Wednesday, October 29, 2003
One more quick day
Im at Max and Nicoles in Newcastle at the moment which is why i have the chance to update so much
Yay!
i got really behind so about time i caught up a little really..
Anyway
The 8th
In the morning Julia and I took a walk along the beach to Thong Sala - nice walk - the beach was nice - although the sea wasnt great - near our chalet it was a little bit too shallow to swim really
At Thong Sala we got some breakfast but I couldnt eat anything really - total lack of appetite and general feeling of nausea
We dropped into a pharmacy and grabbed some pills for me - Thailand is pretty cool cos you can basically get anything over the counter - antibiotics or whatever
I didnt really feel much better all day - we dossed around playing pool and connect 4 and cards
I was sick in the evening and went to bed early
nice
The 9th was the day before the full moon party -
the weather was considerably better so we lazed on the beach all day and then in the evening went to Haad Rin to check out what was going on over there
We went with Neil - an English guy teaching English in Chang Mai (North Thailand) and Tony his Irish mate doing the same thing - along with Ann - Neil's Thai girlfriend
Also planned to meet Carly an English girl we met who was frankly a bit of a fruitloop - i wont go into details but she was leaving the following day - hence missing the party - thats not why she was crackers but it gives you an idea - she was also feeling ill but that didnt stop her drinking - she ended up puking so im pretty glad I abstained
Haad Rin was pretty cool - really chilled - on the beach all the bars had mats out with candles all around and it was a nice atmosphere
We went into a chill out bar run by some friendly Italian guys who were serving real fruit juice cocktails (where Carly was ill)
On the way there and back we caught a Son-Tal (im sure there is a complicated way of spelling this but phonetics are all good)
these are the local bus/taxi type things - basically a van type thing where you all pile on the back - sometimes literally hanging off the back while the drivers zoom up and down the twisty hills
I thought these were cool and they didnt make me feel any more sick than i did just standing around - apart from sometimes on the journey back when if you were sat on the wrong side the coastline you could see over the hills seemed to be at a very funny angle - these hills were steeper than you realised i guess...
Im at Max and Nicoles in Newcastle at the moment which is why i have the chance to update so much
Yay!
i got really behind so about time i caught up a little really..
Anyway
The 8th
In the morning Julia and I took a walk along the beach to Thong Sala - nice walk - the beach was nice - although the sea wasnt great - near our chalet it was a little bit too shallow to swim really
At Thong Sala we got some breakfast but I couldnt eat anything really - total lack of appetite and general feeling of nausea
We dropped into a pharmacy and grabbed some pills for me - Thailand is pretty cool cos you can basically get anything over the counter - antibiotics or whatever
I didnt really feel much better all day - we dossed around playing pool and connect 4 and cards
I was sick in the evening and went to bed early
nice
The 9th was the day before the full moon party -
the weather was considerably better so we lazed on the beach all day and then in the evening went to Haad Rin to check out what was going on over there
We went with Neil - an English guy teaching English in Chang Mai (North Thailand) and Tony his Irish mate doing the same thing - along with Ann - Neil's Thai girlfriend
Also planned to meet Carly an English girl we met who was frankly a bit of a fruitloop - i wont go into details but she was leaving the following day - hence missing the party - thats not why she was crackers but it gives you an idea - she was also feeling ill but that didnt stop her drinking - she ended up puking so im pretty glad I abstained
Haad Rin was pretty cool - really chilled - on the beach all the bars had mats out with candles all around and it was a nice atmosphere
We went into a chill out bar run by some friendly Italian guys who were serving real fruit juice cocktails (where Carly was ill)
On the way there and back we caught a Son-Tal (im sure there is a complicated way of spelling this but phonetics are all good)
these are the local bus/taxi type things - basically a van type thing where you all pile on the back - sometimes literally hanging off the back while the drivers zoom up and down the twisty hills
I thought these were cool and they didnt make me feel any more sick than i did just standing around - apart from sometimes on the journey back when if you were sat on the wrong side the coastline you could see over the hills seemed to be at a very funny angle - these hills were steeper than you realised i guess...
The 7th was another day of travelling - set off on the early minibus to take us through to Ko Pha Ngan
This was by no means as pleasant as the previous journey though - we thought these minibuses must be used because there are not many people travelling - you know otherwise why wouldnt they just use a proper bus?
Dave, a guy we met at the hostel from Doncaster (and it was good to hear that accent again as it goes), told us we were very lucky the previous day - and so it proved
The minibus was packed - the three of us were on the back row - no leg room and no way out
Dave was actually near the front but when we stopped for a break they brought on an extra woman to share his seat... - there were four people on 3 chairs
not fun - we killed the journey a little by playing cards but it was sooo uncomfortable
This bus dropped us off at a little cafe where we had to wait an hour for a connecting bus to take us to the jetty - this sort of thing is not unusal in Thailand - nothing seems to connect with anything else in any sort of sensible way - there are always long delays in connections and bus drivers usually take detours to collect family or do some shopping (it seems) - so a journey generally takes a couple of hours longer than it should do
They are also obsessed with tickets and stickers - every time you change a bus you are given one or the other - the sticker usually stating your final destination - far too much wastage i reckon.
Anyway - the bus took us through to Donsak where the ferry departed from - and we had another 45 minute wait there
The ferry was alright though - 2 1/2 hours seemed to pass relatively quickly
Perhaps helped by Po the "White Eagle" (to take his "international" name) A slightly crazed "Scientist" from Lapland.
Apparently he was regarded as the new Einstein - although seemingly only by himself..
He had developed a new theory for creating energy - something to do with mirrors but i was too busy pissing myself to get the details.
He was pissed and kept bursting into renditions of Blowing In The Wind - i think he considered himself a bit of an artist as well - drawing portraits of Dave and Julia
Unfortunatley i forgot to get his email address
We spoke to a few "travel agents" on the boat - guys trying to convince you to stay in their chalets - we had decided to stay in Hat Rin where the Party was being held but after being given the sell by a guy on the boat we decided to go to Ban Tai instead which was a quieter beach halfway between Hat Rin and Tong Sala where the Jetty is.
I say half way - it was actually a 20 minute walk to Tong Sala and about a 3 hour walk to Hat Rin but anyhoo
We got a nice 3 man Chalet just off the beach for a bargain 200Baht a night between us - that worlks out at about 1 pound 20 each per night
excellent
Unfortunatley this was when i started feeling ill
Boo Hiss etc
This was by no means as pleasant as the previous journey though - we thought these minibuses must be used because there are not many people travelling - you know otherwise why wouldnt they just use a proper bus?
Dave, a guy we met at the hostel from Doncaster (and it was good to hear that accent again as it goes), told us we were very lucky the previous day - and so it proved
The minibus was packed - the three of us were on the back row - no leg room and no way out
Dave was actually near the front but when we stopped for a break they brought on an extra woman to share his seat... - there were four people on 3 chairs
not fun - we killed the journey a little by playing cards but it was sooo uncomfortable
This bus dropped us off at a little cafe where we had to wait an hour for a connecting bus to take us to the jetty - this sort of thing is not unusal in Thailand - nothing seems to connect with anything else in any sort of sensible way - there are always long delays in connections and bus drivers usually take detours to collect family or do some shopping (it seems) - so a journey generally takes a couple of hours longer than it should do
They are also obsessed with tickets and stickers - every time you change a bus you are given one or the other - the sticker usually stating your final destination - far too much wastage i reckon.
Anyway - the bus took us through to Donsak where the ferry departed from - and we had another 45 minute wait there
The ferry was alright though - 2 1/2 hours seemed to pass relatively quickly
Perhaps helped by Po the "White Eagle" (to take his "international" name) A slightly crazed "Scientist" from Lapland.
Apparently he was regarded as the new Einstein - although seemingly only by himself..
He had developed a new theory for creating energy - something to do with mirrors but i was too busy pissing myself to get the details.
He was pissed and kept bursting into renditions of Blowing In The Wind - i think he considered himself a bit of an artist as well - drawing portraits of Dave and Julia
Unfortunatley i forgot to get his email address
We spoke to a few "travel agents" on the boat - guys trying to convince you to stay in their chalets - we had decided to stay in Hat Rin where the Party was being held but after being given the sell by a guy on the boat we decided to go to Ban Tai instead which was a quieter beach halfway between Hat Rin and Tong Sala where the Jetty is.
I say half way - it was actually a 20 minute walk to Tong Sala and about a 3 hour walk to Hat Rin but anyhoo
We got a nice 3 man Chalet just off the beach for a bargain 200Baht a night between us - that worlks out at about 1 pound 20 each per night
excellent
Unfortunatley this was when i started feeling ill
Boo Hiss etc
The 4th was a lazy day - Raining again so after sorting out various necessities - washing, email etc
having pancakes and scones at the T cafe
We pretty much played cards all day though - some half hearted drinking games started in the evening but it wasnt a crazy night at all
Nice to relax a bit though - The Danish guys were leaving on the early bus to Penang and we were leaving on the slightly later one so we all had to be up relatively early
On the 5th Julia and I went to get some breakfast - more Roti pancakes - and picked up some food for the bus journey
we had time for a quick milkshake before getting on the bus (Jules was getting obsessed with the chocolate shake from the T Cafe)
I quite enjoyed the crazy bus ride down the hill although i think the others were finding it a little hairy - the journey to Penang took about 7 hours in total and we arrived after dark to a flooded city - it had been raining solidly in Penang for 60 hours amd showed no sign of letting up
Christian and Niels had asked Jimmy to save us some beds so we arrived at Love Lane to a nice reception - nipped out to grab some food and then booked the early bus the next day at 8.30 to Hat Yai in Thailand.
We were very lucky on the Minibus (as our later experiences will testify) - it was small but there were only the three of us on it - the Danes had gone off to Sumatra in Indonesia
So that was pretty comfortable - we arrived at 12.30 and went to the Cathay Guest House - recommended by Jimmy as cheap since we were only staying one night
We wandered around Hat Yai for a bit and I bought this element thing so i can make tea whereever I go!
Hat Yai is a bit of a dump though - not a lot to see and again it started raining - so after we had food we went back to the hostel and sat around in our room for far too long - i was going a little mad - it was kind of like that scene at the start of Apocalypse Now with the fan going round - except without the whisky or the blood
Eventually we went downstairs and sat in the cafe at the hostel watched a movie and played cards
having pancakes and scones at the T cafe
We pretty much played cards all day though - some half hearted drinking games started in the evening but it wasnt a crazy night at all
Nice to relax a bit though - The Danish guys were leaving on the early bus to Penang and we were leaving on the slightly later one so we all had to be up relatively early
On the 5th Julia and I went to get some breakfast - more Roti pancakes - and picked up some food for the bus journey
we had time for a quick milkshake before getting on the bus (Jules was getting obsessed with the chocolate shake from the T Cafe)
I quite enjoyed the crazy bus ride down the hill although i think the others were finding it a little hairy - the journey to Penang took about 7 hours in total and we arrived after dark to a flooded city - it had been raining solidly in Penang for 60 hours amd showed no sign of letting up
Christian and Niels had asked Jimmy to save us some beds so we arrived at Love Lane to a nice reception - nipped out to grab some food and then booked the early bus the next day at 8.30 to Hat Yai in Thailand.
We were very lucky on the Minibus (as our later experiences will testify) - it was small but there were only the three of us on it - the Danes had gone off to Sumatra in Indonesia
So that was pretty comfortable - we arrived at 12.30 and went to the Cathay Guest House - recommended by Jimmy as cheap since we were only staying one night
We wandered around Hat Yai for a bit and I bought this element thing so i can make tea whereever I go!
Hat Yai is a bit of a dump though - not a lot to see and again it started raining - so after we had food we went back to the hostel and sat around in our room for far too long - i was going a little mad - it was kind of like that scene at the start of Apocalypse Now with the fan going round - except without the whisky or the blood
Eventually we went downstairs and sat in the cafe at the hostel watched a movie and played cards
I hope that last post posted...
grrr
All about a party
anyway - after the party the chances of us getting up at 10 oclock for the jungle trekking were very slim as you can imagine - not helped by the fact that it was raining - in fact it had been raining pretty much since we arrived at the Highlands and would continue to do so for most of our stay - i think it may have cleared up on the day we left...
Because of the altitude it is quite a lot cooler up there anyway which is nice because you arent sitting around sweating all day - however coupled with the rain its a bit of a downer
Anyway - despite the lack of a trek the rain did clear enough for Julia, Ellen and Ruth to decide to go and visit a tea plantation just down the road - James and I tagged along although James turned back after 5 minutes cos he was feeling the effects of the night before.
I felt fine though - and after picking up Samosas from the girls' favourite curry restaurant for the journey we headed off down the road.
There were some great views of all the tea plants slightly obscured by the fog but still impressive.
We got to the viewing point and had a cup of Cameronian tea - not bad - but frankly for all these tea plantations its a nightmare getting a decent cup of tea over here - they dont have real milk which is the killer so its always either UHT (yuk) or super sweet condensed stuff - or black as we had it here
Then we headed down into the plantations themselves wandering up and down trails of tea - some of the paths were extremely steep actually but it was fun.
Perhaps we should have called it a day a little sooner however - after taking another side path we found ourselves getting a bit lost - we could have retraced our steps but it would have taken some time and we wanted to press on - there is bound to be a path through to the main road - theres a village up there so surely they must have some access road.
We found ourselves in a tiny Kampung of Orang Asli (which are the aboriginal peoples of Malaysia) - to say they had access roads would be a lie.
we had to scramble down a hillside and jump accross a river in order to get to a small trail which after some backbreaking climbs for about 45 minutes eventually led us to the road. Oh, and it started raining at this point as well. And it doesnt rain by halves over here - it pisses it down
So we were drenched and knew that we had probably another 40 minute uphill walk to get back to the hostel - luckily though a guy in a pick up truck picked us up (without even so much as an outstreched thumb - bless) so we were back pretty quickly in the end
Before we had left there was a bit of a panic because Stefan - a Czech guy who was staying at the hostel had gone missing after setting off on a trek 2 days before - none of the treks are supposed to take longer than a day so we were beginning to think he had gone missing... The girls were feeling a little guilty because they had been taking the piss after he had been telling them how easy the trails were up here.
When we got back from our jaunt Stefan showed up shortly after. Covered in mud. Had to throw his boots away.
He'd taken a wrong turning and ended up sleeping in the jungle and eating the sap from inside banana trees.
nice
So we were pretty tired - went back to the Indian as recommended by the girls and wasnt disappointed - great selection of stuff banana leaf stylee
Alex had also told us about the Hindu fire walking ceremony thing that was going on up by the temple - the old walking on hot coals trick
Didnt look that impressive as several kids did it repeatedly but at least it was warm up there - (it did look quite cool but not that exciting after 5 minutes)
SO because of our tiredness we all voted to watch a video - despite a large selection of movies at the hostel there was a large selection of crap.
We picked out Serendipity with John Cusack an extremely cheesy rom com based around the idea of fate
It was amusing but generally greeted with groans throughout.
grrr
All about a party
anyway - after the party the chances of us getting up at 10 oclock for the jungle trekking were very slim as you can imagine - not helped by the fact that it was raining - in fact it had been raining pretty much since we arrived at the Highlands and would continue to do so for most of our stay - i think it may have cleared up on the day we left...
Because of the altitude it is quite a lot cooler up there anyway which is nice because you arent sitting around sweating all day - however coupled with the rain its a bit of a downer
Anyway - despite the lack of a trek the rain did clear enough for Julia, Ellen and Ruth to decide to go and visit a tea plantation just down the road - James and I tagged along although James turned back after 5 minutes cos he was feeling the effects of the night before.
I felt fine though - and after picking up Samosas from the girls' favourite curry restaurant for the journey we headed off down the road.
There were some great views of all the tea plants slightly obscured by the fog but still impressive.
We got to the viewing point and had a cup of Cameronian tea - not bad - but frankly for all these tea plantations its a nightmare getting a decent cup of tea over here - they dont have real milk which is the killer so its always either UHT (yuk) or super sweet condensed stuff - or black as we had it here
Then we headed down into the plantations themselves wandering up and down trails of tea - some of the paths were extremely steep actually but it was fun.
Perhaps we should have called it a day a little sooner however - after taking another side path we found ourselves getting a bit lost - we could have retraced our steps but it would have taken some time and we wanted to press on - there is bound to be a path through to the main road - theres a village up there so surely they must have some access road.
We found ourselves in a tiny Kampung of Orang Asli (which are the aboriginal peoples of Malaysia) - to say they had access roads would be a lie.
we had to scramble down a hillside and jump accross a river in order to get to a small trail which after some backbreaking climbs for about 45 minutes eventually led us to the road. Oh, and it started raining at this point as well. And it doesnt rain by halves over here - it pisses it down
So we were drenched and knew that we had probably another 40 minute uphill walk to get back to the hostel - luckily though a guy in a pick up truck picked us up (without even so much as an outstreched thumb - bless) so we were back pretty quickly in the end
Before we had left there was a bit of a panic because Stefan - a Czech guy who was staying at the hostel had gone missing after setting off on a trek 2 days before - none of the treks are supposed to take longer than a day so we were beginning to think he had gone missing... The girls were feeling a little guilty because they had been taking the piss after he had been telling them how easy the trails were up here.
When we got back from our jaunt Stefan showed up shortly after. Covered in mud. Had to throw his boots away.
He'd taken a wrong turning and ended up sleeping in the jungle and eating the sap from inside banana trees.
nice
So we were pretty tired - went back to the Indian as recommended by the girls and wasnt disappointed - great selection of stuff banana leaf stylee
Alex had also told us about the Hindu fire walking ceremony thing that was going on up by the temple - the old walking on hot coals trick
Didnt look that impressive as several kids did it repeatedly but at least it was warm up there - (it did look quite cool but not that exciting after 5 minutes)
SO because of our tiredness we all voted to watch a video - despite a large selection of movies at the hostel there was a large selection of crap.
We picked out Serendipity with John Cusack an extremely cheesy rom com based around the idea of fate
It was amusing but generally greeted with groans throughout.
So anyway we all drank and drank - first on the verandah outside the hostel and then in the TV room when Alex the manager asked us to move in there - Alex was drinking with us mind so it wasnt in a bad way
I forget exactly who was there without my notes - there were a couple of Swedish girls, an English couple and a German couple but i dont think they were around for long - I spent most of the night talking to Julia and Christian - I seem to remember us all dancing around taking turns to wear a motorbike helmet but its a little vague
The other highlight of the evening was going out to get some water with Julia and Ellen and discovering the scariest nightclub in the world.
It seemed to appear at night with the door dissappearing during the day (shutters we worked out) but once inside the banging techno (or scouse house) was played at ear shattering volumes and the lights were non existent - we went in holding hands it was so dark so we wouldnt get lost - danced for about 5 minutes like idiots and got the hell out of there - Joe had told me about the place in Penang actually but i wasnt expecting it to be quite as bad as he had made out
Funny to visit though.
So anyway by 4.30 it was time for bed
I forget exactly who was there without my notes - there were a couple of Swedish girls, an English couple and a German couple but i dont think they were around for long - I spent most of the night talking to Julia and Christian - I seem to remember us all dancing around taking turns to wear a motorbike helmet but its a little vague
The other highlight of the evening was going out to get some water with Julia and Ellen and discovering the scariest nightclub in the world.
It seemed to appear at night with the door dissappearing during the day (shutters we worked out) but once inside the banging techno (or scouse house) was played at ear shattering volumes and the lights were non existent - we went in holding hands it was so dark so we wouldnt get lost - danced for about 5 minutes like idiots and got the hell out of there - Joe had told me about the place in Penang actually but i wasnt expecting it to be quite as bad as he had made out
Funny to visit though.
So anyway by 4.30 it was time for bed
