Island hopping and turning 30

A month ago I turned 30.  Age has never been a big thing for me – age to me is more of a state of mind, and I’ve got no qualms about a number.  But something about the big 3-0 seemed special and different; leaving my 20’s meant taking on the role of being a real, experienced adult.  I’m no longer a ‘twenty-something’, a phrase that lately seems to invoke ideas of nothing but a free-spirited traveler, exploring the endless possibilities ahead, living with sometimes reckless abandon, figuring out life and making plenty of mistakes along the way that will serve to form the basis of the responsible choices that will eventually follow.  I suppose, reflecting back, that sort of described the last decade of my life – although my travel was more in the form of roadtrips around America than travel around the world.  I certainly learned a lot in my twenties, about just about everything – education, relationships, friendships, bartending, hangovers, late nights, city living, adult responsibilities, choices, irresponsible choices, priorities, making mistakes, pursuing dreams, and all of the life lessons in between – but I’m happy to turn the next page and see what my thirties are all about. 

In honor of this special birthday, and to celebrate a year of Peace Corps service, I decided to do some island hopping in southern Thailand.  With no real plan in mind except an idea of where I wanted to go, I took the overnight bus to Bangkok and left the next evening on the train to the southern province of Trang.  I wanted beautiful beaches and sparsely populated islands that were small enough to walk around.  I had packed my tent and planned to go with the cheapest of all possible accommodations: camping.  Lodging can get expensive, especially on the islands, and I wanted to use my money for other things.  I arrived in Trang in the morning, found a minivan to a pier, got on a boat full of Thais and was on the beach in no time at all.  The first stop was Koh Mook – the largest of the three islands I visited, and the only one inhabited by locals.  It was a little challenging to find a place to camp – the beach areas were dominated by resorts and everyone I asked just told me no.  I finally found a place that had a covered area where I could set up my tent for 100baht/night (about $3).  I set my tent up and went out to explore and enjoy the first of many beautiful island sunsets.

Pier to Koh Mook

First camp site

Sunset at Koh Mook

I woke up early the next day to go for a run to the sunrise side of the island.  I finished on the beach and walked around exploring all the critters and water creatures that were left after the tide went out.  I saw an incredible number of starfish of all sizes, and I even threw one back in the water and watched it come back to life – super awesome (it was white, the color of dead starfish that people collect sometimes, and when I threw it back it started to turn brown as it generated all these clear little tubes that it wrapped around itself, then turned itself over as it sunk back into the wet sand and water).

Sunrise

Starfish!

Coming back to life: the starfish I threw back in the water

The edge of the island: much more beach when the tide is out

Koh Mook is known for the Emerald Cave, a cave that requires you to swim through an enclosed tunnel of water to get to a small, open air beach area on the inside.  I found a place that rented kayaks for the day instead of the hour and was told I could kayak around the island to the cave.  I spent most of the day in the kayak, reveling in the incredible scenery and stopping at a small beach on the way.  A few locals had suggested going to the cave in the late afternoon after all the tourist ferries had left for the day.  I heeded their advice and got there to find just a couple small boats anchored outside.  I kayaked in through the tunnel all the way to the opening that ended at a small beach area.  It was pretty cool, and I actually had it all to myself as I was the last one to leave late in the afternoon (although it was a little creepy kayaking through the dark tunnel with no one else around). 

Cave entrance - the water really is that beautiful!

Through the cave! The hole is where I came out

Another view

Coming back out

Beach day at Koh Mook

Camping on the beach

A couple days later I was headed to Koh Kradan, a nearby island that I’d heard great things about.  I was put on a long-tail boat and taken to the entrance of the Emerald Cave where I was put on one of the tourist ferries that was headed where I wanted to go.  As we approached the next island I started to notice the clear emerald water I’d heard so much about here.  I asked one of the boat tour guides about where I could camp and he pointed to the end of the island that included the national park area.  We got to Koh Kradan and I was in awe of just how gorgeous it was.  I got off the boat and after just a few minutes of walking I found the park area.  I asked one of the park rangers where I could camp if I had my own tent, and he said wherever.  Since there wasn't really anyone around, I picked a spot that looked like it had been previously set-up for a tent space just off the beach. 

On the ferry to Koh Kradan

Secluded beach front camping

Standing on the beach at Koh Kradan

After soaking up the gorgeous views for awhile I set out to explore on the one path through the island.  The island had no roads and no motor vehicles – it was quiet and incredible.  The path made it’s way to a small, rocky ‘sunset beach’ and then continued on through the jungle until it came out through one of the resorts. Koh Kradan was exactly what I’d been looking for.  I had secluded beach front camping for 50 baht per night (less than $2) on the most gorgeous beach I'd ever seen in my life.  The island was amazing and I spent my time just soaking it all in – in the water, on the beach, on the driftwood swings attached to trees and in a beachside hammock.

The only path through across the island

Graveyard of driftwood and washed up debris

Sunset beach

Sunrise, just outside my tent

Walked out into the water with my camera - this far out and only up to my knees!

Dusk on the beach

A couple days later I somewhat reluctantly intended to make my way to another island: Koh Ngai.  I met the same tour boat operator I had come to this island with, and he told me to join in with them as they’d be making their way to Koh Ngai.  He let me join in on the rest of their tour – lunch, snorkeling, and two other small islands included for no extra charge than the transportation to the next island. 

Transportation between islands: tour ferry

Snorkeling stop

When I got to Koh Ngai I got off and started to make my way to the opposite end of the beach where I’d heard of a place I could set up my tent.  This island was also gorgeous, but I couldn’t help but think it paled a little bit in comparison to the personal paradise I found at Koh Kradan.  I found the place I was looking for: a locally owned area of beachfront property called Light My Fire Society, run by a Thai man named Don and described as an easy living freedom camp.  Don gave me a spot to set up my tent and even let me borrow a small mattress and pillow as well. It was a great (and cheap) place to stay, and even included night time bonfires with a little live music around the fire.

I spent my time here in much the same way I had at the previous island: exploring, relaxing and taking in the gorgeous views.  The more I travel by myself the more I enjoy it.  Of course it’s a little bit lonely sometimes, but to be able to pick up on a whim each and every day without worrying about someone else’s plans, interests, hesitations or complaints is pretty awesome.  This was the first time I’d spent my birthday alone with no friends or family around.  It felt strange, but being able to celebrate my 30^th birthday on a few relatively secluded islands in southern Thailand is something I might never do again in my life, and it was everything I wanted it to be. A couple days later I reluctantly bought a ticket to the ferry and made my way back to the mainland.  I was headed to Bangkok for a week for our Mid-Service Conference.

Paradise

Scout Camp

March in Thailand signals the end of the school year and a long break until mid-May.  Prior to the end of the year 5^th and 6^th grade students participate in a Scout Camp, which in my community was a 2 day overnight event at a military training site near my community.  All the students met at one of the local schools, dressed in their scout uniforms.  Some of the local military personnel were on hand to escort the students to the camp site and set the tone for the camp.  After a few introductory chants and role calls, the students marched off toward the camp site, separated into lines of boys and girls. 

As the teachers headed to the camp site, the students went off on a hike of the surrounding area and arrived a couple hours later.  They went through more of the call and response routines before lining up to participate in an introductory routine including some of the following:

After everyone was finished and the students were arranged in their linear formations, the staff proceeded to talk through events of the day and other scout-related business.  A few of the students became very affected by the heat and standing in the sunshine and were brought over to a shaded area to sit down.  I offered my bottle of water to one of them and took out a collapsible fan I had in my bag to help cool the students down a bit.  Within a few minutes at least 20 other students had either fainted or been carried over to the shade by other students or a teacher.  The uniforms the students were wearing were made of polyester, and standing in the sun after hiking around for a few hours with no break and little water was wearing on them.  As I tried to help by grabbing glasses of water for them, I couldn’t help but become frustrated at the reaction (or lack thereof) of the teachers and nearby adults.  Many of them laughed as they commented on how hot it was that day as a few others pulled out their ‘sniffing oils’ (usually used for a ‘pick me up’ in the same way that people use an afternoon cup of coffee) and making the kids smell them.  A few nearby parents bought some pop or other sugar-filled beverages to offer to their kids.  I tried to lead by example, taking ice cubes out of the water and showing the kids how to use them to cool off, and passing out water to everyone I could.  I also tried explaining to the nearby adults why the kids were feeling this way and what could be done to help them.  As kids were dropping like flies and headed to the shade, the camp leaders kept on going as the rest of the students continued to stand in the sun. 

Finally it was break time, and all the students made a beeline for the shade.  I encouraged them to drink water, almost positive that none of them would heed my advice.  I still couldn’t believe the adults had acted as they did, essentially not responding to the fact that so many students were becoming so affected by the morning’s activities.  This was the first time I had such a strong internal reaction to something here and made me really think about our vastly different cultural backgrounds and how they impacted our responses to this situation.  It was hard to make peace with this at the time, give that the health and safety of the students was potentially at-risk.  However, part of this whole experience is cultural immersion and exchange and, even though it’s hard sometimes, I have to look at things from a much different perspective to be able to even begin to understand them. 

The rest of the scout camp included an obstacle course full of activities, giving the students a chance to test their strengths. 

The evening activities revolved around a bonfire and some ceremonial activities that I didn’t totally understand, but was entertained by nonetheless.  Each school was represented by a group of students acting out skits or songs for the rest of the camp. 

As the bonfire events wrapped up, the scout camp leader went over the list of activities for the next morning.  The students then bough their last round of evening snacks (pop and meat sticks – healthy options everywhere!) and separated into their male and female sleeping areas for the night. The next morning the students were up early for exercise, breakfast, and camp clean-up.  The students participated in their last scout lineup before making the rounds to give each other congratulations and a final camp farewell. 

Salutes all around

Headed home: safety first. 

Adventures in Thainapping

Thainap (v.) – to kidnap a farang (foreigner), with little or no warning to join in on a bpai tiao (trip), usually of unknown length with an undisclosed destination; may include a sizeable group of people from the community, lots of pictures, many stops, naps in the car, and a constant sense of confusion with no discernible return time

Thainapping is a common occurrence with PCVs in Thailand.  It can include anything from a meal in a nearby town to an all-day excursion in your pajamas (because you don’t know what’s going on, let alone where you’re going/what you’ll be doing).  The weekend after sports week I was looking forward to a free schedule and time to relax and recover from the exhaustion of sitting around in the first hot week in quite some time, talking to almost everyone I know.  At 7am my phone rang, and seeing that it was an unknown number I just glanced at it, muted it, and went back to sleep.  I subsequently got phone call after phone call until I picked up and was greeted with an enthusiastic voice of a teacher I had just met earlier in the week  (the Thai approach to phone calls: if the person you’re calling doesn’t pick up, keep calling until they do).  She asked what I was doing (sleeping because I'm so tired!) and if I wanted to go bpai tiaoing with them to a nearby province (no, I want to sleep).  I’m not any sort of a morning person and am definitely not eager to engage in any sort of conversation immediately upon waking, especially one in my non-native language.  After being unable to go back to sleep, I got up and shortly received another phone call from another teacher I had just met, telling me they were picking me up in 20 minutes.  Sleeping and relaxation were no longer an option – I was bpai tiaoing. 

I grabbed the few bpai tiao essentials I thought of – camera, snacks, kindle, water – and headed out for a day full of unknown activities with no idea when I’d be back.  I was told we were helping a teacher move to a new school, and then we were going to bpai tiao after that.  We stopped to pick up some of the belongings of the teacher who was moving, and were subsequently invited to eat breakfast.  I got to experience red ant larvae soup for the first time, and I can’t say I really enjoyed it.  I also ate something that looked like dark green vomit and tasted kind of like salsa (I’ve long since learned that a lot of things that might look terrible can actually taste good, so everything is worth trying). 

We finally got on the road a couple hours after the designated time of departure.  We went to the new residence of the teacher, but no one was there yet with the rest of her belongings, so we bpai tiao’ed a little bit instead – a stop for lunch and a quick visit to a school located in the middle of nowhere in the mountains.  After getting back to the house, unloading the teacher’s belongings, and some idle chatter, I think it’s time to head back home.  It’s getting late in the afternoon, and it’s already been a full day.  At this point everyone loads up into two cars – apparently the bpai tiao has just started.  We stop for coffee and hit the road for another hour, driving through winding roads to visit a temple located on a mountain top, that was actually pretty amazing.  We took plenty of time for photos and exploring the temple before loading up in the cars again.

Mountain top temple

Part of the group - we rearranged this picture no less than 5 times so different people could stand next to me and swap in/out of the picture

Inside with the Buddha

Dogs with pearl necklaces and cats in Santa hats are prohibited

Hike up to the Chedi

Bpai tiao companions

Just when I think we’re finally headed home, we make a stop for neua yang, a special occasion dinner of grilling meats and vegetables that is usually at least a 2 hour event.  I was exhausted by this point and had long since given up on my day of relaxation and nothingness.  The meal was great, we had some laughs, and I was finally returned home at 10:30pm.