Southern Thailand has Beaches!

It's been a while since we've had Internet access...but things are still going great and at top speed on the travel front...but don't worry, not SO fast that we aren't breathing it all in as much as possible!

We are now in Southern Thailand, on the western coast of Phuket, at a place called Surin Beach.

Since I last wrote, here are some highlights:

I survived the sleeper train to get to Southern Thailand (though the "sleeper" portion of the name is a bit of a misnomer in MY opinion - I mean "lights out" would have been awesome...but no such luck. Oh well!)

We then took ferries, buses, minivans, etc. etc. etc. to get ourselves to a gorgeous little island called Koh Phangan, where we got to stay at Bungalow called "Dream Hill." This place has the most amazing view of the ocean when you wake up in the morning...all for 300 baht a night for 2 people (about $9 - crazy!). We were so happy to not be moving once we dropped our heavy backpacks in the room, that we promptly shuffled our grimy selves right to the ocean water and submerged. The ocean does wash everything away, and it instantaneously made the long journey totally worth it. The sea cucumbers and some good food (eaten with feet in the sand) also helped to perk us up and bring some color to our cheeks!

On our second day there, we rented a Jeep. We were being "smart" and not getting the MUCH cheaper motorbikes because many people told us that the roads were tricky and the island is hilly. THANK GOODNESS we didn't get motorbikes. Although it was no smooth ride, Arati ROCKED at driving our very questionable, matchbox car around dirt roads that hardly qualify as actual "roads" so that we could tour and see some more of these incredible beaches. There are some serious slices of paradise out here that I can hardly believe exist. Totally memorable, however, it might be awhile before we decide to rent another vehicle. Just saying.

We reluctantly left Dream Hill on Thursday morning (it rained for us as we left, to make the separation a little easier to handle), and we took the ferry back, followed by a bus, and crazy minivan ride to traverse the peninsula to get to the western side. We decided to make our stop for the night in Phang Nga, where we had read about some sights. The super-hyper Thai minivan driver (we were the only non-Thai on the bus = we bought the CHEAP tickets for once, not the tourist priced ones - victory!) dropped us off in the rain in this little town where a pick-up truck taxi picked us up to take us to the bus station. Mr. Kean was the driver's name, and he was also (coincidence?!) the person who leads longtail boat tours in Phang Nga and the person to tell us where we should stay...oh Thailand.

Anyway, we stayed at the Thawisuk Hotel (and the last 3 letters of its name pretty aptly describe the place) for 150 baht (which is $5 for BOTH of us, i.e. we should have known) for the night, and took Mr. Kean's longtail boat tour the next morning (yes, we took the bait, but it really was the only thing to do in this place!).

The boat tour was awesome. We were the only ones in a longtail boat driven around tons of limestone islands that have emerged in this National Park. We saw the "James Bond Rock" and got to climb around in some caves that were near by. We also got to stop at a Muslim Fishing Village. It was definitely one of my favorite things so far. The entire village is up on stilts, and there are houses, restaurants, markets, a mosque, a school, and we even saw a sign for Internet! The boat then wove through big mangrove forests before taking us back to shore. A really cool trip. After our nice morning, we packed up, said good-bye to Thawisuk, and got onto (yet another) bus to get to Phuket. With a little trouble getting our destination desires across, we eventually got dropped off around where we were hoping for, and then had a really nice Thai woman help us get a local bus to the beaches.

So
The local bus.
It was a school bus.
Full of Muslim schoolchildren.
and BLASTING music.
and it was painted rainbow colors inside.
It turned our angsty travelling moods and exhaustion into laughter pretty instantly.
Awesome.

We got to Surin Beach yesterday, and at first we were really dejected because it's much more pricey than we had been hoping for. BUT, we decided that taking the time/money/energy to get out of here would end up being worse in the long run, and we are both so happy we decided to stay. We bargained a hotel down to a cheaper rate since we are going to stay for 4 nights, and it felt SO GOOD to sleep in real sheets (not our personal sleep sheets), take showers in separate tubs (i.e. that weren't one room with the toilet), and get air conditioning and toilet paper provided for us - woohoo, the little things you take for granted!

Today, after a glorious night's sleep, woke up and went for a run, where I ran on the sand alongside elephant tracks. Yes, there is a baby elephant who gets walked on the beach here. Um, seriously?! Then, Arati and I ate a 7-11 breakfast (hey, we have to make up for the air conditioned room), showered, and headed to the beach. The surf is HUGE here, so we stayed sort of close to shore, but we definitely romped in the water a lot, and then we walked to see some other beaches, ate a delicious lunch from a local woman of chicken, mango salad with peanuts and sticky rice, and headed here when it started to rain. One thing that has definitely been noticeable/moving is seeing the evidence of the destruction from the tsunami that hit here so recently. There are still remnants of the devastation on the shores, making the power of the sea that much more evident and humbling.

Well, tomorrow I'm going to venture into Phuket town in the morning to try and find a church and see the area a little bit...and then we are here until we head to the airport Tuesday morning.

We are in good spirits and health...and soaking up lots of Thai sun, culture, generosity, and yummy food!

Until next time...