Thursday, December 28, 2006

Back to Bangkok


After a 9 hour bus ride where we recieved moist towelletes and a meal of rice and meat of unkown origin, we arrived back to the chaos of Bangkok. After staying on deserted Isles, the amount of people and pollution was overwhelming. Staying at the same guest house we did 4 weeks ago is exciting, since we can guage how much we've learned about traveling the world in that time. Two days ago our feet stepped onto Myanmar ground for about 15 minutes. We had to extend our visa, and the best way to do that was by heading to Ranong, a Thai boarder town on the southern tip of Myranmar. It was like traveling into a different time and world. There were longtails by the hundreds, rickety houses on stilts hanging over the delta, egrets, women with powder on their faces and men with plaid patterened sarongs. Gone were the neon signs, blinking and flashing in every direction. The fishing piers were all a bustle so early in the morning. I cannot say how hard it was to step into that world and turn around, but our 15 yr. old boat driver was beckoning us back to the boat. Tomorrow's goal: the ruins of Sukkotai, north of Bangkok for a 6 hr bus ride.

Sunday, December 24, 2006

Clown fishies!

Holidays in the tropics seem like a glimmer of a dream. The only sign of Christmas is by the sparse, cheesy decorations adorning a few hotels and restaurants. Ben and I have returned from a journey into the deep south of Thailand. We spent about a week exploring the Ko Tarutao National Marine Park on the Western border of Malaysia. We spent the first two and a half days at the largest island of the archipelago. It felt like we were the only visitors to an abandoned park. There were thick white sand beaches spreading for miles, barren of people and littered with sand dollars and millions of crabs. The island supposedly had a curse on it, and I think the curse bit me, literally, when I recieved an innocent looking bite on my left cheek. It proved out to become a nasty and infected spider bite, which brought us to our current location, Krabi, in seek of good medical advice. And don't worry, because my cheek is making a grand recovery now. After those lazy days on Tarutao, we lifted anchor and headed to Ko Lipe and Ko Adang, even furter out in the ocean. Ko Lipe is a tiny, boomerang shaped island inhabited by a few thousand real sea gypsies with the settlements only connected my skinny white sand paths through the forest and grasses. They are a people that moved in from Indonesia and have no legal status in Thailand, but live a peaceful life from the sea and land. We spent a few days on the less populated island, Adang, hiking up cliffs and to isolated private beaches. Ben played in the waves like a dolphin while I worked on my tan. The coral was sparkling all over, full of stingrays, adorable clownfish, angel and banner fish, and so many more forms of life that seem alien to me. It was by far the most beautiful and remote place we've discovered, and it tore my heart apart to leave that gem behind. But the road is again unfolding towards another exciting adventure.

Saturday, December 16, 2006

pak bara


Much has happened since the last post. Some of the highlights include; a 2 hour windy ride in the back of pickup through the warm night to the Khao Sok rainforest, blood sucking leeches and gibbon calls, monkey sightings and monsoonal downpours, and a journey to Tonsai, by Krabi (aka the climbing mecca of Thailand) where we kayaked, swam, and hiked every inch of the area possible. Today was most adventuresome day yet. We finally exited the main tourist circuit. We got to Pak Bara, the gateway to a huge and beautiful marine national park on the south western edge of Thailand, all on our own. We quickly found ourselves the only foreigners on the bus. Then we foolishly figured out that the best way to get here from La Ngu was by a moped, Ben on one and me on the other. Now our bellies are full of pad thai and curry, our heads want rest, and our bodies crave for more crystasl clear snorkeling, protected reefs, and rubbish-free islands. Some of the places we have visited so far have been sad to see with the constant pound of hammers, rubbish hidden around every corner, and reefs starting to fade. Hopefully this park does a better job at the protection aspect. Hold on for the next update.

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Monsoon Remnants


As Ben and I sit in this slow internet cafe waves are splashing against the windows and Thai longboats are bobbing like nibbled fishing bobbers on the aqua green water. Last night rain pelted our bungalo and lightning lit up the water along with the full moon casting dull shadows on tall fruit and palm tree branches. We huddled under our mosquito netting sleeping like we hadn't slept in days, which we hadn't. Yesterday was reached Ko Tao Island in the Gulf of Thailand after an on the verge seasick boat ride. After pushing our way through the taxi hagglers as we stepped on to Ko Tao we strapped on our packs and hiked through the jungle chewing on lechi fruit. The path was a maze and the shore and island covered with lumpy granit boulders. At our first chance we stripped down and dove into the warm and clear water. For us it was the first time the ocean has felt warm in years. Little fish swam around our feet and coral washed ashore. It's raining but at least it's not the cold hypothermia rain we are used to, so it doesn't bother us. This morning Ben went out in the storm and got us some coconut juice after a morning swim in the wild ocean...

Sunday, December 03, 2006

bangkok madness


40ish hours of traveling, a lost bag, a shocking heat wave that starts the sweat dripping immediately, geckoes on the wall, buddhist whats, international travelers, a tuktuk ride to a market selling live frogs, turtles, eels, wild eggs, fruits and vegetalbes unidentifiable, feral cats everywhere, cheap and yummy food, friendly thai smiles, and birds and sounds i've never dreamt of before. Tomorrow we head to a 'relatively' quiet island to avoid the full moon craziness and get our bodies into some warm and clear water for snorkeling and long walks on the beach. It is not hard to adjust to this traveling lifestyle!