I made it to Koh Phangan. My train was supposed to be a 12 hour journey, it was 14 which meant I missed my early morning ferry and did not get to the meet up spot for my yoga workshop at 4pm.
It's pissing rain here, many of the road to get to the ferry are flooded many ferry boats would not run in this weather. After the overnight train to Surat Thani from Bangkok I got the bus to the ferry dock and was told we could not take the boat because the waves are too high. So, a big group of us all waited in a leaky ferry dock spot, with bad overpriced coffee and no where really dry to sit. We are told the bus will take us to another ferry dock. We wait for 1 hour. Another bus comes, we all get on the bus pack our luggage under in the carriage, arrange ourselves and then we are told to get off the bus the roads are flooded, the bus will not go today. So we take a van taxi back to Surat Thani, get a hotel (280 baht), pay extra for wireless internet(200 baht), call several places to see if I can get anyone who is running to the island bus/boat. No one is answering or they are not going today. I shower, and leave the hotel to look for a place in the city. I find one agency that is going! bus & boat 350 baht. I go back to my hotel (I have 45 minutes) gather my things and go back to the agency--mind you it is down pouring the whole time I am trudging along with my bags and no umbrella--I get a bus from the agency to the bus depot. I wait for 2.5 hours. We all get on the bus at the bus depot and travel along several roads that are flooded. Cars are stopped stuck in the water, people are wading through the flood up to their waists, others sit on the top of picnic tables with their legs dangling in the water watching the rain, big trees float by. this ride is supposed to take 45 minutes. it takes us 1 hour and 45 minutes. I have met a friend, a Russian boy named Pasha who sits with me while I writhe in pain over the fact that I have to urinate so badly. finally i cannot take it anymore and i go ask the driver to stop. he does not stop for me. Pasha goes to tell the driver to stop, the driver stops, I run to the side of the road and pee, pee, pee for ever while everyone on the bus can see. Nothing to wipe with. What to do? doesn't matter anyway as I am totally soaked through what is a little piss to add to the rain? nothing. we get to the ferry boat with 10 mins to give our tickets and get on. I sit with luggage for Pasha and an American, Beth. While they go buy boat tickets (I pay for Pasha because he has no money left 220 baht) we all load onto the boat in what can only be described as throw up seas. Whoa. I feel so sick. the whole 3.5 hour ride I fight back vomit. There is a group of monks with us on the ferry, young and old. Somehow sitting with them is comforting to me I love the colors of their robes and the fact that their age range is from 9 to 60 yrs, all male. We meet another lady Jennifer from Sweden and a Canadian man, Brian. Brian lives on the island and helps Jenny, Beth and I get a bungalow near the ferry (ish) a 20 minute ride in the back of a truck taxi (100 baht) and we arrive at the bungalow. My room is not clean, the blanket has been recently used, there are dirty underwear in the bathroom trash can. I don't care. Brian has secretly given me the wireless code so I have internet! I call Hunnie to tell him about my crazy Thailand adventure and to write this note while I can access the internet. I'm told it's very expensive here (12usd for 10 mins internet access) and also that it's hard to get anything on the island, including fruit. My friend A. has been here for 1 day and says no one will bargain, everything is priced double and that I am lucky my phone works because hers wont. My phone doesn't work to call out, only for people to call me internationally and to make local calls, sometimes.
It's nearly midnight now. I need to be up at 6am at the latest. I've still got to get a taxi ferry to the right beach for the yoga workshop in the morning, I have not had a crap in 2 days and I am dry for the first time in over 12 hours. I am about to sleep in a dirty bed with a dirty blanket.
If I don't write for 10 days you will know it's because I have not found inexpensive internet. I will still write when I have time and I will post when I get back to Bangkok.
I have still not really taken photos. I had my camera packed away so it didn't get wet most of the day and I am too tired to upload the few photos I have taken.
Even with all the rain and flooding you can see how beautiful it is here. Everything is lush and green the water changes colors depending on the ground, sometimes it's orange, sometimes its brown, or red, or even a pretty creamy color.
*clearly I have not edited this post, no time, don't judge.
It's pissing rain here, many of the road to get to the ferry are flooded many ferry boats would not run in this weather. After the overnight train to Surat Thani from Bangkok I got the bus to the ferry dock and was told we could not take the boat because the waves are too high. So, a big group of us all waited in a leaky ferry dock spot, with bad overpriced coffee and no where really dry to sit. We are told the bus will take us to another ferry dock. We wait for 1 hour. Another bus comes, we all get on the bus pack our luggage under in the carriage, arrange ourselves and then we are told to get off the bus the roads are flooded, the bus will not go today. So we take a van taxi back to Surat Thani, get a hotel (280 baht), pay extra for wireless internet(200 baht), call several places to see if I can get anyone who is running to the island bus/boat. No one is answering or they are not going today. I shower, and leave the hotel to look for a place in the city. I find one agency that is going! bus & boat 350 baht. I go back to my hotel (I have 45 minutes) gather my things and go back to the agency--mind you it is down pouring the whole time I am trudging along with my bags and no umbrella--I get a bus from the agency to the bus depot. I wait for 2.5 hours. We all get on the bus at the bus depot and travel along several roads that are flooded. Cars are stopped stuck in the water, people are wading through the flood up to their waists, others sit on the top of picnic tables with their legs dangling in the water watching the rain, big trees float by. this ride is supposed to take 45 minutes. it takes us 1 hour and 45 minutes. I have met a friend, a Russian boy named Pasha who sits with me while I writhe in pain over the fact that I have to urinate so badly. finally i cannot take it anymore and i go ask the driver to stop. he does not stop for me. Pasha goes to tell the driver to stop, the driver stops, I run to the side of the road and pee, pee, pee for ever while everyone on the bus can see. Nothing to wipe with. What to do? doesn't matter anyway as I am totally soaked through what is a little piss to add to the rain? nothing. we get to the ferry boat with 10 mins to give our tickets and get on. I sit with luggage for Pasha and an American, Beth. While they go buy boat tickets (I pay for Pasha because he has no money left 220 baht) we all load onto the boat in what can only be described as throw up seas. Whoa. I feel so sick. the whole 3.5 hour ride I fight back vomit. There is a group of monks with us on the ferry, young and old. Somehow sitting with them is comforting to me I love the colors of their robes and the fact that their age range is from 9 to 60 yrs, all male. We meet another lady Jennifer from Sweden and a Canadian man, Brian. Brian lives on the island and helps Jenny, Beth and I get a bungalow near the ferry (ish) a 20 minute ride in the back of a truck taxi (100 baht) and we arrive at the bungalow. My room is not clean, the blanket has been recently used, there are dirty underwear in the bathroom trash can. I don't care. Brian has secretly given me the wireless code so I have internet! I call Hunnie to tell him about my crazy Thailand adventure and to write this note while I can access the internet. I'm told it's very expensive here (12usd for 10 mins internet access) and also that it's hard to get anything on the island, including fruit. My friend A. has been here for 1 day and says no one will bargain, everything is priced double and that I am lucky my phone works because hers wont. My phone doesn't work to call out, only for people to call me internationally and to make local calls, sometimes.
It's nearly midnight now. I need to be up at 6am at the latest. I've still got to get a taxi ferry to the right beach for the yoga workshop in the morning, I have not had a crap in 2 days and I am dry for the first time in over 12 hours. I am about to sleep in a dirty bed with a dirty blanket.
If I don't write for 10 days you will know it's because I have not found inexpensive internet. I will still write when I have time and I will post when I get back to Bangkok.
I have still not really taken photos. I had my camera packed away so it didn't get wet most of the day and I am too tired to upload the few photos I have taken.
Even with all the rain and flooding you can see how beautiful it is here. Everything is lush and green the water changes colors depending on the ground, sometimes it's orange, sometimes its brown, or red, or even a pretty creamy color.
*clearly I have not edited this post, no time, don't judge.
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| Jenny, & Pasha with his tuva. We asked him for a demonstration. |
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| It's hard to tell but it was POURING the rain was really loud. This is back in Surat Thani. |
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| The floods. |
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