Greetings to all my friends back at home...and those of you reading this that aren't my friends, thanks for checking it out.
I am writing this in a pretty sour disposition right now cause today I lost my camera along with several of our photos during a volcano hike here in Nicaragua. Also the internet thing I'm using is all in Spanish so it's telling me that everything I'm writing is spelled incorrectly. So if there are a crazy amount of spelling and grammar mistakes in this update that is why. I'll have to rely on my own brain power for this.
Annnnnnnnnyways, this little doo-hickey here is gonna be about our excursion through Thailand. Which I am fairly certain is the most heavily backpacked country on Earth. When we first got to the country I absolutely hated it due to all the travellers in the country being there for the sole purpose of partying and getting fucked up on various sorts of narcotics. So I wasn't really looking forward to going back, especially knowing that our first stop back in the country was going to be Bangkok which was so lame the first time, but Brit wanted to do some shopping so I really couldn't argue.
We caught a bus from Siem Reap to Bangkok despite my pleading to fly so we could get a longer visa and wouldn't have to exit the country in a couple weeks while we were hanging on some island. Brit however insisted the bus was our best option. We hit the long journey and arrived back in Bangkok and back on Khao San Rd. The place was just as busy as ever except this time even more so due to it being the night before Songkran which is the Thai new year celebration. The streets were jam packed with people, both Thai and foreigners. We had to fight through alleyways because Khao San itself was blocked off. Got to a cheap hotel and hucked our bags in there to head out into the streets.
Songkran is pretty much a giant city-wide party that lasts three days and has everyone throwing water on each other with buckets or shooting each other with squirt guns. Brit and I instantly got soaked even though it wasn't technically new years yet. We quickly got some guns of our own so we could protect ourselves. They were pricey and we were on a budget so we ended up with some tiny Mickey and Minnie Mouse squirters which weren't much when paired against a giant 100000 litre Super Soaker (which everyone but us seemed to have). The streets were packed with people partying and blaring music outta the bars and clubs. There were literally thousands of people jammed into the streets soaking each other, drinking and dancing. Despite it being without a doubt the hugest drunkfest/party I've ever witnessed, I really had a good time...for the first 3 hours.
It was fun running around and soaking each other but after going full tilt with it for hours on end we got burnt out really fast and then getting sprayed in the face with ice cold water for the 50000th time by some drunk frat boy just got really annoying. We met up with Mark and Rachel whom we met on the Gibbon Experience and partied with them for a bit. At around 2 in the morning we got tired out and retreated to a restaurant for some late night food and drinks. It was nice to get away from the water for a minute but that was shortly broken up by some douche blasting Brit and I in the face while we were trying to eat and drink. I am not usually a confrontational guy but that just made me snap and I started freaking out at the guy fingering him, swearing and spitting on him. I was pretty sure it was gonna end up in a little scuffle but I guess he was too drunk to mind or care and just continued to shoot everyone else in the restaurant...who didn't get quite as upset as I did. We got outta there and headed to bed for the night soaking wet and covered in flour. I didn't mention that, but yea they soak you with water and then throw handfuls of flour on you which then dries and cakes on.
Since the partying was a bit to much for us all we decided to get outta Bangkok the following day. We organized a shuttle down to Koh Tao where we were all going to get certified for diving. Brit and I headed to the MBK which is a huge shopping complex in the city where you just bargain for cheap goods. En route our bus was attacked several times by people with water guns and we were thoroughly drenched by the time we got there. We got down to shopping there and got a few things each, nothing super special but I did get this little "Hamburger" speaker thing. It plugs into your Ipod and springs open looking like a little black hamburger. When you close it, it just looks like a little ball. It's badass. After that we had to brave Khao San again and we both got drenched. Brit was not liking it and had a bit of a freak out, but we managed to make it back and change into some dry clothes for the bus. On the way however, people continued to soak us. Brit didn't like it and got real upset at some people, she really scared a Thai family when they sprinkled some water on her. I just accepted the fact I was gonna get wet and floured so I got it the worst and was covered and drenched by the time I got to the bus. Made for a fun overnight bus and boat ride to Koh Tao.
We had to sleep in the waiting room at the dock for 3 hours waiting for our boat in the morning but it wasn't sooo bad and then we made it to Koh Tao. We checked into Big Blue and signed up for the open water diving course. Over the next few days we learned all the rules and intro diving stuff eventually ending in a test which got us our divers license. The course was pretty fun, we had some good people, namely this huge Russian/American dude named Arthur but everyone just called him Thor cause of the striking resemblance he had to the Norse demi-god. We practiced in a pool for the first day and then got to go out to sea. The ocean dives were rad and we saw lots of cool stuff, the amount of fish under the water is insane. We saw lots of weird fish, eels, rays, crabs, shrimps and colorful coral. Brit was super nervous for the test and threatened to bail out. We all convinced her not to and it would be fine. She ended up getting the best mark out of all of us on the test, only missing only 2 questions.
Koh Tao was an awesome island. It was so small that you can just rent a scooter and cruise the whole thing in an hour or two. We went out the day after our diving course ended on the scooters to a place called Shark Bay. As the name suggests, it's a bay where sharks like to hang out. We rented snorkel gear and headed out to the water. Mark and I were the ones who headed in first and it took us quite awhile to locate the sharks but when we found them there were about 50 reef sharks swimming all around us. They weren't huge or nothin but I think they still could have taken a chunk outta me if they wanted too. When we got back Brit and Rach didn't seem like they wanted to swim all the way out there to check em out. Probably cause I was out there for way too long and hogged the snorkel gear. Koh Tao also had little stalls everywhere that sold smoothies and street crepes for less than a dollar. So rad. I probably drank like 50 banana/Oreo smoothies and ate the same amount of nutella crepes.
I dunno how long we spent on Koh Tao exactly but it was probably like 4 or 5 nights. Afterwards we caught a quick ferry to the next island over which was Koh Phangan, famous for the Full Moon parties. We didn't quite time it right though so we weren't gonna be there when one of these badass parties was happening (they only happen once a month...at the full moon oddly enough) so we were a bit choked at missing that but we did happen to be there when another big party was happening and I thought had a much cooler name...the Black Moon party ooOOOooOooO. Those O's were supposed to make you think of a spooky ghost in your head.
So, since we were there just for this party we decided to stay at a hotel on the beach where the party was happening rather than the main backpacker/tourist beach area. In theory this was a good idea cause we would be right in the action and wouldn't have to taxi across the island to get to the party. However, it turned out to be an awful, awful idea. We got to our place which was real nice and the beach looked great. When we got into the water though, we realized it was just pure coral and only ankle deep for about 2 miles out. Swimming was outta the question, big time bummer. Also, the selection of restaurants was limited in the area so we had to walk quite a long way to get food. The only plus was a cheap market we found where I could get more cheap smoothies. Delicious. I guess I haven't really mentioned it, but since Bangkok we'd been travelling and sharing a room with Mark and Rach. We had the same trip planned and it made sense to share to keep it cheap. Since they had spent so much time with us they had heard all our travel stories, namely the ones about me getting sick. They thought it was hilarious and really wanted me to get the shits while they were around. In a hilarious (for me) twist of irony, I was completely healthy the entire time but Rachel got a bad case of runny butt and was always worried to leave the resort in case it flared up. We got to listen to the symphony of slurpy sounds coming from the bathroom everytime she went in, to which she informed us from the shitter that "I CAN'T HELP IT!" Due to this case of the sick butt, the night of the Black Moon party she had to stay in the room cause she was sick and worried the hard partyin would make her poop. Bummer for her. Mark being the gent he is decided to leave his sick girlfriend at home and come out with Brit and I to the party. Both Brit and Mark got obliterated that night as we danced to loud techno music, under the glow of black lights while being covered in neon body paint. We stayed out for awhile but everyone got over it before the party ended and we decided to head home. It was up to me to DD everyone on the tiny scooter we had rented. Not an easy task trying to navigate that little thing in the dark with a couple drunk passengers flailing around on the back. Mark was 100% convinced that at about 3am there would be some guy selling kebab's somewhere on the street. Strange cause I hadn't seen any kebab sellers on the island even in the day. He still insisted that we drive around for an hour trying to find one, but to no avail. Instead we had greasy burgers near our hotel.
Back at the place we woke up a sleeping Rachel and Mark had a really tough time getting into his pajamas. He ended up standing on his bed naked trying to get em on and then stumbled onto our bed with his dink out almost landing on me. Watching this sight I was 100% convinced Clayton Uhlig had temporarily taken over Mark's body.
The following day we went to the main backpacker area of the island which was 100x nicer than where we were staying and had an awesome beach which was surrounded by cheap restaurants. I was bummed seeing it cause if we stayed there I think the stay on the island would have been much more enjoyable.
Also, I forgot to mention that Mark and I ditched the females one day to go diving (the girls didn't wanna pay to go) which was rad. We saw tons of stuff and got to swim through some tunnels in the coral. A giant box jellyfish also made an appearance and swam up behind us causing our dive master to freak out and grab Mark pulling him away from it. Once we got outta the water she said if that thing stung us it would be bad news and could result in being paralyzed. The ocean is a freaky place, it seems like everything down there can hurt or kill you in one way or another. The jellyfish coming at us didn't even seem that dangerous, it actually looked pretty fun and just wanted to hang out.
We decided to skip Koh Samui because Rach had been there before and didn't much care for it. She made it sound pretty unappealing to us so we figured we'd head to the islands on the other coast of Thailand instead. We made the trip across the skinny part of the country which should have been real quick but our bus kept breaking down so it took a whole lot longer. Eventually we got there though and arrived in the coastal town of Khao Lak. The place we pretty cool and we really wanted to organize a dive trip to the Similan islands off the coast. When I priced it out though, it was waaaay out of the budget. Instead we organized a snorkeling trip out there. We headed out in the AM on a shitty long boat ride with lots of other tourists. The boat ride got me very seasick and I almost bucked. I also had to go to the bathroom en route so I headed into the shitter and tried to go but the waves were so crazy I ended up just getting tossed around in there while I was trying to poo. In addition to this, the boat had to slow down entirely while I was in there, for my safety I guess. I didn't know that though so I was just taking my time while the other 30+ tourists just stared at the door waiting for me to get out so we could speed up and get to the islands. Pretty embarrassing once I emerged and realized what was happening.
After about an hour or two of a horrible boat ride we got to the islands and hit some of the beaches. The sand there is pure white and the water is crystal clear. I was loving it, they were the nicest beaches I've seen since Zanzibar. The only thing that sucked is since we were on a tour we couldn't stay as long as I wanted. We got some snorkel gear and got to cruise around with giant green sea turtles that were swimming around our boat. Apparently you aren't supposed to feed them but our guides were feeding them bananas. We had our underwater camera which is a yellow/orange color so the turtles kept coming up to us and trying to bite it thinking it was a banana I guess. Freaky cause I was scared of losing some fingers but cool cause we got some good flicks. The turtle also tried to kill me one time by swimming on my back while I was under water and when I came up to get a breath I couldn't cause he was on my back blocking me out. I managed to get out from there though and got to the surface gasping for air.
Quick side note: our guides were Lady Gaga (he/she insisted on being called this) and Lucy, two Thai lady boys. It was weird though cause their faces looked like men, but they had boobs, talked like girls and wore makeup...but you could still blatantly tell they were men. Made it very confusing cause I wasn't sure if they thought they were fooling us or if they knew that we knew they weren't real females. Anyways, that was weird.
The following day our bus ride into the country came back to bite us in the ass. Our 15 days were up and we had to leave the country. This resulted in one of the "funnest" days of our trip. We had to catch a bus super early in the morning and take it all the way up to the Myanmar (Burma) border to exit and re-enter the country. The ride wasn't so good especially cause we had some guy on there who was freaking out the whole way complaining about the ride and that he didn't have enough leg room. Brit had to sit beside him for a bit and when she first got on and gestured to the seat he muttered "you've got to be fucking kidding me!" He also started bashing the seat in front of him when the lady reclined it slightly. Needless to say he was a very pleasant guy. We got to the border in a fishy smelling town where we had to wait in a long line to get stamped out of the country, catch a boat across a river to Myanmar, wait in another long lineup to get stamped in and out of that country, catch the boat back and wait in yet another long line to get stamped back into Thailand. After all that we had to catch the bus back past Khao Lak and into Phuket. Once in Phuket (late at night by this point) we checked into one of the diviest hotels I've ever seen. I'm still surprised I wasn't just chewed into dust by bed bugs as soon as I feel asleep in that bed.
In the morning we caught the boat to Koh Phi Phi.
So that's where I am gonna stop this entry since I am sure all of you reading this are like "Man this guy never shuts the fuck up! Get on with it already!" I am also getting pretty tired of writing at this moment so I'll have to rock out the rest of the Thai adventures in the next go. I'm sorry if anyone read this expecting more laughs than they got, I guess I didn't play with enough street animals or eat enough weird food this time to give me crazy diarrhea. I'll try harder next go round so you cruel people out there can read and laugh at my sad bowels.
I realize my blog entries always run on and on so to make it easier to read for ya'll...I PROMISE and SWEAR ON MY LIFE that the next update will be shorter so everyone can make it through without starting to hate me near the end for writing to much. Thanks for staying interested in my life and my pretentious blog updates...at least in my mind I can believe that some other people are interested in what I'm doing.
Love and miss all you family and friends back at home. Looking forward to seeing you sometime soon! I hope you will all enjoy the presents I've got for you. Ramsay or Con did you get my post card from Costa Rica?
Live Wrong!
- Dan
PS. I break promises all the time and have sworn on my life so many times now that I should already be dead.
Few people partyin for Songkran
The Khao San not during Thai new year
Some temple
Zombie Mark
Our view from the dive resort in Koh Tao
I am writing this in a pretty sour disposition right now cause today I lost my camera along with several of our photos during a volcano hike here in Nicaragua. Also the internet thing I'm using is all in Spanish so it's telling me that everything I'm writing is spelled incorrectly. So if there are a crazy amount of spelling and grammar mistakes in this update that is why. I'll have to rely on my own brain power for this.
Annnnnnnnnyways, this little doo-hickey here is gonna be about our excursion through Thailand. Which I am fairly certain is the most heavily backpacked country on Earth. When we first got to the country I absolutely hated it due to all the travellers in the country being there for the sole purpose of partying and getting fucked up on various sorts of narcotics. So I wasn't really looking forward to going back, especially knowing that our first stop back in the country was going to be Bangkok which was so lame the first time, but Brit wanted to do some shopping so I really couldn't argue.
We caught a bus from Siem Reap to Bangkok despite my pleading to fly so we could get a longer visa and wouldn't have to exit the country in a couple weeks while we were hanging on some island. Brit however insisted the bus was our best option. We hit the long journey and arrived back in Bangkok and back on Khao San Rd. The place was just as busy as ever except this time even more so due to it being the night before Songkran which is the Thai new year celebration. The streets were jam packed with people, both Thai and foreigners. We had to fight through alleyways because Khao San itself was blocked off. Got to a cheap hotel and hucked our bags in there to head out into the streets.
Songkran is pretty much a giant city-wide party that lasts three days and has everyone throwing water on each other with buckets or shooting each other with squirt guns. Brit and I instantly got soaked even though it wasn't technically new years yet. We quickly got some guns of our own so we could protect ourselves. They were pricey and we were on a budget so we ended up with some tiny Mickey and Minnie Mouse squirters which weren't much when paired against a giant 100000 litre Super Soaker (which everyone but us seemed to have). The streets were packed with people partying and blaring music outta the bars and clubs. There were literally thousands of people jammed into the streets soaking each other, drinking and dancing. Despite it being without a doubt the hugest drunkfest/party I've ever witnessed, I really had a good time...for the first 3 hours.
It was fun running around and soaking each other but after going full tilt with it for hours on end we got burnt out really fast and then getting sprayed in the face with ice cold water for the 50000th time by some drunk frat boy just got really annoying. We met up with Mark and Rachel whom we met on the Gibbon Experience and partied with them for a bit. At around 2 in the morning we got tired out and retreated to a restaurant for some late night food and drinks. It was nice to get away from the water for a minute but that was shortly broken up by some douche blasting Brit and I in the face while we were trying to eat and drink. I am not usually a confrontational guy but that just made me snap and I started freaking out at the guy fingering him, swearing and spitting on him. I was pretty sure it was gonna end up in a little scuffle but I guess he was too drunk to mind or care and just continued to shoot everyone else in the restaurant...who didn't get quite as upset as I did. We got outta there and headed to bed for the night soaking wet and covered in flour. I didn't mention that, but yea they soak you with water and then throw handfuls of flour on you which then dries and cakes on.
Since the partying was a bit to much for us all we decided to get outta Bangkok the following day. We organized a shuttle down to Koh Tao where we were all going to get certified for diving. Brit and I headed to the MBK which is a huge shopping complex in the city where you just bargain for cheap goods. En route our bus was attacked several times by people with water guns and we were thoroughly drenched by the time we got there. We got down to shopping there and got a few things each, nothing super special but I did get this little "Hamburger" speaker thing. It plugs into your Ipod and springs open looking like a little black hamburger. When you close it, it just looks like a little ball. It's badass. After that we had to brave Khao San again and we both got drenched. Brit was not liking it and had a bit of a freak out, but we managed to make it back and change into some dry clothes for the bus. On the way however, people continued to soak us. Brit didn't like it and got real upset at some people, she really scared a Thai family when they sprinkled some water on her. I just accepted the fact I was gonna get wet and floured so I got it the worst and was covered and drenched by the time I got to the bus. Made for a fun overnight bus and boat ride to Koh Tao.
We had to sleep in the waiting room at the dock for 3 hours waiting for our boat in the morning but it wasn't sooo bad and then we made it to Koh Tao. We checked into Big Blue and signed up for the open water diving course. Over the next few days we learned all the rules and intro diving stuff eventually ending in a test which got us our divers license. The course was pretty fun, we had some good people, namely this huge Russian/American dude named Arthur but everyone just called him Thor cause of the striking resemblance he had to the Norse demi-god. We practiced in a pool for the first day and then got to go out to sea. The ocean dives were rad and we saw lots of cool stuff, the amount of fish under the water is insane. We saw lots of weird fish, eels, rays, crabs, shrimps and colorful coral. Brit was super nervous for the test and threatened to bail out. We all convinced her not to and it would be fine. She ended up getting the best mark out of all of us on the test, only missing only 2 questions.
Koh Tao was an awesome island. It was so small that you can just rent a scooter and cruise the whole thing in an hour or two. We went out the day after our diving course ended on the scooters to a place called Shark Bay. As the name suggests, it's a bay where sharks like to hang out. We rented snorkel gear and headed out to the water. Mark and I were the ones who headed in first and it took us quite awhile to locate the sharks but when we found them there were about 50 reef sharks swimming all around us. They weren't huge or nothin but I think they still could have taken a chunk outta me if they wanted too. When we got back Brit and Rach didn't seem like they wanted to swim all the way out there to check em out. Probably cause I was out there for way too long and hogged the snorkel gear. Koh Tao also had little stalls everywhere that sold smoothies and street crepes for less than a dollar. So rad. I probably drank like 50 banana/Oreo smoothies and ate the same amount of nutella crepes.
I dunno how long we spent on Koh Tao exactly but it was probably like 4 or 5 nights. Afterwards we caught a quick ferry to the next island over which was Koh Phangan, famous for the Full Moon parties. We didn't quite time it right though so we weren't gonna be there when one of these badass parties was happening (they only happen once a month...at the full moon oddly enough) so we were a bit choked at missing that but we did happen to be there when another big party was happening and I thought had a much cooler name...the Black Moon party ooOOOooOooO. Those O's were supposed to make you think of a spooky ghost in your head.
So, since we were there just for this party we decided to stay at a hotel on the beach where the party was happening rather than the main backpacker/tourist beach area. In theory this was a good idea cause we would be right in the action and wouldn't have to taxi across the island to get to the party. However, it turned out to be an awful, awful idea. We got to our place which was real nice and the beach looked great. When we got into the water though, we realized it was just pure coral and only ankle deep for about 2 miles out. Swimming was outta the question, big time bummer. Also, the selection of restaurants was limited in the area so we had to walk quite a long way to get food. The only plus was a cheap market we found where I could get more cheap smoothies. Delicious. I guess I haven't really mentioned it, but since Bangkok we'd been travelling and sharing a room with Mark and Rach. We had the same trip planned and it made sense to share to keep it cheap. Since they had spent so much time with us they had heard all our travel stories, namely the ones about me getting sick. They thought it was hilarious and really wanted me to get the shits while they were around. In a hilarious (for me) twist of irony, I was completely healthy the entire time but Rachel got a bad case of runny butt and was always worried to leave the resort in case it flared up. We got to listen to the symphony of slurpy sounds coming from the bathroom everytime she went in, to which she informed us from the shitter that "I CAN'T HELP IT!" Due to this case of the sick butt, the night of the Black Moon party she had to stay in the room cause she was sick and worried the hard partyin would make her poop. Bummer for her. Mark being the gent he is decided to leave his sick girlfriend at home and come out with Brit and I to the party. Both Brit and Mark got obliterated that night as we danced to loud techno music, under the glow of black lights while being covered in neon body paint. We stayed out for awhile but everyone got over it before the party ended and we decided to head home. It was up to me to DD everyone on the tiny scooter we had rented. Not an easy task trying to navigate that little thing in the dark with a couple drunk passengers flailing around on the back. Mark was 100% convinced that at about 3am there would be some guy selling kebab's somewhere on the street. Strange cause I hadn't seen any kebab sellers on the island even in the day. He still insisted that we drive around for an hour trying to find one, but to no avail. Instead we had greasy burgers near our hotel.
Back at the place we woke up a sleeping Rachel and Mark had a really tough time getting into his pajamas. He ended up standing on his bed naked trying to get em on and then stumbled onto our bed with his dink out almost landing on me. Watching this sight I was 100% convinced Clayton Uhlig had temporarily taken over Mark's body.
The following day we went to the main backpacker area of the island which was 100x nicer than where we were staying and had an awesome beach which was surrounded by cheap restaurants. I was bummed seeing it cause if we stayed there I think the stay on the island would have been much more enjoyable.
Also, I forgot to mention that Mark and I ditched the females one day to go diving (the girls didn't wanna pay to go) which was rad. We saw tons of stuff and got to swim through some tunnels in the coral. A giant box jellyfish also made an appearance and swam up behind us causing our dive master to freak out and grab Mark pulling him away from it. Once we got outta the water she said if that thing stung us it would be bad news and could result in being paralyzed. The ocean is a freaky place, it seems like everything down there can hurt or kill you in one way or another. The jellyfish coming at us didn't even seem that dangerous, it actually looked pretty fun and just wanted to hang out.
We decided to skip Koh Samui because Rach had been there before and didn't much care for it. She made it sound pretty unappealing to us so we figured we'd head to the islands on the other coast of Thailand instead. We made the trip across the skinny part of the country which should have been real quick but our bus kept breaking down so it took a whole lot longer. Eventually we got there though and arrived in the coastal town of Khao Lak. The place we pretty cool and we really wanted to organize a dive trip to the Similan islands off the coast. When I priced it out though, it was waaaay out of the budget. Instead we organized a snorkeling trip out there. We headed out in the AM on a shitty long boat ride with lots of other tourists. The boat ride got me very seasick and I almost bucked. I also had to go to the bathroom en route so I headed into the shitter and tried to go but the waves were so crazy I ended up just getting tossed around in there while I was trying to poo. In addition to this, the boat had to slow down entirely while I was in there, for my safety I guess. I didn't know that though so I was just taking my time while the other 30+ tourists just stared at the door waiting for me to get out so we could speed up and get to the islands. Pretty embarrassing once I emerged and realized what was happening.
After about an hour or two of a horrible boat ride we got to the islands and hit some of the beaches. The sand there is pure white and the water is crystal clear. I was loving it, they were the nicest beaches I've seen since Zanzibar. The only thing that sucked is since we were on a tour we couldn't stay as long as I wanted. We got some snorkel gear and got to cruise around with giant green sea turtles that were swimming around our boat. Apparently you aren't supposed to feed them but our guides were feeding them bananas. We had our underwater camera which is a yellow/orange color so the turtles kept coming up to us and trying to bite it thinking it was a banana I guess. Freaky cause I was scared of losing some fingers but cool cause we got some good flicks. The turtle also tried to kill me one time by swimming on my back while I was under water and when I came up to get a breath I couldn't cause he was on my back blocking me out. I managed to get out from there though and got to the surface gasping for air.
Quick side note: our guides were Lady Gaga (he/she insisted on being called this) and Lucy, two Thai lady boys. It was weird though cause their faces looked like men, but they had boobs, talked like girls and wore makeup...but you could still blatantly tell they were men. Made it very confusing cause I wasn't sure if they thought they were fooling us or if they knew that we knew they weren't real females. Anyways, that was weird.
The following day our bus ride into the country came back to bite us in the ass. Our 15 days were up and we had to leave the country. This resulted in one of the "funnest" days of our trip. We had to catch a bus super early in the morning and take it all the way up to the Myanmar (Burma) border to exit and re-enter the country. The ride wasn't so good especially cause we had some guy on there who was freaking out the whole way complaining about the ride and that he didn't have enough leg room. Brit had to sit beside him for a bit and when she first got on and gestured to the seat he muttered "you've got to be fucking kidding me!" He also started bashing the seat in front of him when the lady reclined it slightly. Needless to say he was a very pleasant guy. We got to the border in a fishy smelling town where we had to wait in a long line to get stamped out of the country, catch a boat across a river to Myanmar, wait in another long lineup to get stamped in and out of that country, catch the boat back and wait in yet another long line to get stamped back into Thailand. After all that we had to catch the bus back past Khao Lak and into Phuket. Once in Phuket (late at night by this point) we checked into one of the diviest hotels I've ever seen. I'm still surprised I wasn't just chewed into dust by bed bugs as soon as I feel asleep in that bed.
In the morning we caught the boat to Koh Phi Phi.
So that's where I am gonna stop this entry since I am sure all of you reading this are like "Man this guy never shuts the fuck up! Get on with it already!" I am also getting pretty tired of writing at this moment so I'll have to rock out the rest of the Thai adventures in the next go. I'm sorry if anyone read this expecting more laughs than they got, I guess I didn't play with enough street animals or eat enough weird food this time to give me crazy diarrhea. I'll try harder next go round so you cruel people out there can read and laugh at my sad bowels.
I realize my blog entries always run on and on so to make it easier to read for ya'll...I PROMISE and SWEAR ON MY LIFE that the next update will be shorter so everyone can make it through without starting to hate me near the end for writing to much. Thanks for staying interested in my life and my pretentious blog updates...at least in my mind I can believe that some other people are interested in what I'm doing.
Love and miss all you family and friends back at home. Looking forward to seeing you sometime soon! I hope you will all enjoy the presents I've got for you. Ramsay or Con did you get my post card from Costa Rica?
Live Wrong!
- Dan
PS. I break promises all the time and have sworn on my life so many times now that I should already be dead.
Few people partyin for Songkran
The Khao San not during Thai new year
Some temple
Wet dinner before some guy sprayed us and I got mad
Mouse guns
Zombie Mark
Arthur aka Thor, epic dude
One of those Thai lantern things. Brit wrote our names real small for some reason
Dive class!
Koh Phangan
New trunks
World's spookiest party
Three deep scooter ride, trying to drive and take the photo
Mark and I swimming off of Koh Phangan
Some fun time during our bus journey
Feeling good on the boat ride!
The ol' Simi's
Kal beach got a clean up
Turtwigs
Turtles trying to get at our camera and eat it
Turtle gettin on my case
Super awesome fun border run day!
This picture doesn't do it justice (it actually looks nice) but this room was grimey as heck
