Maxed out! I'm coming home!!!
Well. I was coming home anyway, as y'all know. But on Saturday, when the old ATM took um bridge with my MasterCard and spat it back out minus required funds, well I figured home time isn't a minute too soon.
Not that I'm not nervous or anything. It was Geordie Jonnie who described being so nervous that 'me bottom was puttin' like a donkeys nostrils...' If that's me (and I'm not saying it is because I'm a Laydeeeeeeee) then it could be nerves or the spicy beef salad and curry me and the Jayster have just had as a farewell meal...
Arrh. Just said my goodbyes to him (again) as that lucky sod gets xmas with his family in Western Australia this year due to Big Sister marrying out there. But that just means I have two weeks ahead of him to adjust to being depressed in a UK winter...
So I'm in Bangkoks Subywhatzit brand-spanking-new airport writing my last travelly post. Are you sad? Ahhh dont be, will go out with a few more tit bits I promise. After I got back from Vietnam the 2 weeks just razzed by in a blur of Bangkok Christmas shopping and more free nights out. We did manage another trip to Kohpangan for the Monster Raving Full Moony Party with A&D which was a total mission to get to. After Andrew dared us to get a bus ticket, J and I found ourselves meeting him outside a travel agent at 18.30 to get the bus. Due to it being the Kings Birthday (and I have told you, they lurrrve their King) the city streets were RAMMED and so was Koh San. There were yellow t-shirted Thais everywhere, and even a huge firework display over the city, and of course, lots of traffic. We set off very late but still managed to arrive very early in the morning in the dark at the catamaran pier. As we get off the bus it starts to rain. Quite heavy, in the dark. Everyone is grumpy, cold and tired. I get stung on the knee by a wasp and didn't realise that wasn't the only thing attacking me, as the mozzie bites on my legs the next day testified. As the dawn broke, we could see the sea was choppy as you like, and the little 'made out of toothpicks' pier was looking more than a little overcome. Nevertheless the catamaran operators (who had access to weather reports and knew a typhoon was coming) insisted the boat was coming and that we would be taken.
In the mists of the morning we could see the boat lurching towards the jetty, and as it pulled alongside the huge mob of us waited to get on the gangway, bracing ourselves against the rain. As the deck hands tried to dock, we were allowed up the wooden gangway towards the boat- the deck was literally bending under us and the waves unexpectedly picked up pace again. The rope the deckhands had just managed to tie to the pier suddenly ripped off one of the jetty's massive metal support posts. The Thais started shouting 'Go back!! Go back!!!' and everyone in the lashing down storm had to to turn back lest we all ended up in the sea. Then the catamaran sped off and left us all there....
Cut to the chase it took us another hour sitting in the port to realise we were not getting that catamaran. Then we had a 3 hour drive in a mini bus to get to the TOWN of someplace near the large ferry port, then a fight with the minibus driver much to Andrews embarrassment, then new tickets to the other ferry, then, i dunno, 5 hours on the ferry until finally we touched down on Kohpangnan around 7pm and then we were expected to party. The most annoying and unbelievable thing about all of this was Decha arrived about half an hour after us and he'd only set off from Bangkok that morning. Arrrgh!!
So the full moon party (part deux for moi) was a different kettle of fish than when I went in April. We grabbed a posh expensive beach house that had a king sized bed in, splitting the cost between us 3 and a couple we met on the ferry (French bird and Aussie bloke) so that we could shower and get changed and have somewhere to stay. Decha, like the pet party animal he is, appeared after monies were sorted..... Then we walked through the WALL OF SOUND that was the main trance and techno tent on the beach and got wrecked. Memories of that night are hazy... but as the sun rose over the beach, despite it being littered with freaks of all shapes and sizes dancing away amongst the party debris in their dayglow body paints and fisherman pants, the hills, sea, rocks and colours still managed to be really beautiful. No kidding. Due to my ear drums being near perforated by the insanely loud sound systems of the beach, I was pretty much deaf by sunrise and had a bit of a 'Saving Private Ryan; beaches of Normandy' moment when everything was muffled and my party shocked eyes roamed across the beach spectacle; two girls with their trousers rolled up, sitting on plastic chairs and chatting away, oblivious to the tide swamping them; a man being washed around the tide in his clothes- until his mate finds him and gives him an earful before hugging him and dragging him to safety; the people swimming and dancing in the sea, and the people on the beach who were dancing dancing dancing so hard as if the world would stop if they did. And some ridiculously ripped German looking geezer with stripy green cycling shorts on,a bare chest and hair like Vanilla Ice, tribal dancing like the Haka to his mates whose brains had dribbled out off their ears earlier on and were helpless to do anything but be forced to watch....
Man, it was a total freak fest. Ace.
So then. Our last night and a final farewell night to Andrew & Decha. It was sad. We got some Tiger beers from a little shop and mingled with the Koh San Road massive, swigging whilst sitting on the kerb watching the human circus pass by. I thought about how I was going to miss never having to take a jacket out with me, and the habit of warm weather clothes. Was going to miss the street food, and the endless supply of random people you meet when travelling. The most important plans revolving around having fun, finding somewhere great to visit, and discovering the gems of my own; favourite restaurants, bars, beaches, cities, countries, people and romance. I knew it was going to be hard to go back. But Id been homesick for a while, even though I knew it was mad to feel so. But normal life is what keeps a trip like this magical, you know, gives it some perspective. So I guess there was nothing else for it but to get on the plane to Manchester....
Not that I'm not nervous or anything. It was Geordie Jonnie who described being so nervous that 'me bottom was puttin' like a donkeys nostrils...' If that's me (and I'm not saying it is because I'm a Laydeeeeeeee) then it could be nerves or the spicy beef salad and curry me and the Jayster have just had as a farewell meal...
Arrh. Just said my goodbyes to him (again) as that lucky sod gets xmas with his family in Western Australia this year due to Big Sister marrying out there. But that just means I have two weeks ahead of him to adjust to being depressed in a UK winter...
So I'm in Bangkoks Subywhatzit brand-spanking-new airport writing my last travelly post. Are you sad? Ahhh dont be, will go out with a few more tit bits I promise. After I got back from Vietnam the 2 weeks just razzed by in a blur of Bangkok Christmas shopping and more free nights out. We did manage another trip to Kohpangan for the Monster Raving Full Moony Party with A&D which was a total mission to get to. After Andrew dared us to get a bus ticket, J and I found ourselves meeting him outside a travel agent at 18.30 to get the bus. Due to it being the Kings Birthday (and I have told you, they lurrrve their King) the city streets were RAMMED and so was Koh San. There were yellow t-shirted Thais everywhere, and even a huge firework display over the city, and of course, lots of traffic. We set off very late but still managed to arrive very early in the morning in the dark at the catamaran pier. As we get off the bus it starts to rain. Quite heavy, in the dark. Everyone is grumpy, cold and tired. I get stung on the knee by a wasp and didn't realise that wasn't the only thing attacking me, as the mozzie bites on my legs the next day testified. As the dawn broke, we could see the sea was choppy as you like, and the little 'made out of toothpicks' pier was looking more than a little overcome. Nevertheless the catamaran operators (who had access to weather reports and knew a typhoon was coming) insisted the boat was coming and that we would be taken.
In the mists of the morning we could see the boat lurching towards the jetty, and as it pulled alongside the huge mob of us waited to get on the gangway, bracing ourselves against the rain. As the deck hands tried to dock, we were allowed up the wooden gangway towards the boat- the deck was literally bending under us and the waves unexpectedly picked up pace again. The rope the deckhands had just managed to tie to the pier suddenly ripped off one of the jetty's massive metal support posts. The Thais started shouting 'Go back!! Go back!!!' and everyone in the lashing down storm had to to turn back lest we all ended up in the sea. Then the catamaran sped off and left us all there....
Cut to the chase it took us another hour sitting in the port to realise we were not getting that catamaran. Then we had a 3 hour drive in a mini bus to get to the TOWN of someplace near the large ferry port, then a fight with the minibus driver much to Andrews embarrassment, then new tickets to the other ferry, then, i dunno, 5 hours on the ferry until finally we touched down on Kohpangnan around 7pm and then we were expected to party. The most annoying and unbelievable thing about all of this was Decha arrived about half an hour after us and he'd only set off from Bangkok that morning. Arrrgh!!
So the full moon party (part deux for moi) was a different kettle of fish than when I went in April. We grabbed a posh expensive beach house that had a king sized bed in, splitting the cost between us 3 and a couple we met on the ferry (French bird and Aussie bloke) so that we could shower and get changed and have somewhere to stay. Decha, like the pet party animal he is, appeared after monies were sorted..... Then we walked through the WALL OF SOUND that was the main trance and techno tent on the beach and got wrecked. Memories of that night are hazy... but as the sun rose over the beach, despite it being littered with freaks of all shapes and sizes dancing away amongst the party debris in their dayglow body paints and fisherman pants, the hills, sea, rocks and colours still managed to be really beautiful. No kidding. Due to my ear drums being near perforated by the insanely loud sound systems of the beach, I was pretty much deaf by sunrise and had a bit of a 'Saving Private Ryan; beaches of Normandy' moment when everything was muffled and my party shocked eyes roamed across the beach spectacle; two girls with their trousers rolled up, sitting on plastic chairs and chatting away, oblivious to the tide swamping them; a man being washed around the tide in his clothes- until his mate finds him and gives him an earful before hugging him and dragging him to safety; the people swimming and dancing in the sea, and the people on the beach who were dancing dancing dancing so hard as if the world would stop if they did. And some ridiculously ripped German looking geezer with stripy green cycling shorts on,a bare chest and hair like Vanilla Ice, tribal dancing like the Haka to his mates whose brains had dribbled out off their ears earlier on and were helpless to do anything but be forced to watch....
Man, it was a total freak fest. Ace.
So then. Our last night and a final farewell night to Andrew & Decha. It was sad. We got some Tiger beers from a little shop and mingled with the Koh San Road massive, swigging whilst sitting on the kerb watching the human circus pass by. I thought about how I was going to miss never having to take a jacket out with me, and the habit of warm weather clothes. Was going to miss the street food, and the endless supply of random people you meet when travelling. The most important plans revolving around having fun, finding somewhere great to visit, and discovering the gems of my own; favourite restaurants, bars, beaches, cities, countries, people and romance. I knew it was going to be hard to go back. But Id been homesick for a while, even though I knew it was mad to feel so. But normal life is what keeps a trip like this magical, you know, gives it some perspective. So I guess there was nothing else for it but to get on the plane to Manchester....
posted by LesAlanos @ 2:59 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home