To start with the next weekend after my last entry, I joined three friends to a trek down to some islands on the southern coast of Thailand. The plan was to start our journey at the southern bus terminal for a twelve hour bus ride to Phuket. Now, I know what you're thinking, 12 hours on a bus?! I assumed I wouldn't sleep a wink as I failed to do on the 16 hour plane ride to come here, but I was out like a light as soon as my head hit the makeshift pillow I fashioned with my purse and a scarf. I've taken many buses since my arrival in Thailand, but this was my first overnight bus. It was an odd experience. First of all, it was so cold. SO COLD. My roommates can attest that I'm basically a penguin. I love the cold and rarely complain about the conditions of cold places. But this was crazy. Luckily they provided us with a flannel blanket, which was weird in itself... flannel in Thailand? Go figure. They also showed a movie for the first few hours. Normally, an inflight movie, or inbus movie rather, will be something light, a comedy or family feature. I should know by now that nothing in Thailand is like what I expect at home. It was a horror movie. I love horror movies, but I can't say I enjoyed being awoken by a blood curdling scream, then looking up startled and confused to see a girl hanging in a tree with her feet chopped off. Oh Thailand. After that, I was out and basically didn't wake up until I was awoken by Celine, a wonderfully pleasant girl from Luxembourg and one of my favorite traveling companions. We're here! Well, sort of. When we arrived in Phuket, it wasn't what I expected. No beach? No sand? No palms? What is this place? We are supposed to be in paradise!! We were staying in Phuket TOWN not Phuket beach... oh there's a difference? Regardless, we set out looking for our hostel and after bargaining with a Tuk Tuk driver to take us there, we made it! It was a simple, quaint place that seemed clean and safe. I was nervous, because is was my first time staying in a shared hostel, but luckily no one came other than the four of us. After taking a ten minute breather to change and put some things away, we set out for the beach. From everything I read about Phuket, I was so disappointed in what I saw. The pictures were all tourist traps by what I was witnessing. The beach was dirty, crowded, and small. The water wasn't the icey-turquoise blue that I signed up for, but instead a dingy brown. After my time on Kho Samet, I loved the water there. It was crystal clear and greenish blue. You could see straight down to the bottom, but not in Phuket. I couldn't even see my hand beside me let alone my toes as they bobbed around in the sand beneath. I didn't like that. The water was also infested with sea lice. I felt like I was constantly bitten while I swam and it burned to even be in the water. Talk about a buzz kill! I did however meet a really nice local named Mr. Yob who told me a little history about the town, what he does during the off season, and about his family. He was such a nice person, and he spoke perfect English. He told me that with so many tourists flocking into his beach rental service, he could practice his English and never had to leave his home. Oh the places you'll go and the people you'll meet! Next stop, Kho Phi Phi.
After taking a long ferry ride to the island, I see giant rock formations on the horizon... we must be close. Close we were and after the slight dissatisfaction from Phuket, Kho Phi Phi didn't disappoint. It was gorgeous! The water was finally the blue I imagined, and the rocks and surrounding areas of the island were incredibly beautiful. I again had to remind myself that I was in Thailand! We hadn't booked a hostel, so it made me a little nervous to walk around and see 'no vacancy' signs along the island. We heard that hostels booked fast on Kho Phi Phi, so the control freak in me started panicking when we were turned away at three different places. Then one of the guys we were with suggested a hostel his friend had stayed in. He said it was "a little rough" but it was cheap. Great. I don't know his idea of "rough" but I didn't like where this was going. The place was called The Rock Backpacker. It was indeed a "rough" place but it was a place to stay for about 500 baht cheaper than the rest of the island. You can't beat 300 baht a night, or in USD about 9 bucks to stay on one of the most touristy islands of Thailand. It was my first shared hostel experience, and I'm proud to say I survived it. As weird as it was to share a room with 12 people I didn't know, I was tired and it was cheap. The island was beautiful and I enjoyed myself much more than in Phuket. However, you could wade out as far as your eye allowed, past the boats and the rocks, and you'd still be wading. I wanted to swim. It was so hot and all I wanted was to cool off. There was no chance in that. The water was just as hot as the air, and it only came up to your knee. Great.
I think we mainly paid for the view when we booked the hostel!
So sketchy!
I made my mark amidst all the trash on the walls!
Island nightlife is by far my favorite!
After Kho Phi Phi, it was time to head back to Bangkok. We took a ferry to Krabi, and then it was time to go back home. Next weekend: The annual Thammasat vs Chulalongkorn football match! Time to bust out my newly acquired school spirit!
The football match was so amazing! We were taken by our school, which was pretty nice, but once we got there, there was no order whatsoever. It was absolute chaos! We were supposed to be in a parade to support the international program, but it was very political and I didn't really feel comfortable holding a sign for something I had no idea what it meant. Especially in a country where I don't know if that's okay! Yikes. But after the parade we were ushered to the arena. You could either pay 200 baht (6 dollars) to sit in the shade, or you could get in for free as a student and sit in the shade. Being a true college student, anything that's free is where I'll be. It was so unbelievably hot that it would have almost been worth it to shell out the 6 bucks to sit in the shade. But it was so much fun. I'm not much of a sports fan, but soccer has always had a place in my heart. Because I've played since 3rd grade, I actually know what's going on and can enjoy it more than other sports. The crowd energy is what I loved though. There was so much pride in the stands and it was so awesome to see their cheers. Being from a smaller school, I know about pride. We may not win many games at Marshall, but we know how to support our school. The entire student section had flip down panels that made pictures and cheers. It was incredible the amount of coordination that must have required. It was probably 100 degrees out and it was either heat exhaustion or the energy from the stands, but everyone was having a blast, and it was so much fun!
Political parade featuring former prime minister Thaksin...
some serious trash talking from Chula, eh I think? :p
Although we lost the game, it was still a lot of fun to compare the sports scene to home
My next topic will be less about where I've gone and more about experiences... Bangkok is full of surprises and I learn so much about myself and other people here.
Most hilarious thing to do in Bangkok: tell someone you're from West Virginia. No. I'm serious. Every single time I tell someone where I'm from I get a plethora of hilarious reactions. They're usually the same, but ALWAYS entertaining. I've had three people now tell me that I speak really good English. Wait, what? And these people aren't Thai, usually Thais are lucky to even know of West Virginia let alone stereotype it. The majority of the people that have these reactions are either fellow Americans or Europeans. I thought it was hilarious when I was told that I spoke "good English." Am I not still American though I'm from West Virginia? Just because I don't have an accent that people associate with West Virginia, that must mean it's impossible that I'm from there. I met a guy on Khao San Road that said "you're full of shit" in reaction to me saying where I was from. Startled and confused, I was like, no I'm serious. He apologized and just asked "what are you doing here?" My reply was pretty sarcastic, as you can imagine being annoyed at this point, I said that "We do get out of the state once in a while!" In reaction to where I'm from, I've also heard, "I've never met anyone from West Virginia", "You don't talk like a redneck", and my personal favorite, "Is there still segregation there?" haha oh WV, we need to work on clearing up your tarnished name. I feel like it is a blessing to be here, to learn more about other cultures and to show people that West Virginia isn't just about moonshine and Wrong Turn. (Yes, I actually heard the whole "Oh West Virginia, like in Wrong Turn?") hahah I'll just have to work on representing West Virginia well and relaying to my fellow students that, yes, we are A STATE, and no, it's not Virginia. :)
Next, Lady Boys! I went to a Lady Boy Cabaret with some friends from school and it was hilarious! The show was kind of all over the place, and didn't have much of a plot, rather than segments of types of songs and dances. With anything from traditional Thai dances, to burlesque pole dancing it was certainly entertaining! It was a really unique experience and I really enjoyed myself. The costumes, vivid colors of the displays, and of course the beautiful "ladies" made the show wildly entertaining and really exciting!
Next, I had a run in with monkey city again. Some of my friends here that listened to my tales/horrors of the monkeys and were ready to go, I decided that I just couldn't resist going back and hanging out with my long lost relatives. It was about the same as my other trip, but there were some classic "I can't believe that just happened moments" And those types of moments are rather common here in Thailand. As we were walking back from Monkey City where we were attacked by monkeys and they hung all over us, we got some lunch at a little sit down place near the temple. Gabe, a fellow student from Seattle, decided to treat himself to a chocolate ice cream bar. Little did Gabe know, so did an onlooking monkey. As we were walking right in front of this monkey and his little friends, he spots the ice cream and decides from that point that it's definitely his. Gabe, seeing this icy monkey stare at his food shouts "Guys! He sees my ice cream! Guys! He sees my ice cream" In a split decision to either part with the ice cream or his dignity, Gabe shoves the entire thing in his mouth and throws the stick down to the encroaching monkey. He decided at that moment that he wasn't giving up his ice cream for any monkey. That was seriously one of the most hilarious things I've seen on this trip. Oh memories. The monkey look entirely pissed off, like he was so used to getting his way, which I'm sure he was. The people of Lop Buri owe the monkeys their livelihood. The monkeys are responsible for the majority of their tourism, so they are treated very kindly and often fed several times a day. The epitome of spoiled, basically. I'm sure he was angry that he didn't get the ice cream that he claimed.
Monkeys everywhere!
I have one more entry left to write, but I believe that I will save it for my next beginning. My weekend in Cambodia deserves a blog to itself, because it was one of the greatest experiences that I've had in my entire life. Until next time! :)
