Continental Drifting: Thailand: The end of the beginning

Recalling the magic of Thailand is long over due and in hindsight, I should have split and recorded the experience in two parts. Finishing up in Laos is now a month ago and it feels an age since then. I suspect this is due to the incredible amount of fun and the truly amazing sights I’ve experienced during the last few weeks, but I’ll do my best to justify the experiences.

After a hectic eight weeks of travelling, spending no more than four days in one place at a time, Kara and I felt the need for some time out. Ko Tao was our chosen destination for this and it proved to be just what the doctor ordered. We arrived with absolutely no plan for accommodation as we often did, and after a quick room search using the wifi at a nearby coffee shop to the ferry drop off area, we discovered that in fact most places were fully booked. We decided to head to a quieter part of the island, choosing the southern side, and hope for the best. This turned out to be a great plan as we were rewarded with a great spot at a reasonable rate. The view was great, the haircut a gamble and the vitality restored. Just in time to move on to Ko Phangan for Songkran and the full moon party. Songkran is the Thai new year, celebrated with water fights on the most incredible, yet childish scale. A complete disregard for technology (waterproof bags for phones and cameras are expected) and common decency (feel free to spray anyone in the face with your water gun or throw a bucket of water at them) is the norm, but the feeling of celebration and good humour is contagious. Following on from that was the full moon party which has become a party of epic proportions, with fire, buckets of booze, loud music, luminous paint and much shenanigans on the beach. I found the irony that the day the beach is most packed for a party is the exact time it is at it’s least accommodating rather amusing/inconvenient - the full moon resulting in high tide and therefore a rather narrow beach and all. Nonetheless, a fantastic time was had by all.

It was then time to say goodbye to my travel companion as she set her sights on a short stop off at home, followed by heading back to work. This farewell never materialised in true chaotic travel fashion unfortunately: even though we planned to catch the same ferry, Kara was rushed onto the first boat in an effort to ensure she made it to Bangkok in good time. I was brushed aside to catch the second, as I only planned to make a return to Ko Tao for some diving. Home sickness took hold for the first time since I’d left home and I became quite apprehensive about the next part of my journey on my own.

My misery was short-lived as my decision to complete my open water scuba qualification turned out to be a great decision. I went with Big Blue and was lucky enough to be assigned a great instructor and group of fellow novice divers. It really is another world down there and the decision to pursue my advanced adventurer qualification was easily made. They say it’s the best value place in the world to dive and I can believe it. After the courses, I was fortunate enough to do some snorkelling with some turtles and reef sharks a short scooter ride to shark bay which was awesome. After the number of bandages I’d seen on tourists, I was reluctant and rather nervous about my introduction to the world of two wheel motor vehicles, but it was a smooth transition and the freedom was bliss after being constrained by public transport and the endurance of my legs for both cycling and walking.

I headed to Ko Phi Phi next which is an incredible, but relatively expensive place - I blame Leonardo DiCaprio and The Beach for this. Nonetheless, the beauty lived up to the hype and I thoroughly enjoyed exploring the island. South East of Phi Phi is Ko Lanta which is a larger more understated island and with my newly acquired scooter skills, I explored every nook and cranny with the greatest pleasure. I was joined by my Belgian dive buddy Thomas, and every day ended with a beer from 7eleven on the beach, watching the most spectacular sunsets. I say “beer” but there was a case of mistaken identity where the most awful wine was disguised as a beer and a quick rectification run to the shop needed to be carried out. In hindsight I should have been suspicious given the budget friendly price. I chose to spend the last of my days in Railay, surrounded by the lime stone crags and it was truly a dramatically beautiful end to an unforgettable experience in Thailand and the parts of Southeast Asia I did manage to experience. I’m sure the pictures speak for themselves as a record of the great times.