It's nice to get on the net again after a week. After Chiang Mai, it took us 2 days to get to Koh Phagnan...where we ended up staying a week! We haven't checked our mail since because the rates for internet use were over the roof. It's nice to see you guys kept it alive while we were out. So our 'trail of misfortunes' started once we arrived in Bangkok and I realized I forgot a bag of clothes on the bus...I had just had it washed and didn't bother packing it back in my bags before leaving Chaing Mai. Needless to say, we spent the day shopping and it turned out to be an excuse to buy more clothes. It sucks to loose items you like...but it's just 'stuff' after-all right? 15 hours later we arrived in Koh Pagnan and settled into our new nest. We were a little dissapointed at first but we ended up having a memorable time. Disppapointed cause Had Rin (our beach strip) isn't exactly charming...it's cool...but it's a party place - lined with bungalows, thai restaurants, shops and bars. It's so easy to meet people and have a good time. We rented a motorbike on day 2 and had a great day exploring the island, going to a waterfall, temples, hiking to a summit. But the downside was that Jay got the Koh Phagnan tatoo...yup..the famous exhauust pipe burn. I have 2 of them from 3 years back and he just got his. It's not so bad though...it's healing well. He also had a small fall...a mishap really - but the bike got scratched on a rock and we had to fork out the cash to pay for it. We kept our cool though cause we all know it could have been worse. We met a great Canadian couple our first day in Koh Phagnan and became good friends with them. You know when you travel you meet people of all shapes and shades...sustain small talk...share an evening of fun here and there...but it's rare to meet people that you really click with. We partied quite a bit in the past week. Thailand's beaches are known for 'buckets'...a small sand bucket that is filled with a mickey of liquor (usually whiskey or rhum), a bottle of redbull, a can of coke, and ice. One of those and your dancin all night. On day 3, we had some buckets with our new friends and had some good fun...we took some pictures of it all and even a short video of the fire shows on the beach. There were two guys turning this huge jumping rope that was lit on fire...and Jay went to skip in it! Thankfully..he wasn't burnt!Yesterday...our last day on the island...we planned to rent the bike again to go do a jungle hike. I was pretty excited about it since the only exercise I'd had was lifing my chop sticks to my mouth or rubbing sunscreen on my body..oh and a bit of frisbee. Anyway, 10 minutes after renting the bike, we're riding up the steepest hill and I downshift from 2nd to 1st, which makes the bike go faster and Jay jerked backwards, pulling me with him. We were driving on the backwheel for like 4 seconds before we fell on the side of the road. Thankfully, Jay doesn't have a scratch - cause my knee absorbed all the shock. I had a pretty big gash - I thought I saw my bone. Jay felt so bad he was shfitzin (as he says) like crazy! I hitched a ride back to the beach to take care of my wound and he drove the bike back. Alas...another day of lounging on Had Rin. We had last night of fun with Elliot and Alana and now we're halfway to Bangkok. We're planning on doing some serious shopping in the big city andpay to store a luggage in bangkok so we don't have to carry it for the rest of our trip. Next is Koh Chang...one of my all time favorites. And then Bali, where I get to see the crew from 2005! We get to stay at our friends' house in the extra bedroom. We'll surely take some pictures with their camera and post them. You just won't get to see Thailand's bewutiful coasts...but i'll make sure to post some good ones of the birthday boy in Bali ; )
oh...our bus is leaving soon so i'll cut it here. Didn't mean to sound like a downer by all this. If anything, it actually made us so much more appreciative and careful...and we're still all smiles ; )
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8 comments:
Despite all the misfortunes,we're so happy to hear that you are both safe and sound.Having no news,back here is pretty nervewracking.considering which part of the world you are visiting.Please,from now on,REGARDLESS of the cost,we all expect to hear a peep from you,MUCH more often than once per week!
You guys! Same here, you know. I check the blog every day, and now even more then that as no news via e-mail. Like it's been said, given where you are and what little news comes out of your part of the world (other than that giant CYCLONE), it would be very nice indeed to simply get a 1-line e-mail saying "Hey, we're all good, just a little pricey so gotta go". If ever any of these people you meet have cell phones, send us a txt maybe. Alright, enough lecturing from me :) I understand that there will be bumps and burns (I guess, litterally) along the way (Rachel, your poor knee!), but if you both come out of it with extra experience and caution for the next time, then that's what was supposed to happen. Well, except for an 'exhaust pipe burn', youch! All 'round, I know everyone will be happy to read this updadte, even if it means hearing that the camera was lost, the web was expensive, nice clothes were left behind, the bike got scratched and you both ended up with Could-Have-Been-Worse-But-Thankfully-You're-Both-Ok wounds, we can all agree it's great to know all is well and looking forward to more news to come soon, right? Right. Take care until your next adventures find themselves upon these pages, and post pics asap or on online albums like Webshots, just in case! :p
What can I say? No Pain no gain? All that counts is you're having the time of your life! If you can bear the scrapes+bruises and keep on smiling and look forward to the next adventure, then you're doing just fine. At least the scabs can remind you of your adventures and where they've taken you! You able to buy a cheap digital camera where you are? Even disposable for that matter?
What a week ! for you both and for all of us here in Canada who have been worried ! That cyclone was a little too close for comfort!
Well Rachel, since you already had your "bike tatoo" you needed a "bad knee" this time , hope it heals well and Jay for your burn,,, I got one of those when I arrived here im Montreal, Denis had a Black Camaro with chrome pipes , we were super cool riding in that thing !!! and yep , I burned myself on the shin , OUCH! I still have the scar today ! then we had to sell it to buy our house ,we needed every penny we could scrape up but at least we had it for a while !
Lost clothing,but getting to shop, thats a good excuse Rachel. .ha ha
Keep the news coming, have a good time in the meantime, be careful, try not to loose or get robbed again , thats a real bummer ! was that all your pictures from the beginning ? hope not !
take care U2
Susan xx
"That which does not kill us makes us stronger. "
(Friedrich Nietzsche) so I guess you guys are stronger now. Of course he also said "God is dead" to which God replied "Nietzche is dead" so who knows...
A Canadian couple in Phu-ket,
Decided to drink down a 'bucket'
The drinks had them bakin',their camera was taken,
And all they could say,was,"ah Phuket!"
Now THAT little limerick is funny!! The situation isn't, but the rhyme is :) Not sure there's anything to be learned at this point, but all I can say is that if they had access to a wallet and you weren't even aware, then you have to keep your valuables even closer. That, or wait to sleep when you're alone, and not on a crowded bus. No sense making it easy on anyone (except yourselves)... "Ah Phuk-et", hihi :)
salut vous 2 ,désoler pour les bad luck que vous avez eus .Mais le principale c'est que vous êtes en santé.Jespere que vous appreciez toujours votre voyage et qu'il fait toujour beau.La brulure de Jay ça doit pas faire du bien,ya pas de protecteur sur le exaust pipe.
Denis
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