A Bowl of Stupid

(Enormous snail I found on my sandals first day in Thailand. Luckily I got a picture before the battery died … for the remainder of the trip.)

Transcribed: Saturday, June 16, 2007, 9:00:14 AM
(Note: I’m putting up these notes/posts as originally transcribed by me when noted. However, it bears noting that, in re-reading them now, although factually correct, there are quite a few “emotional” aspects that skewed my perception of them while taking place – i.e., new people, getting lost, etc. – hopefully I’ll have time to comment later on how my views have since skewed.*)

Right now, I’m at a bungalow style place that I’ve been staying for the about 3 days on Lombok, an Indonesian island about 5-6 hours west of Bali by slow-ferry boat. I’ll write about this place, my trip here, and the surf here, in my next few entries. But for now, while I’ve the time (and an electrical power source), I’m gonna try to recreate from memory my trip to Thailand of several weeks ago.

Krabi, Thailand

My arrival to Thailand went pretty much as I described in my prior post, given that my friend from Singapore has been to Railway Beach many, many times, and guided me towards exactly how, where and with whom I should go.

I flew into airport at Krabi, Thailand (on the west coast, but to the north of the even more popular tourist desitnation of Phuket), then I caught a shuttle-bus to Ao Nang (a beach town that is sadly overpopulated by Australian and European tourists – mainly backpackers – which accounted for the gazillion stores on the main street adjacent to the beach, all selling clothing, jewelry, and various other tourist driven trinkets.)

I arrived at about 23:00, and as it was already dark, and I was unsure if I would be able to catch a longtail boat to Railay (a peninsula about 5 kilometers by boat in between Ao Nang and the Krabi Airport, accessible only via boat due to the high limestone cliffs that separate it from the mainland), I found what I then considered to be a cheap hotel (I think it was about US$17/night), got some food, and crashed for the night.

I awoke the next morning and waited for several hours to share a longboat to Railay (cheaper), got there, had to walk from one side of the peninsula to the other, checked into the “Ya-Ya Resort” and paid for 4 days, 3 nights for both me and my friend, for about US$20.00 total … yeah, now THAT’S cheap.

I went to a bar he suggested, where upon introducing myself (using my friend’s name), I gave him a cigarette, and he came back to me with a “gan-gee” cigarette to “welcome me to the ‘island’”.

And that was pretty much how the next 4 days progressed.

Despite how much I write, I am actually – in real life – kind of a quiet guy until I get to know someone (at which point, the gloves, and the muzzle, come off). As such, I don’t really say much, and I don’t meet many random people on my own.

My friend, however, is on the complete and utter opposite end of the spectrum. He will say anything to anyone about anything, anytime and anyplace. This was great for me, as he became my bridge to the local’s crowd.

Most times when I (and other westerners) travel, we are, by the necessity of language, confined to meeting other English speaking westerners. However, due to my friend’s ability to communicate with so many people, I found myself in places where most tourists wound not have found themselves – in restaurant kitchens eating free food with the cooks, relaxing behind the bars smoking gang’ with the bartenders and waiters, using the ropes and other equipment of local climbers, etc.

It was a great experience.

The second day in Railay, we went rock climbing. Railay is believed to have some of the best climbing areas (due to the huge, omnipresent limestone cliffs) in the world.

It does.

It’s funny, after going through what I did (my rock-climbing fall during college), you would think I’d be afraid of climbing. But I’m not. Well, not exactly.

I’m afraid of the fall, but not the climbing.

It’s hard to describe, but that’s what it is; and that’s how I was able to go climbing, with ropes and protective gear, with little to no fear. Indeed, on one particular route, I think I must have climbed up about 100 feet up.

However, when we went “traversing” the following day (climbing up about 4-8 feet and then “shimmying” side-to-side along the rock face with no protective gear (since you’re only about 6 feet up), I was scared out of my gourd.

After we went climbing, we went around to the tip of the peninsula (again, with the aid of some gang’), to Phranang Beach, one of the cleanest and most beautiful beaches I’ve been to.

And what’s even more cool about Phranang beach is that there is an area to go cliff jumping from about 30-40 feet up (which I did), there are numerous caves, there are areas to go traversing at only 2 feet above the ground, and there is cheap food and drink available on the beach (US$1.50 for huge bowl of pad thai).

Most of all, though, there are two (2) massive limestone islands rising from the sea only 400 meters off the shore – accessible by foot during low tide.

My buddy and I walked/swam out to those islands, where we saw all kinds of sea life in the crystal clear water, a half-dozen caves (both above and underwater), and just kinda walked and swam about them for a couple hours.

Then, before heading back to the hotel (and subsequently, the bar), we hopped in the pool and got $US3.00 thai massages (I felt like I got beat up, they were pulling, pushing, bending and hitting me so much).

It was fucking awesome.

After trying to think of a good way to describe and/or equate the place to somewhere else I’ve been, I can’t do it. There’s nowhere else I’ve been that equates.

If you’ve got the opportunity, I highly suggest you go to Railay.

Yes, it is a bit touristy – but not NEARLY as much as Phuket (which is horrible), or even Ao Nag. Yes, there are a few pricey “resorts” on Railay that cater to the high and mighty, but they mainly keep away from the rest of the island, instead content to stay on the manicured resort spots.

Yes, there are a bunch of beginner rock-climbers crowding the good and simple climbing routes – but if you’re a beginner, that’s good. But there are no cars, no traffic, no pollution, little “hawking” bullshit, and a really laid-back atmosphere. Just people trying to have an okay life.

And if you’re in the area – Singapore, Hong Kong, Tokyo – it’s a fairly short jaunt, you can get a lot for your money, and most likely, it’s unlike any place else you’ve ever been, which itself warrants a trip.

And if anyone is thinking about going, let me know (seriously), and I’ll give you some additional insight and info that I didn’t write about here.

P.S. If you do wind up going to Railay, whatever you do, do NOT get the drink they call “The Bucket.” That liquor-strewn monstrosity is the main reason why I don’t remember much of my second night in Railay Beach.

*Bonus points for anyone who can ID the reference.

Share This

Trackback URI | Comments RSS