Full Moon to Krabi

First of all, I must apologize. I have yet to post any photos of any of my travels in SE Asia. I have my adapter right here in my bag and I was just ready to upload some photos when I looked down and there is no USB port on my computer. The one next to me in this cafe has two, but is out of order. Such is Thailand.

After finishing diving on Ko Tao, I got on a ferry to Ko Phangan in very rough seas. I made the mistake of pounding a 7-11 hot dog as I got on the ferry, but luckily it didn't make a reappearance. As we docked at the town of Thong Sala, the ropes holding the boat to the dock quickly snapped and a deck hand lost part of his and was seen hurriedly seeking medical attention. Finally, we were able to get off the boat when they tied it to another and we climbed over both onto dry land.

I spent three nights at the family-oriented Nai Pan Noi beach where I did some serious relaxing and reading. One afternoon, I set out to explore a nearby waterfall (barely a trickle) and ended up climbing some hills more inland and ended up at this amazing view point. It was a thin granite rock jutting out almost 1000 feet above the ocean and a sheer 200 ft drop to the forest below.

The next day, I decided to try out the scuba diving on Ko Phangan. We went to the nearby Ang Thong Marine Park and made two dives. The first dive was great, saw a few Sting Rays and some nice coral even though the water was pretty cloudy. The second dive was with a Master in training, and this young lady had some problems. We got separated from two other gentlemen in our group so we surfaced to find them. They were very far away. So we went back under and our guide apparently set a course for us to swim and get nearer to the others. However, she bagan to swim in circles and my buddy and I looked at eachother and shook our heads but had no choice but to follow her. Finally, we surfaced again and found that we had been swimming exactly the opposite direction we needed to go and we were now a good 1000 ft from the boat. It was an exhausting 20 minute swim back and our guide felt pretty bad.

On Saturday, the day before the Full Moon Party at Haad Rin Beach, I boarded a ferry and made my way to party central. I located a nice bungalow that was surprisingly available on a quiter beach away from the action. For two days, the wind off the ocean barely dipped below 30 mph. When I layed on my hammock on the porch of my dwelling, the mosquitos didn't stand a chance in the wind so I was naturally protected.

The next day, the town was noticeably more packed. I knew a few people staying in town from scuba diving and random travels, and I tried to meet up with them as the party got in full swing. I strolled over to the beach around 10 pm. All along the beach, there was massive speaker systems blaring terrible techno crap and all the glitter and neon paint that go along with it. I walked around a bit more, slightly surprised by how many Thai police were on the beat. I briefly talked to my man E.T., an Israeli guy I had hiked with in Chiang Mai. After taking it all in, I was ready to retire to my windy bungalow and was happily asleep by 1 am.

The next day, I crowded onto a ferry with 300 hungover party-goers for the four hour ride to Surat Thani, from where I caught a bus to rainy Krabi. On the ferry was one of the scuba instructors I had dove with and he busted out a portable cd player. I traded him my ipod for a bit and was able to finally listen to the brand new Kanye West that Katie had bought me in Ko Tao. Tight beats, cop that.

So I am now in Krabi, land of amazing rock-climbing, gorgeous beaches and breathtaking kayaking...when the weather is good. It's been mostly raining. I rented a motorbike and put an enjoyable 100km on it today and will try to do the same tomorrow.

I am still having an amazing time, but I seem to be ready to go back home. Perhaps its "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson that has got me itching to get back to the states. There is so much to see here, and yet I have seen relatively little of America. I don't have a plan yet for the rest of my time in Thailand(nor a plane ticket home), but I think I will go to Myanmar before I get out.