Our tour of Ko Samui turned into more of an adventure than we'd expected. After visiting several temples, being individually blessed by a giggling old monk, & getting climbed on by monkeys, our tour bus took us to the 130 ft. high Lamuang waterfall. Do we want to rent an elephant to trek us up the steep side of the mountain? no, we're all set hiking: no guide needed. Halfway up we must have lost the trail because we ended up legit pulling ourselves up through the levels of the jungle branch. by. branch. Reaching the top, we cooled off in one of the pools with a group of Canadiens before heading back down- losing the path again and grasping onto latex trees as we slipped down the sandy mountain. We made it out filthy, sweaty, itchy... but alive.
Now we have reached Ko Phangan. Our teak bungalow is on secluded Thangsala Beach, located several minutes from town on a palm filled dirt road. There are no cars, no tourists, & little light besides that coming from the insides of the local huts. The beach here is perfect- fragrant exotic flowers... tree swings... calm water.
Last night, however, was the opposite of calm. As night fell, we head to the east end of the island for the monthly celebration of the full moon. We'd heard stories, seen pictures, but this place was pure insanity. The beach was packed with thousands, all covered in glowing body paint, sipping mixed drinks out of buckets, & dancing to the music that pumped out of every bar lining the stretch. We joined right in, grabbed some face paint, and watched the fire dancers. At first we compared the scene to the familiar Spring Break fiascos in the states. Yet, this party could never have occured back at home. Random partygoers took their turn at fire dancing, others lined up to have the fire swung at their faces to light their cigarettes. The metal structures set up for the amazing thailand sign doubled as jungle gyms for those feeling the urge to climb and swing. Hazardous? TIT. Overall, we had a great night.
Now we have reached Ko Phangan. Our teak bungalow is on secluded Thangsala Beach, located several minutes from town on a palm filled dirt road. There are no cars, no tourists, & little light besides that coming from the insides of the local huts. The beach here is perfect- fragrant exotic flowers... tree swings... calm water.
Last night, however, was the opposite of calm. As night fell, we head to the east end of the island for the monthly celebration of the full moon. We'd heard stories, seen pictures, but this place was pure insanity. The beach was packed with thousands, all covered in glowing body paint, sipping mixed drinks out of buckets, & dancing to the music that pumped out of every bar lining the stretch. We joined right in, grabbed some face paint, and watched the fire dancers. At first we compared the scene to the familiar Spring Break fiascos in the states. Yet, this party could never have occured back at home. Random partygoers took their turn at fire dancing, others lined up to have the fire swung at their faces to light their cigarettes. The metal structures set up for the amazing thailand sign doubled as jungle gyms for those feeling the urge to climb and swing. Hazardous? TIT. Overall, we had a great night.
We're planning on taking it easy before moving on. Days spent on the beach & nights spent sampling local delicacies at the local street markets. We're in authentic Thailand now, have gotten used to implementing certain Thai phrases, and finally have accepted that "ph" should be pronounced "p"- good thing, because we're headed to PHuket.
2 comments:
Well its 8 degrees in Chicago, so I'm very envious about the fact that you guys are staying in "beachside bungalows" (dont even know what a bongalow looks like), hope you all took your malaria pills before that dip in the wading pool, the water looks a little greeennnn. Anyway glad your having fun. Full moon pics are hilarious, you guys look like Indian spirits in the last three, Jenny the Rabbit, Elissa the tiger, Lauren the hawk
hey Elissa, Sara says this is your version of backpacking around Europe, your mothers daughter. You know, Caryn always had a thing for Buddah. Have Fun, Jody
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