The End

Our last day. The end of two months travelling four countries in Southeast Asia. Tonight at 4AM we will be picked up, taken to Bangkok airport, and we will fly home.

The day began with rain, but the bad weather was over after breakfast. Rachelle had a more conventional waffles and fruit, whereas I went for burger and chips. I've never had that for breakfast before. The rest of the morning and early afternoon were spent wandering around the streets looking at market stalls and shops to pick up a few last things. Then we rode in a Tuk-Tuk to the Siam Paragon. It's the place we saw Harry Potter in the big shopping mall. To be honest, we pretty much did the same things we did last time we were at the mall. We ate Burger King, looked around the shops and went to the cinema. The film watched was Transformers 3. Rachelle wanted to see The Deathly Hallows Part II again, but I recommended something to make the mall experience ever so slightly different from last time. Transformers wasn't very good in my opinion; lacked a good story. It was all just action sequences. Maybe we should have just watched Harry Potter again.

Our last ever Tuk-Tuk ride in Southeast Asia took us back to the guesthouse. It was dinner time and we ate at a restaurant called The Macaroni Club. The last time we ate there was, in fact, the first time we ate on our trip. When we landed in Bangkok, two months ago, The Macaroni Club was our first Asian dining experience, and now it's also our last. I had Thai Yellow Curry. Rachelle and I spent most of the time being sad about having to leave this world behind us.

The flight is at 6:50AM, but with the taxi to the airport leaving at 4AM, it made sense to us to try and stay awake through the night. Hopefully, this would also help us get over jet lag when back in England. To end the trip then, we went to Khaosan Road, to a bar; yet, it wasn't the conventional kind. A wooden kiosk with plastic chairs in front of it, and foldable tables, plonked on the pavement. Rachelle ordered a cocktail that she didn't like and I had myself a Chang beer. An Asian girl on the table next to us asked Rachelle something about a photograph. It was loud so we couldn't hear, but assumed she wanted us to take a photograph of her and her friends, so we said yes. Then the girl leaned in towards Rachelle and her friends took a photograph of the two of them. Asians taking photographs of Rachelle has happened too many times over the past two months with no explanation as to why. Therefore, we took our last opportunity to ask. The Asian girl said it's because Rachelle is so beautiful. So there you have it; mystery solved. I should have known.

The Asian girl turned out to be weird after talking with her. In her defence, she was probably just drunk, but we decided to leave the kiosk bar and go to a real bar. Rachelle and I shared a jug of Chang beer. We watched the Khaosan Road at night. It's full of intoxicated westerners and Asians alike. When it was really late, we hung out in our guesthouse room until it was time to take the taxi to the airport.

We left Bangkok in the night. The trip ended. Our time as travellers is over, and I will never ever forget it. And that's that.

Bangkok Part III

The last thing Rachelle and I want to do today is leave Koh Tao, but it's out of our hands. Bangkok is calling us back, for one last time. Our flight leaves on the 26th and we need to depart from the beautiful island today. The morning ferry was very nice. Much better than the other ferries we've had to take. It had a television that played old Americas Funniest Videos episodes. There was some funny stuff. The boat only took 3 hours to find the mainland. From there we took an 8 hour bus to Bangkok. The bus was also nice and played pirated DVD's; recent cinema releases including Battle Los Angeles and Tron. However, they had the sound volume too low so there was no point unless you can lip read, which I can't.

We arrived at around 9PM and chose the guesthouse we used last time; it's on the street parallel to Khaosan Road. I suggested we eat on Khaosan. I was wrong to. It's great for nightlife, but trying to hold a conversation in a restaurant-bar that is blasting through the decibels is more than difficult. The food was pants too. 

Tired from the journey, we dragged ourselves to bed. It's very sad to think that we are at our final destination before flying home.

Massages And Ladyboys

The weather today is much better than yesterday. The rain has stopped, the ground is dry again, and the grey blanket has thinned. There are still clouds up in the sky, but the sun can get through enough to make it quite warm. For both convenience and cost, we ate at our accommodation’s restaurant. After breakfast we strolled down the beach and found ourselves a nice spot. Again, there was plenty of space, because the beach isn't busy. I find it strange that on all the beaches we've been to in Southeast Asia, people don't seem to occupy them until after lunch. It's a good thing for us; I just find it strange. We sunbathed for two hours even though the sun wasn't especially strong. I read my book; the one I bought from Bangkok the last time we were there.

After lunch we lounged by the pool. It was not the nicest looking pool: The water was a little murky. I went in it anyway. Another couple of hours and Rachelle is feeling restless, wanting to get up and do something. Rachelle likes ice cream, and eating some seemed an adequate endeavour to keep her happy. There is an ice cream parlour that we spotted yesterday and we decide to go there. Rachelle had a chocolate brownie ice cream sandwich and I had a Sundae.

One of the most thriving street-shop businesses in Southeast Asia seems to be massage. They have parlours on every road. Apart from the unwanted massage in the restaurant in Ho Chi Minh (and I don't think it really counts) we haven't had one. I think, however, that it is important we experience a traditional Asian massage in Asia. And so we do. We both opt for the Thai massage. They give me strange baggy bottoms to put on. Rachelle did too, but also received a baggy top. I lie down on a mattress, Rachelle is lying on the one next to me, and a stocky Thai lady begins rubbing, poking and pulling my arms, legs, head and back. I'll admit I was a little scared and kept my eyes closed the entire time, only occasionally peering over at Rachelle to see how hers was getting on. It was an experience, and my body joints cracked a few times, which I presume is a good thing. I don't think I felt much different afterwards though. Maybe the effects can't be felt. To finish, they gave us some kind of herbal drink. The drink was nice. It all lasted about an hour.

At a beach bar we hung out, I read and had a drink. The daily monsoon poured down and we waited for the storm to pass before looking for a worthy restaurant. The restaurant opposite our accommodation has an all-you-can-eat pizza offer. When we sit down, there is a conversation struggle with the non-English speaking waitress about how it works; I'm used to a buffet-style operation, but the process they implement here is very different. Waiters and waitresses walk around the tables that have opted for the AYCE whenever a fresh pizza has been baked and they hand everyone a slice. It's good because you don't have to move, but you can't choose the pizza type and you have to wait for them to come round. Rachelle didn't like having to wait to eat more. I didn't mind.

In the evening we headed to a couple of bars. One on the beach and one not. Opposite the latter of the bars, Rachelle and I noticed a strange and somewhat scary place. It was another bar, but ladyboy employees were outside trying to attract people inside. A sign above said 'Ladyboy Show Every Night'. I was surprised to see so many people - men, women and children - going inside. I was very two minded about the thought of going in: On the one hand, I find it strange, but on the other, ladyboy culture is very prominent in Thailand and maybe it would be cultural to see what it's all about.

I immediately regretted being there. It was too weird for me, and too weird for Rachelle too. Ladyboy waiters, or waitresses, or whatever they are, serve drinks from a very expensive menu whilst her (or his?) colleagues are on stage, dancing and miming to pop songs. They couldn't dance in time with each other, and most of them couldn't mime in sync with the songs. I felt sorry for them: The westerners inside the bar hadn't come for the quality of the performance; they were there to see a freak show. Rachelle and I swiftly left after glugging down one drink.

Underwater World

Today we are going to the other side of the island: The western side with the long stretch of beach and the town. Before doing so, we want to enjoy the morning in Tanote Bay and therefore book the taxi for 1PM. At breakfast we ate fruit salads with yoghurt, mine came with honey too. Once our plates were empty it was on to the beach. After some morning relaxing, we hire snorkeling masks to see what fish occupy the corals. They turned out to be the best corals either of us have ever seen.

There was a lot more coral than we had first thought, and not only that, but a lot more fish. All sorts of fish, all sorts of colours and sizes. Rachelle saw an eel and a school of big fish that scared her. She said they looked like they had teeth. They probably didn't. I regret not doing this all yesterday when we had the whole day. It was like visiting an aquarium and being allowed into the pools, only it wasn't artificial. It was seeing another world. Wanting a break from snorkeling, I went towards the boulders that are out on the bay. When I stepped foot on them, many iridescently coloured crabs scuttled away to hide from me. They didn't hide very well and I could see them under the rocks. I decided that I must get Rachelle to come and look, so I did. We hung out on the rocks and then time was getting on. I looked at the biggest of the boulders, the one that you can climb up and jump off, and realised that it was now or never.

The climb to the top was harder than I imagined. After climbing up the bottom part, you have to use a rope to pull yourself to the top, up the steep surface. My feet were getting small cuts. I walked to where you could jump off, the height must have been around 8 metres, maybe more, and Rachelle was swimming, waiting to watch me jump. I know now, and I knew at the time, that what I did next was lame. I decided to pretend I was in The Beach, jumping off of the big rock just before Richard, Etienne and Francoise find the secret beach. The jump was exhilarating. Then it was a rushed swim back to get the taxi to Sairee Beach.

Our luck had us arrive on the other side of the island just as a storm began. We had to walk up the long street that runs parallel with the beach, looking for a place to stay. Nowhere seemed to have room, at least not in our budget. It was worrying when a guy at a diving resort told Rachelle that most places were full and we'd need to find somewhere soon, before the next ferries of new arrivals snatch up the last of what's left. We swiftly picked up our game and plodded through the rain.

Our luck changed for the better; thanks to Rachelle's suggestion to walk down a street I didn't like the look of, we ended up being taken to a beach side resort with pool. They had a bungalow available for an agreeable 700 Baht per night (around 14 pounds). Relieved and very happy with the accommodation, we take a breather before heading out in the rain to find somewhere to eat. We chose Thai food.

The weather didn't improve very much. It stopped raining, but the skies remained dull and a cooling breeze never ceased. It was a nice temperature, but not tropical. After a walk along the beach, we rested in the room, watching television, getting ready for the evening. For dinner I had enchiladas and Rachelle a salad at a restaurant playing the movie Hangover 2. It was the same pirated quality we had watched in Sihanoukville. Down at the beach were fires shows and bars where we had a couple of drinks. The fire shows were substandard and I feel I have seen enough of them now to make a qualified judgement.

Dinosaur Island

For some reason a woman screamed and it woke most people on our side of the room up. It's early, around 5:40AM, and out of the boat window I can see Koh Tao. We still have a while to wait before we dock. I feel sticky, tired and disgusted by the conditions I've slept in. At least it's almost over and I can shower when we find a room.

Koh Tao is a bigger island than Koh Phi Phi. It's supposedly the island for diving and snorkeling, situated in the Gulf of Thailand above Koh Samui and Koh Phangan. My first impression of the landscape was Jurassic. Smooth, giant boulders are all over the hills, poking out of the green forest that coats the island. It's hard to describe why that made it look 'Jurassic', but it just did. 

When we get ourselves off the boat and onto the island, we realised we had no idea where we wanted to go. The main strip of beach and all the bars and restaurants are on the west side of the island. However, it's not necessarily the nicest strip of beach and Rachelle reckons we head to one of the smaller, quieter beaches on the east, because they are supposedly better. After much deliberation we chose Tanote Bay. We weren't sure if it was possible to walk there but not being sure meant it was wiser to take a taxi. The taxis here are all pick-up trucks. We didn't know why until making the journey to the east side: Steep hills and poor road surfaces. A Tuk-Tuk would fall apart on this terrain and it's a good job we didn't walk. The truck is an expensive ride and we wonder if we've been conned as new arrivals. It drops us off at a hotel that the driver said would be in our price range. It definitely wasn't. He refused to take us anywhere else without paying him more, but told us there were more places to stay on the beach itself, just a short walk away. We decided to give it a try.
 

It was a fairly short walk to the beach. However, it involved walking along a wooden bridge that didn't seem all that well built. Every step we took, with our heavy bags on our backs, made the planks of wood beneath give a little. There was serious risk of falling straight through. Our fears weren't put at ease after seeing one of the planks snapped by someone previously using the bridge, and I bet they didn't have this amount of baggage slung around them. Thankfully, we made it to the beach and found accommodation we could afford. 

We are staying in a bungalow on stilts. It overlooks the small beach and is a short walk down some steps onto the sand. In the sea is a collection of boulders, and one of them is especially large. Apparently you can jump from the top of it into the sea. I might try it. Our accommodation has a restaurant and the other two or three places to stay on this beach do too, but that's about all there is here. It's simplistic, tranquil, a getaway from all the noise.

Once settled into our room, we went for breakfast in the restaurant. Then we headed onto the beach to find ourselves a spot (not hard with noone on it). We sunbathed, swam in the sea and sunbathed some more. We made a mental note to rent snorkeling masks tomorrow, because there is heaps of coral in the sea and the clear water means we can see fish from above; imagine what could be seen with a snorkeling mask. The beach became a bit more crowded as the day went on, but not by much. It really is a lovely place to be. Rachelle and I prematurely agreed with each other that this is the best beach we have been to.

When the sun began to set, we went for food at a neighbouring hotel: Traitors to our own accommodation's restaurant I suppose. Then there was nothing to do. No nightlife in paradise. We were tired anyway and decided to get into bed and watch Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure on my iPod. Rachelle hadn't seen it before, but it is a most bodacious film. 

Travelers At Heart

The plan was to make the last week of our travels a relaxing holiday. We were going to stay on Koh Phi Phi and enjoy everything it has to offer us for a whole week. However, we are travelers and can't seem to stay in one place for very long anymore. We made the decision to go to one more island. Tonight we leave for Koh Tao, an island in the Gulf of Thailand.

We check-out of our hotel in the morning and leave our bags at the travel agency with whom we booked our journey. We're still entitled to use the hotel's pool, and that's what we do. The pool was busier today. Maybe a sign that it is a good time to leave the island. We don't like the crowds. It was nice relaxing in the sun. Rachelle was sure the pool bar did breakfast, so that was the plan. The pool bar didn't do breakfast. We had to eat Thai food as a morning meal.

At about 2PM, we packed our things, changed into clothes in the pool toilets, picked up some snacks from the 7-Eleven and went to the pier to wait for our boat. At 3:45PM we boarded and found seats. Then, off the ferry and onto a mini-bus for a short journey. Off the mini-bus and onto another for a much longer journey to Suratthani, where our night-ferry is waiting for us.

Rachelle, nor I, knew night-ferries even existed in this manner. It's another type of transport we can add to the list. However, it's not one we want to. The night-ferry is horrible. It's one big room with mattresses, laid side-by-side, along both walls. No dividers, just mattresses making one long bed. Above the mattresses are numbers, and these are the seat numbers (or bed numbers in this case). I worked out that it was about two and a half people per double mattress, and the mattresses were not very big. Forty people on each side of the boat. I'm not a particularly large person and I only just fit into a designated space. Of course, the fattest couple on the boat are next to me. We're all very squashed in. It wasn't even clean, nor was it air-conditioned. It was a nightmare and overtakes the sleeper-bus in the ranks of worst transport used in Southeast Asia.

The Beach

Today we are going on a boat tour around Koh Phi Phi. It doesn't start until 11AM, leaving us plenty of time to grab a bakery breakfast. We had donuts. Then we went to wait at the tour agency to get picked up. A woman on a bicycle came to collect us and we followed her all the way back to the beach which our hotel is on. We were given flippers for snorkeling and waited for others to arrive.

We get into a Long boat; the type of boat you'll almost definitely see in a holiday brochure for Thailand. It's a long, thin, wooden boat with an engine on the back. There are ten of us on the tour. Despite being the first people on the beach waiting, we are the last on the boat, meaning we are at the front. It's good for the view. Our first stop is Monkey Beach, but when we get there, we don't see any monkeys; just some Asians taking photographs of each other in the sea. The Long boat driver suggests we move on and we all agree. The second stop is a snorkeling spot. We already have our flippers and grab snorkeling masks from a box. I broke the first pair I picked up before even putting them on, but took another pair without anyone noticing me cause the damage. Rachelle and I jump in, and looking down, we didn't see much. A few Lion fish maybe, nothing more tropical than that. 

On the boat again and on our way to Maya Bay, things didn't feel so good. Both Rachelle and I had begun to feel sea-sick. The waters were very choppy and being at the front of the boat made it worse. We spent the short trip trying not to be ill, but made it to Maya Bay vomit-free. We were glad to have our feet on the ground. Our sea legs simply weren't with us today.

Maya Bay is on Koh Phi Phi Leh; a neighbouring island to Koh Phi Phi. It was the bay used in the film 'The Beach' - based on the Alex Garland novel I've been reading aloud to Rachelle throughout this trip. We take out our towels, I get out The Beach, ready to read, and we receive our included lunch from the boat driver. Then, out of nowhere, the sea struck. It came rushing towards us and caused ruin. My book was soaked, the dry towels were soaked and had sand washed upon them, Rachelle's lunch had been swallowed up, and the bag, with all our cameras and other belongings was wet too. How awfully inconvenient. I don't imagine Leonardo Dicaprio had to deal with this nonsense when filming. 

Maya Bay doesn't really look like it does in the film. It would be pretty if it wasn't for the tourist boats, tourists, rubbish floating around in the water and all our things being wet through. However, The Beach is one of my favourite films and it's nice to see the bay. We recovered from our incident and I read some of the book to Rachelle.

An hour at Maya Bay and we set off to another snorkeling spot. Again there wasn't a great array of fish, but there were lots and lots of Lion fish that came to swim around us. Tourism had them thinking we would bring bread to feed them, but we had none. After twenty minutes we set off for Pilah Lagoon. It's a lagoon surrounded by mountains and is filled with clear blue waters for swimming. I took the opportunity to dive from the Long boat. Rachelle captured it on camera. 

Next stop was Shark Point for more snorkeling. After about fifteen minutes, we had not seen any sharks and gave up - we still felt a little shaky from the sea and swimming wasn't helping. Some of the others did see sharks. Good for them. 

Our final stop was an hour on Mosquito Island. Despite it's name, it's a gorgeous island to relax on. Not many tourists either. Maybe its name scared them away. We sat on the sand (making sure the sea couldn't touch us this time) and I read more of The Beach to Rachelle. The small island gets thumbs up from both of us. When our time there was over, the boat took us back as the sun was setting.

We were going to go out to try some more bars, but decided the day had taken it out of us; all the swimming and feeling sick. Instead, we bought takeaway pizza and ate it whilst watching My Sister's Keeper, because Rachelle suggested the film. But even though she was the reason we watched it, she fell asleep and I watched it on my own. I woke her up to read The Beach some more. I finished it. It's the first book I've read in years. How proud I am of myself. I should read more books.