Forget Thailand's islands and beaches... my mind is in football mode right now. The Giants cut Plaxico, and I, along with the rest of the Giants players, do not approve. If in the event that Plax reached some sort of agreement that would have enabled him to play next season, the G-Men need him! They didn't do a freakin' thing without him that last month of the season, and they need to find a guy to replace him. It takes way too long to cultivate a draft pick into a playmaking, number 1 guy right away these days in the NFL. The Giants need to go after a guy like Anquan Boldin or Braylon Edwards, two guys that want out of their respective cities. Personally, I'd go for Edwards over Boldin because he's 6'3 vs. Boldin's 6'1, and I feel Boldin's success is partly because Fitzgerald is on the other side. Edwards has problems catching the ball, but he's on a shit team in a shit city wearing shit as a jersey color. Put him on a winning team, and he'll go right back to that 'leaping fade in the corner of the endzone' kind of guy he was back in Michigan.
Anyways, I just got off an island that barely had electricity for a few hours a night, which was fun but a little annoying. I slept in a tent in the woods and got my sandals eaten by wild dogs that live in the rubber tree forest. My main reason or visiting Ko Muk was for their Emerald Cave. It's hard to explain, so follow as best as you can...
I had to kayak around the island to this big rock face with a little crevice in it. It was a cave opening, just big enough for me and my kayak to fit in. I paddled through a small river made by the cave, and the further I went the darker it got. Soon, I had no light, and simply kept padling, stabbing my paddle out in front to make sure I wasn't hitting anything. After about two minutes, some light shed into the cave river, and eventually led me to an entrapped beach, surrounded by limestone mountains. I know it's hard to envision, so I'll use this analogy. Imagine you're in the locker room of a football stadium... this is the cave. And you exit the locker room and walk down the tunnel towards the entrance to the field... this is the cave river. And you exit the tunnel and enter the field, surrounded by big tall bleachers and stands. On the far end of the field, instead of an endzone, picture a beach, with the field being the water. Surrounding you is the bleachers and seats, and those were the limestone mountains completely surrounding me. The only way out was back through the cave. It was a pretty unique sight.
I really am nervous for my G-Boys right now, this is a Super Bowl calibur team, and we need to fill this void right away. I can only trust it's being taken care of.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Visas and the Hated American
I wanted to go to Laos really badly. Prior to coming here, I knew nothing of it, nor has many other Americans for that matter. Laos? Do you pronounce the 's' or is it silent? It seemed like nothing worth looking at in the South-east Asian area. But I learned of how great it was very quickly. It is described as a country very hip in culture and deep rooted, and better yet, much less developed than Thailand (if you can imagine). Anyways, it was raved about enough for me to want to go. Typically, travellers go into the north of Thailand and visit the northern hotspots, then go from Chiang Mai into Laos, spend some time up there, dip south-west into Cambodia for a bit, then circle back around into the lower islands and beaches of Thailand.
Sounds like a great plan, right? Well I am an American, and I am the one held responsible for all the world's problems, as if me and George W. shared a bunk bed in the White House. Flashing my passport earns me nothing but snarles. We make our visa situation very difficult for foreigners, so they proudly return the favor. Here's the deal on the visa situation...
Upon arrival via plane you get a free 30 day, single entry visa. You would get the same 30 day, single entry stamp if you arrived by boat, train, or bus as well. But two weeks before I got to Thailand the rule changed, and if you arrived by land or sea you would only get a 15 day visa. Previously, people would travel on their 30 day visa, and if they wished to stay longer, would do what is called a 'visa run' the day before expiration. A visa run is a completely legal and acknowledged method of renewing visas, in which one goes to an official border crossing, (a handful are scattered throughout the country) cross into Burma, Cambodia, or Malaysia (not Laos because you must cross via river and the process takes too long), get an official stamp that you've left Thailand, then turn right around and re-enter Thailand, earning a fresh 30 day visa.
But Thailand did away with the over-land 30 day visa and now only grants 15 day stamps, and because there's only a handful of border crossings around a large country, it makes it difficult to plan your every move around being close to an official border every two weeks. Thailand's motivation for this new policy was to encourage more revenue via air traffic, but this was foolish becuase they alienated the demographic that brings in the largest influx of revenue: the backpacker. How does this all relate to me and being a hated American?
Citizens of other countries that apply to Thailand for a 60 day, single entry visa, get them for free. I am an American, so I pay $35 for mine. Not a big deal. Keep in mind, with these visas I am not permitted to enter and leave and enter and leave. I am only allowed one entry. So if I went up north, like I did, for the 34 days that I did, then went into Laos... upon my return to Thailand I would have ended up eating the rest of the days that I paid for and have been left with 15 days. Furthermore, entering the southern parts of Thailand, there are only two sanctioned border crossings to do border runs, and 15 days from one to the other is way too slim a margin. And there is way too large a fine if you are late on your visa. If they kept their 30 day gig this wouldn't be an issue, beacause it leaves plenty of time to do what you want to do, then take your two, maybe three days if you're in dead center of the country to get to a border. I knew I wanted to see alot of Thailand, and I wasn't interested in jumping the border every two weeks, it's a bigger hassle than it seems. I'll dot on the map the official border crossings so that you, too, can see. So I went to the immigration office and extended my visa for a third month, paid $55, and saved a bunch of headaches and sweaty bus rides, which would have added up to the same amount anyway.
So, yeah, after all that mumbo jumbo, that is why I wasn't able to go to Laos. I guess I can after I'm done with the south, but I'm 1,200 miles away and I would like to get to Australia by the end of April. But it's no sweat, it'll still be there.
Sounds like a great plan, right? Well I am an American, and I am the one held responsible for all the world's problems, as if me and George W. shared a bunk bed in the White House. Flashing my passport earns me nothing but snarles. We make our visa situation very difficult for foreigners, so they proudly return the favor. Here's the deal on the visa situation...
Upon arrival via plane you get a free 30 day, single entry visa. You would get the same 30 day, single entry stamp if you arrived by boat, train, or bus as well. But two weeks before I got to Thailand the rule changed, and if you arrived by land or sea you would only get a 15 day visa. Previously, people would travel on their 30 day visa, and if they wished to stay longer, would do what is called a 'visa run' the day before expiration. A visa run is a completely legal and acknowledged method of renewing visas, in which one goes to an official border crossing, (a handful are scattered throughout the country) cross into Burma, Cambodia, or Malaysia (not Laos because you must cross via river and the process takes too long), get an official stamp that you've left Thailand, then turn right around and re-enter Thailand, earning a fresh 30 day visa.
But Thailand did away with the over-land 30 day visa and now only grants 15 day stamps, and because there's only a handful of border crossings around a large country, it makes it difficult to plan your every move around being close to an official border every two weeks. Thailand's motivation for this new policy was to encourage more revenue via air traffic, but this was foolish becuase they alienated the demographic that brings in the largest influx of revenue: the backpacker. How does this all relate to me and being a hated American?
Citizens of other countries that apply to Thailand for a 60 day, single entry visa, get them for free. I am an American, so I pay $35 for mine. Not a big deal. Keep in mind, with these visas I am not permitted to enter and leave and enter and leave. I am only allowed one entry. So if I went up north, like I did, for the 34 days that I did, then went into Laos... upon my return to Thailand I would have ended up eating the rest of the days that I paid for and have been left with 15 days. Furthermore, entering the southern parts of Thailand, there are only two sanctioned border crossings to do border runs, and 15 days from one to the other is way too slim a margin. And there is way too large a fine if you are late on your visa. If they kept their 30 day gig this wouldn't be an issue, beacause it leaves plenty of time to do what you want to do, then take your two, maybe three days if you're in dead center of the country to get to a border. I knew I wanted to see alot of Thailand, and I wasn't interested in jumping the border every two weeks, it's a bigger hassle than it seems. I'll dot on the map the official border crossings so that you, too, can see. So I went to the immigration office and extended my visa for a third month, paid $55, and saved a bunch of headaches and sweaty bus rides, which would have added up to the same amount anyway.
So, yeah, after all that mumbo jumbo, that is why I wasn't able to go to Laos. I guess I can after I'm done with the south, but I'm 1,200 miles away and I would like to get to Australia by the end of April. But it's no sweat, it'll still be there.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Sick.
It was a dark and stormy night... in my head, that is. I turned the lights off promptly at 8 p.m. and went right into bed for what began as hours of agonizing, sleepless pain. For once my stomach wasn't the issue, but every muscle in my body ached, and when I laid in a position for more than a few seconds, it just hurt more. My head felt like it was going to explode, and when the fan was on I got too cold, and after I'd get up to turn it off, I got too hot. I went to pee what seemed like every thirty minutes, and often times I got out of bed feeling as if I were drunk, stumbling down the hall ways, blurry-eyed and bumping into the walls, my equilibrium upside down. I lay back down in bed and the room would spin, but quickly turned into me just spinning around because it would be the only way to alleviate what felt like the devil taking a sledge hammer to my back and clamping a vice to my head. Listen, I've dealt with pain before. I can live with a little tummy ache and a head ache. But this was another level, man. For twelve hours, life was pretty miserable. But there was one positive amongst all of this... my pillows were pretty fluffy, the fluffiest pillows I've had in two-plus months.
I must have taken a cat nap, because I looked at my phone at 4:26 a.m., saw that I had a missed call, and magically, all the pain was gone. I walked down the street that morning pain free, whereas the night before I was walking down the street wishing a car would just smash into me.
I took the entire day to rest up some more, threw back some meds, started reading my new Paulo Coehlo book, found an English written newspaper (as rare as a Bar Mitzvah in South Dakota), and tried to comfort myself as much as possible. Later on, I sat down for some food and rewarded my stomach for being a good teammate and not jumping in on the ass kicking that took place on myself last night, and drank an ice cold Pepsi, something I rarely do. But hey, my belly earned it.
Although no amount of money would make me want to repeat the same hours of pain I went through last night, in retrospect, it was a good, hardening experience for me. I didn't have anyone to rub my back and tell me it was going to be all better in the morning. I didn't have a roommate to bring me some water and a cold towel. I didn't have a tv or a funny movie to distract me from the sickness. I didn't even have the simple opportunity to eat a comforting meal. I had myself, a stuffy $4 room, a rickety fan, a hard bed with no blankets (cheap guest houses don't provide linens), and a prayer that it would all end soon. I had no choice but to suck it up and muscle through the worst feelings in the worst conditions, knowing that it would go away eventually.
While a storms damages the surface, it also waters the soil below.
I must have taken a cat nap, because I looked at my phone at 4:26 a.m., saw that I had a missed call, and magically, all the pain was gone. I walked down the street that morning pain free, whereas the night before I was walking down the street wishing a car would just smash into me.
I took the entire day to rest up some more, threw back some meds, started reading my new Paulo Coehlo book, found an English written newspaper (as rare as a Bar Mitzvah in South Dakota), and tried to comfort myself as much as possible. Later on, I sat down for some food and rewarded my stomach for being a good teammate and not jumping in on the ass kicking that took place on myself last night, and drank an ice cold Pepsi, something I rarely do. But hey, my belly earned it.
Although no amount of money would make me want to repeat the same hours of pain I went through last night, in retrospect, it was a good, hardening experience for me. I didn't have anyone to rub my back and tell me it was going to be all better in the morning. I didn't have a roommate to bring me some water and a cold towel. I didn't have a tv or a funny movie to distract me from the sickness. I didn't even have the simple opportunity to eat a comforting meal. I had myself, a stuffy $4 room, a rickety fan, a hard bed with no blankets (cheap guest houses don't provide linens), and a prayer that it would all end soon. I had no choice but to suck it up and muscle through the worst feelings in the worst conditions, knowing that it would go away eventually.
While a storms damages the surface, it also waters the soil below.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Ko Lipe & Ko Head-Ache
First off, happy 12th birthday Spencer. Ladies and Gents hello. Sorry I have been out of the loop for a while, I was in an island that was very far away from the mainland and internet was a commodity. Anyways, my stay on Ko Lipe was short. A small island, no more than a couple miles long and a half mile wide, Ko Lipe is a beutiful tiny gem on the Andaman coast (west side of Thailand) all the way down, as close to Malaysia as you can get while still being in Thailand. It WAS a beautiful island, but all of the beaches have been littered with boats and it's impossible to swim for ten minutes without dodging a long tail boat. The sand was a powdery white, the water was an emerald green, but the boats absolutely killed it all. I walked to some quieter, deserted beaches, but they were all full of trash as my guess was it's the garbage dump. It was a huge dissapoinment, and I was only there for a day and a half. It was a bummer because it took me so long to get there. I had to take a 90 minute ferry to the pier from Ko Samui on the other coast, an hour bus ride sitting on the floor to the bus terminal in Surat Thani, a two and a half hour bus ride to Trang, and another 90 minute bus ride to the pier at Pak Bara, near Satun. I spent the night at the pier then took a three and a half hour ferry to Ko Lipe. The map is updated so feel free to update yourself with all my trials and tribulations. But it's alright, you can't win them all.
I also feel like I'm coming down with something. My head is pounding, my lymph nodes are all swollen, my back aches, and my head feels like it weighs 20 pounds. I am currenly back in Trang, working my way up the Andaman coast, and I am headed to this tiny little island called Ko Muk, only 30 minutes on a boat (thank God). I am debating staying the night in the city of Trang and resting, as it's an hour bus to get to the pier. I think I'm going to stay in the city and rest, I legit feel like I'm going to fall over, and my thirty pound bag isn't helping. Alright, I love you all, don't worry, I'll be fine, this happens to every traveller.
I also feel like I'm coming down with something. My head is pounding, my lymph nodes are all swollen, my back aches, and my head feels like it weighs 20 pounds. I am currenly back in Trang, working my way up the Andaman coast, and I am headed to this tiny little island called Ko Muk, only 30 minutes on a boat (thank God). I am debating staying the night in the city of Trang and resting, as it's an hour bus to get to the pier. I think I'm going to stay in the city and rest, I legit feel like I'm going to fall over, and my thirty pound bag isn't helping. Alright, I love you all, don't worry, I'll be fine, this happens to every traveller.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
The Beach
I just finished reading the book, "The Beach", which was the original story set for the movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio. If you haven't seen it, you must! It's a great story about a traveller finding this picture perfect beach unknown to everyone except a select few that have set up camp and made their lives there. Personally, I liked the movie alot better because you're reading about this beach for two hundred pages and its supposed to be as beautiful as the mind can imagine, but you can't see the damn thing. Also, the ending in the book is way different than the movie's ending, as it follows more of a "Lord of the Flies" pattern. But it was still a good read, and it was really cool to be able to relate and know all of the places they travelled through on their way to get to the beach. In both the book and movie, they took off from Ko Samui for a protected Marine Park made up of a bunch of uninhabited, protected islands. I really wanted to do the same, but it's much easier to accomplish in the land of make believe.
Kevin left for Cambodia yesterday, so the Ko Phangan crew is officially dismantled. But it's alright, as travelling friends come and go.
I can't believe I'm at my 8 week mark already. The time has not gone by fast at all, but looking back on it it seems like I just landed in Bangkok and it was snowing when I left NY in January. I've really enjoyed keeping this blog. At first, I thought it was just a great way to avoid repeating the same stories and activities to everyone and anyone who wanted to know. It was a good way to keep loved ones in the loop. It still is, but now it's taken somewhat of a different turn, as it's enabled me to keep developing my craft as a writer. It's really all I got, as I don't have a stage to tell jokes and I don't have any script writing programs. So keep reading, and I'll keep writing.
You learn to appreciate cover bands while you're over here, mainly because of this...
Kevin left for Cambodia yesterday, so the Ko Phangan crew is officially dismantled. But it's alright, as travelling friends come and go.
I can't believe I'm at my 8 week mark already. The time has not gone by fast at all, but looking back on it it seems like I just landed in Bangkok and it was snowing when I left NY in January. I've really enjoyed keeping this blog. At first, I thought it was just a great way to avoid repeating the same stories and activities to everyone and anyone who wanted to know. It was a good way to keep loved ones in the loop. It still is, but now it's taken somewhat of a different turn, as it's enabled me to keep developing my craft as a writer. It's really all I got, as I don't have a stage to tell jokes and I don't have any script writing programs. So keep reading, and I'll keep writing.
You learn to appreciate cover bands while you're over here, mainly because of this...
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
La Pura Vida
I was riding in the back of a pick up truck, my shirt was off, the sun was gleaming off my back. Matt rented a truck for the week, which made moving around alot easier on this not so small island. We just got done visiting a waterfall and were on our way to check out a new beach, when this thought popped into my head:
This is the life that I get to live right now: I go to an island and find the best beach I possibly can. I stay until I'm bored, and when I've had my fill I pack my bags, bring along my new friends, and find a new paradiso. Then I get to repeat the process all over again. The fact that I sleep on the beach for practically pennies sure helps the situation. Could I have drawn this up any better for myself?
Now, beach bumming isn't for everyone, I understand that. But you can call me a homeless crackhead if you please, because I am more than happy being a bum on a beach. The temples were great up north, I've had more than a solid dose of culture. But after four or five temples they begin to look the same. But throw me through a plethora of beaches and I can find something distinct, unique, and uncommon about every single one of them. Not perfect for everyone, just perfect for me.
I saw my first Muay Thai fight last night. These dudes are serious athletes, let me tell you. I don't understand fully all the guidelines and techniques, but I know that it's mostly a kick-driven fight because kicks earn more points than a punch. I got to hang out with a Brazilian fighter afterwards because his girlfriend is one of the people we've been hanging with all week, and I really developed an admiration for the lifestyle. A few weeks ago, I extended my visa for another month so that I can set aside two to three weeks to train at a Muay Thai camp after I'm done touring the south. I really hope I have enough time because it's something I've been itching to do ever since I was up in Pai hanging with a group of fighters.
This is the life that I get to live right now: I go to an island and find the best beach I possibly can. I stay until I'm bored, and when I've had my fill I pack my bags, bring along my new friends, and find a new paradiso. Then I get to repeat the process all over again. The fact that I sleep on the beach for practically pennies sure helps the situation. Could I have drawn this up any better for myself?
Now, beach bumming isn't for everyone, I understand that. But you can call me a homeless crackhead if you please, because I am more than happy being a bum on a beach. The temples were great up north, I've had more than a solid dose of culture. But after four or five temples they begin to look the same. But throw me through a plethora of beaches and I can find something distinct, unique, and uncommon about every single one of them. Not perfect for everyone, just perfect for me.
I saw my first Muay Thai fight last night. These dudes are serious athletes, let me tell you. I don't understand fully all the guidelines and techniques, but I know that it's mostly a kick-driven fight because kicks earn more points than a punch. I got to hang out with a Brazilian fighter afterwards because his girlfriend is one of the people we've been hanging with all week, and I really developed an admiration for the lifestyle. A few weeks ago, I extended my visa for another month so that I can set aside two to three weeks to train at a Muay Thai camp after I'm done touring the south. I really hope I have enough time because it's something I've been itching to do ever since I was up in Pai hanging with a group of fighters.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Ko Samui
Gaylord Focker ruined the surprise honey moon for Pam's sister and her husband. Operation Ko Samui... remember? "Oh, Jack talk Thai, Jack talk Thai well." The scene from Meet the Parents was the first thing I thought of when I heard about Ko Samui. Picking up right where we left off, we hopped on a ferry for Ko Samui, one of Thailand's more ritzy and glitzy and beautiful islands. The Ko Phangan crew, as stated before, is just about dismantled. Only Kevin and I remain, but travelling with us are some newbies. During our SCUBA adventures we met a cool dude from the northern U.K. named Matt, with the hardest English accent I've ever heard. Also, I met a Brazilian when I was in the north near Chiang Mai and we kept making plans to meet up down south, so we finally did here in Ko Samui. So although I came to Thailand by myself, rarely have I been alone.
We got to Chaweng Beach yesterday. It is the most expensive beach in Samui, and pretty much the most in all of Thailand. But I have been able to get by in expensive spots before, as all you do is cruise town and find a little nook with a cheap guest house and a cranny for cheap eats. But this was not the case in Chaweng. Forget about budget or even midrange, this place was wall to wall upper class, and with all of the Americana to prove it. An Ed Hardy store in Thailand, are you shitting me?! Our wallets wouldn't have been able to survive more than one day, eventhough we would have loved to stay longer. The beach is miles long with sand as soft, white, and clean as baby powder, and the water is crystal clear. But it was honeymoon central, and that is not what we are after.
So we went to the next beach down to Lamai, the second nicest beach on the island, but far more backpacker friendly. We found a bungalow in a nice corner of the beach, and with a roomie to help split the costs, I'm paying $2 for a bungalow just steps from the water. $2!? For the sake of my germaphobic family members, I'm not going to go into the details of the conditions of this room. There's a bed, four walls, and a roof... sort of, let's leave it at that. I swing my door open, hop down three rickety steps, walk for ten seconds, and I'm in the water. $2!? There's a catch, no? An expensive key deposit, a ridiculously early check out time... there's got to be something, right? Julie, an Aussie and owner of White Sands is as down with the backpackers as one can be. She doesn't require a key deposit nor does she even have a check out time. It's a nice breath of fresh air compared to all of the money grubbing, stone cold Thai women bungalow operators that know you're a foreigner with a fat wallet and try to weasel away as much out of you as possible. The beach here is just as long, the water is just as clear. What makes Lamai second to Chaweng is the quality of the sand, but that's really it. For $2 a night on a freakin' beach, I'll take it.
Please enjoy another loveable, trashy moment from the Full Moon Party.
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