All caught up in Koh Pha Ngan

Time for a Koh Pha Ngan Update! …I know its been a couple of days, and I apologize…I just can’t find enough time in the day to write them at times, and its even harder to be bothered to hit the internet. There has just been so much happening, and so much to do that this falls down my priority list quite a bit.

Ok, we have now been on Koh Pha Ngan for 2 nights, and it’s been full of fun, new experiences, and also a few ‘large Chang, Please!’. Yesterday, as planned, we all rented scooters in the hopes of discovering Pha Ngan. We really had no plan, no idea where to go, and no direction, yet, I consider it a very successful trip. After some minor delays and incidents (don’t worry, no one was hurt, including the bikes), the 5 of us were off on our way, speeding down the roads at 70+ kph. At first, it harkened back to the days of riding the old mini-bike down the back lane at the cabin…after a while, it turned into a blur of beeps, swerves, and sore asses.

First stop was for…a coffee.

Second stop was…Waterfalls

Third Stop was…ELEPHANTS!!!

Forth stop was…The Beach.

So lets go back a little…Phang Waterfalls: Lackluster. The crashing water had been reduced to a mere trickle due to the hot season. Still, if you used your imagination, you could understand why it is hailed as one of the nicer places on the island (off the shoreline, of course).

Lastly, the Beach. We decided that we were in need of a swim after a hard afternoon of biking, so we visited a small town on the north shore called Corchlum, and bathed ourselves in the salty waves of the Gulf of Thailand.

Ok, so you want to hear about the elephants, I am sure. It was very interesting to say the least. There was a whole family of them. A Mom elephant, a dad elephant, and of course baby elephant. The baby was very playful as I fed him bananas, and the mom always kept a watchful eye on me, making sure I was no threat to her or the cub (is that what baby elephants are called?)

The downside is that they were kept in the area by a thick chain around their ankle, which limited their movement to just a few meters, and the father was even more locked down, as both his front legs we wrapped in the chains. Kinda sad, but it they really are treated with care, then the elephants are living a comfortable life.

The other point of interest at the elephant sanctuary: a 2 month old monkey that acted like a family puppy. He received attention from all the fellow backpackers, and hopped from one shoulder to the next in search of more food. The kid monkey was hilarious, and ever got a bath at one point. Dave actually scared the shit out of the poor thing, and it returned the favor by hissing in Dave’s directions, which ended in a chorus of cheers for the monkey from the rest of us. Why were you shaking the tree branch, Dave? You knob!

So after a supper at a restaurant overlooking the ocean, we hopped back on our trusty scooters, and zipped back to Hadd Rin, giving us just enough time to shower before it was time to meet others for drinks.

So I should take this time to explain the full moon party to those that don’t understand it…

Every time the moon becomes full, a beach here in Hadd Rin, Koh Pha Ngan is infested with swarms of tourists, 10,000 strong. They pack the beach and begin to drunk buckets of booze (literally buckets…300 baht gets you a micky of booze, mix, ice, and enough straws to stock a 7-11 for a day) as techno music is blasted into the dark, thai night. This party starts at about midnight, and lasts until the sun is well above you the next day. So with that man people in Hadd Rin leading up to the full moon party, every night on the beach is a gong show. My guess is for 3 weeks a month, this place is deader than the Edmonton Oilers playoff hopes, but for 1 week, it is the worlds most popular party central.

So last night, the lot of us went up to a bar that overlooks the entire beach for our drinks. It’s quite a spectacular view, as you get a panoramic view of a place that will soon be covered with thousands of tourists from every corner of the globe. What made it just that much better last night was that we are now entering rainy season, and there was a torrential downpour for about an hour, and the beach was EMPTY! Quite a sight to behold…but wait, it gets better. In the midst of this shower, the entire beach lost power, leaving us with just candle light, and a stunning view of a beach as black as a struck match. Thailand’s little Vegas was shining no more!

It was a small memory, but a good one. Hearing techno music STOP is always a good memory.

It was here that I had to what I refer as my ‘Holy F’ moment. I had enough time to pull up with a beer, and talk to it about where I ACTUALLY was, and what my friends and family were doing back home. It usually ends with me attempting to take self-portraits of myself with a landmark in the distance. In this case, it was the sparkling site of the fullmoon party.

‘Holy F, I am in Koh Pha Ngan, Thailand! This is a place I have talked about coming to for years. And I am here, NOW! Dustin is tapping away at his work, my mom and dad are in Wpg, friends are off earning their keep across the planet, and I am in goddamned Koh Pha Ngan, Thailand! It doesn’t get better than this!’

That is why I find travel so exhilarating. So cleansing. So Addictive. So F’ing addictive!

So anyways, we ended up slithering onto the beach and up the the beats of Tiesto, Judge Jules, and other DJs…It took me about a bucket to realize it was time for some food. Chicken Corner was calling.

Marty: ’This Chicken Schnitzel isn’t ANYTHING like the stuff I had in Germany!’
Dave: ‘Mate, you are in F’n Thailand!’
Marty: ‘Good point!’

So that was basically a wrap on the night. Tons of fun had, but in bed long before the sun was coming up. A little to save myself for the big party to come, but a lot because I was going to tour the island on my scooter more.

So, the plan this morning was a simple one: Up at 9am, and go anywhere, and everywhere. Whoever wanted to come was invited, but I was going for sure.

So when the alarm went off at 9am, I was not shocked to hear the previous nights chorus’s of ‘In’s turn to ‘I think I am going to go sleep more’. So it was just Michele and I, off to see the island.

We started off by retracing our footsteps from yesterday, and just taking it another km further to a beach called Koh Maa. This was a perfect stop for breaky, and some snorkeling, and even possibly a little nap afterward. Little did I know that even though I cannot pick up a blasted wireless connection in the town of Hadd Rin, I would be able to get one on the beach in the NW. So I sat surfing news and scores that I had missed in the last couple of days, and Michele worked on hear golden brown tan. Its coming along nicely!

In my internet surfing, I even chatted with a friend, turning on the web cam to show her exactly where I was, and what I was doing. Beach. Internet. Thailand. So damn cool.

So anyways, Michele and I continued to discover the shoreline. Hadd Salad, Hadd Yao, etc. By the time we got back to Hadd Rin, it was 3:30pm, and it had been a good day!

So that is it for this one. Its almost 6pm now, and that means supper time. I have a hankering for some good ole Green Curry! I love this country.

Talk to you after the Full Moon Party!
MB