From Koh Tao to Kanchanaburi

Ahh! How good it is to be in the sunshine and heat once again!

I just left the endless rain and floods of Koh Tao, a tiny island off the coast of Southern Thailand. A navy boat was I was there to evacuate people off of the island- not because it was dangerous to stay, but because no boats had come or gone in three days due to the rough conditions, and the streets of Koh Tao were flooded. People wanted to go somewhere else instead of hanging out in the rain for days or weeks!

There was even a helicopter moving elderly people and women with children to the navy boat itself to try and speed the process, which, was sending people out 12 people at a time in small boats to a bigger boat, that when full would then shuttle out to the navy boat. They were doing this with THOUSANDS of people who had been stuck on the island for days or all week, so needless to say it was a very slow and laborious process. I stood out in the rain for hours, and got as far as being the NEXT group to get on the small boats, when they said `no more people on the navy boat today, it is again too rough even just to transport people to the navy boat.` So I stayed another night which was disappointing, but turned out to be great because in line I met some great people from Israel, and spent that evening with them in Koh Tao, and the whole next day on the boat and bus (a 12 hour journey) and they were really great. Now I have two friends in Israel.

I was in Koh Tao to try and get some diving in. .. I dove twice a day for three days, two dives of which were contributing to my advanced scuba certification which I never got an opportunity to finish. It started raining, and it never stopped all the way until I left the island a week later. As a result of the rain, I wound up having a different sort of experience, which meant hanging out with some of my dive instructors, playing board games and darts and cards in a local bar across the street from the dive shop and hotel, and watching movies as the rain poured down all day and night. It was fun indeed, but when the time came to leave I was ready.

Once I reached Bangkok after the full day of travel, I stayed in my favorite place that is now my homebase from everywhere I have traveled to and from so far- Shanti Lodge. People know my name there now and it feels like coming home. I arrived in Bangkok after two weeks of travel not knowing where to go next, and knowing that I would be leaving in 5 days for Vietnam. I decided the next morning to take a train out to Kanchanaburi, a smaller town a 3 hour train ride northwest of Bangkok, more in the countryside with lots of outdoor and active options.

I was on the train early the next afternoon, and it was such a great ride! I met an American couple, and together we interacted with a Thai Monk during our first leg of the train ride. For the rest of it, we just got to experience seeing great views of the countryside through open windows and a hot breeze, and sights of local people working or cycling along the road and in the fields. I loved it!

Got to Kanchanaburi, and booked myself at the Blue Star Guesthouse, which was GREAT! I got a bungalow up at tree level for 200 baht (6 dollars!) which was located in a swamp right next to the the River Kwai. I immediately rented myself a bicycle, and rode down to the famous bridge over the River Kwai as the sun was setting, and tons of tourists were posing in front of the beautiful old bridge. Got a coconut to celebrate. :)

That night, I rode my great town bike (with Hello Kitty horn) down to the Night Market where there was booth after booth of amazing delicious weird and interesting foods. I sampled a good 4 or 5 (or maybe even 6) booth`s worth, and was like a kid in a candy store in there. Got some real Thai custard which was the best I have ever had, after multiple servings of different meat skewers and some experimental savory treats that I still don`t know what they were. There were also hundreds of booths of clothing and trinkets and Buddhas and puppies and even a booth with some Sugar Gliders! So cute! I was both excited and overwhelmed all at once walking through this market, but either way I was pleased with my discovery of this town.

The next day, I rented a motorbike and decided to give myself a personal tour of the Wats (temples) in and near Kanchanaburi. This turned out to be more than I had bargained for. I thought I was going to be on back sweet country roads, but instead wound up on the highway where I found myself absolutely terrified and out of my element. I also wound up on some back roads, but got lost multiple times. That said, I stopped at many food vendors on the side of the road to fuel my adventure, while asking directions, and wound up seeing some sights I never would have found other wise- an enormous beautiful tree in a small village called the `big monkey tree`and some other more local temples, and at one point I found myself at a residential Monk temple, where they pointed out a cave full of Buddhas, where if I put money into a slot, some very cheerful Thai pop music played. Bizarre!

I eventually made it to one of the Wats I had intended, which was quite impressive and had a massive and steep stairway to reach it, which I felt was my reward after hours and hours of searching for a place that should have taken me a half an hour. There was a giant Golden Buddha at the top, as well as some amazing architecture of the temple it was in. Whew!

I came back from my 6 hour adventure (!!) and promptly dropped off my motorbike even though I could have kept it until the next day. Picked up my bicycle and rode to the night market again to fuel up, and decided to have an easier day the next- a trip on a bus to the Erawan Waterfalls!

The next day, I got on the 8am bus, and immediately met Paul from Bath, England, as well as a posse he was traveling with who he met through couchsurfing.com. Two Thais, 2 Swedes, and a French woman. I wound up spending the whole day with them, as we hiked up the mountain trail and stopped at each and every of the seven waterfalls, and swam in five of them. The water was an amazing blue color, was the perfect cool temperature on a hot day, and was full of fish that nip at your feet and toes and is both enjoyable and freaky at the same time.

We had so much fun! I wound up spending the next two days with Paul doing all sorts of fun stuff- the next day we did an all day cooking course at Apple`s Guesthouse with Apple herself, which was an incredibly fun and enlightening experience. She took us for a one hour tour of the local fruit and meat market, explaining to us all of the different weird and unusual foods that are used daily by Thai people in their diets and meal preparation. When we returned to the hotel after sampling various goodies that she hand picked out for us, we started the rest of our lesson. We learned to make four traditional Thai dishes! First Apple would demonstrate, and then the two pairs of us (there was a pair of two frenchwomen doing the class as well) would try our hand at it. We made Masaman Curry, Chicken Pad Thai, Tom Kha Gai Soup, and Chicken Cashew stir fry. I am definitely going to make this stuff when I come home! It is quick, easy, and delicious.

That night was another visit to the night market, this time with Paul, and more fun and weird food was consumed. We brought various desserts back to the hotel and watched american cartoons with Thai dubbed dialogue for many hours while eating our tasty Thai treats, and it was so incredibly entertaining!

I was leaving the next day on an afternoon train, but with the morning still free, Paul and I rented a kayak and cruised lazily down the River Qwai. It was a sunny and still day, and the perfect way to end my time in Kanchanaburi, which gave me some great rest, relaxation, and some much needed exercise in hiking, swimming, and cycling. Hooray!

Took the afternoon train back to Bangkok, loving my experience once again, being a bit off the main tourist path, as there may have been perhaps one tourist per car, the rest all Thais commuting from one place or another. Returned to the Shanti Lodge for one night and morning of rest and getting organized for leaving for Vietnam. A whole new country to explore, and an old friend to meet at the airport!