| Wednesday, January 17, 2007 |
| New Year's, and Why I'm Done with Koh Phangan |
Happy 2007 from Koh Phangan
 On the road from Sangkhlaburi to Koh Phangan, a few shout outs:
*Thank you, VIP bus driver, who kept trying to leave people behind during momentary restroom stops en route to Bangkok. I don't know what they do on the Very Non-Important Person buses, but probably they push you out the window when it gets too full.
*Thank you, travel agency on Khao San Road that closed early twice when we needed to pick up Abelle's ticket.
*Thank you creepy Sikh agent man who made us take a cab for a hour across Bangkok in rush hour traffic to pick up said tickets from his gated compound.
*Thank you, Koh Phangan taxi-truck driver on meth, who pulled over, tried to extort money from everyone in the cab, yelled and swore at us when we got out, accused us of being Italian, almost slapped another girl passenger, swore some more when we gave him his money and ran away, and would have run us off the road a minute later had we not been hiding in some family's garden.
*Thank you useless men in said truck who did nothing to help this situation, besides offering him 10 times the fare to keep driving. (Did I say "men"? My mistake.)
After 24 hours in buses and taxis and boats, we arrived on Koh Phangan on New Year's Eve without a reservation and not sure where to go. At the taxi stand, a dishevelled American guy came up to us and offered to help us find a place to stay. He had been out partying all night and was waiting for taxi charges to go down before he went home. He suggested we try to get a bungalow on the same beach where he and his friend were. This sounds like a good premise for "Brokedown Palace 2: Eastside Girls Doing Stupid Things" (see scene 1, going to Sikh man's Bangkok compound at dusk) but they were decent fellows. And since they didn't have rocks to throw like AB's India mugger, it seemed totally safe. We got the last shack available, and it sufficed for a night. I don't know why, but everything about Koh Phangan made me uneasy. I used to like it, but when you keep have negative vibes coming from everyone living on/running the island, and the crowds of foreigners are the ones you would never want to hang out with... you have to follow your gut and get the hell out.
By evening we were on Hat Rin for the New Year's party. Hat Rin has become more developed and everything looks a lot trashier, people included. It had a much more relaxed backpacker feel 2 years ago, but this was more like being in a frat party. Down on the beach, we ran into the Champclair Mafia (Martin'n'Jen, Greg'n'Ted), and hung out for a bit before drifting away in the crowd. Right before midnight, we spotted our buddy Mike standing on a chair, yelling out to us, "Girrrrls!! It's meeeee!" before his chair toppled and we had to try and catch a very drunk Irishman. There was the standard fire poi and club music and fireworks, but it felt a bit been-there-done-that, and really sleazy. It wasn't like Phuket, which is gross for obvious reasons (hookers, the dirty old men who love and pay them, and slutty ladyboys), but still just felt sort of wrong. Alcohol can be fun when it clouds things a bit, but not being able to drink keeps your head clear and lets you focus on what you actually want to see. We spent a long time chatting with a guy who ran a dive shop on Koh Tao, and would come over with his brother to sell drinks every night during high season, and then head back to work all day. His comment was something like, "Yeah, Phangan makes good business... as long as you don't have to stay! Hahahahahah." Yeah, that's about right.
On New Year's afternoon, we went to check on tickets to Phi Phi for the following morning. Hat Rin is convenient because of all the cafes and bookstores and shops, and I love that aspect of these little tourist ghettos, but it seemed even more depressing by light of day, as if the beach itself had a hangover. The taxi incident occurred on our way from Hat Rin to the boat office in Thong Sala, and we made our decision to get out immediately. When we came out of hiding, we flagged down a guy driving a pick-up for one of the fancy resorts, and he dropped us off in town. He had a Thai karaoke machine on the dash, and seemed thrilled to make some cash on the sly. AB and I went to the office, instead bought tickets for the night boat, and were sailing away from Koh Phangan 2 hours later. I shan't be returning... |
posted by Raychaa @ 2:37 PM  |
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| 2 comments: |
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and thank you thai mafia for never letting a night boat, bus, taxi, or travel agency be full (even if we can't figure out how any money was made). go berths 17 & 18!!!
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and thanks to whoever pushed josh over the edge enough to make him flee san francisco and end up trashed and at the boat pier at 10am. go them.
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Name: Raychaa
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About Me: “No man, not even a doctor, ever gives any other definition of what a nurse should be than this - 'devoted and obedient'. This definition would do just as well for a porter. It might even do for a horse. It would not do for a policeman.” (Florence Nightingale)
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and thank you thai mafia for never letting a night boat, bus, taxi, or travel agency be full (even if we can't figure out how any money was made). go berths 17 & 18!!!