while...I could see where we were getting off just up ahead. We started to pass another section of the bamboo huts except there appeared to be a particularly rowdy crowd of Thais drinking and splashing around in the water...and yes, sure enough, they decided to attack us, screaming sexy man the whole time. In the end I was completely drenched from head to toe, just a mere 20 feet from our drop-off point. Ugh.
I changed out of my sopping wet clothes to prepare for the hour ahead in the crammed pickup truck...it was an exhausting day!!! I fell asleep for most of the ride back to Chaing Mai...
That night we ventured to the "Sunday Market" which is even more elaborate that the already elaborate weekday night market. This time we stumbled upon a hidden corner of Thai food vendors...selling all sorts of Thai specialties. I had some deep fried bananas, so delicious, followed by bananas rolled in coconut sweetened sticky rice, then grilled inside banana leaves...even had a chocolate waffle. I decided I was having dessert for dinner :) Why not?
We stopped in a used book store and picked up a few beach reads and basically just wandered around aimlessly for a while. We hopped in a tuk-tuk who drove us back to out guesthouse, after getting lost twice and hesitating to ask for directions (apparently this trait is consistent across cultures)...
Slept poorly on my rock hard bed, but at least I enjoyed a lukewarm shower the following morning...can't really complain as I think our accomodations have been less than $10 USD/night...
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