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bucket anyone...
they don't need a full moon to party here... just a day that ends in y... greetings...
so the first of may was a half moon party on kho pha-ngan so i thought i should take off before it started... i caught a night ferry to the mainlandand then an early bus bound for phuket... phuket is an island province, the only one in thailand... it is on the west coast on the andaman sea... it seems to be one of the more expensive place in thailand, focused on the higher end tourist... i came because i heard that i could camp on the beach in the national park without a permit...
so i get off the bus and catch a motorbike taxi for the 5km ride to the beach... unfortunately, partially due to the language barrier, we get to the beach but drive around for half an hour asking people where the campground is but noone seems to know... i feel that this has as much to do with the fact that these are all business's we're asking at and it is not in their best interest to know as it does to do with the fact that they just don't know...
finally i just pay the driver and start walking up the
my cave in phuket...
couldn't have found a safer, or cheaper place to camp... beach... i walked about 2km of beach before i found what appears to be the public campground... now it was saturday and the beach was packed with locals enjoying the weekend... it did not feel entirely safe to camp there, or to be able to just leave my things, so i continued to look around for the campground that was in my guidebook... no luck, but i did see a tent pitched in the national park patrol police yard, so i asked... well, please camp here, in the police yard... safe, free, use the bathroom inside their office... and i am in... so i set up my tent and get settled...
had a quiet couple of days then decided to see phuket island... so i rented a scooter, again ;-)... i put 300km on the bike in one day, saw most of the beaches and the big buddha of phuket... it is so nice to ride and create your own breeze in this heat and humidity... i actually wore a softshell all day even though it was close to 40 degrees... returned to hat nai yang and my cave safe and sound, no new roadrash...
i decided to
big buddha of phuket...
not the largest i have seen but very impressive... sit a vipassana course in the north for my bday so heading back to bangkok was in the cards... i decided on a day but left the rest to chance... i awaike the morning of my departure to a dry tent and gear for the first time since arriving in phuket... had just enough time to pack my things and hike out to the road before the skies opened up and the earth drank... i had about 5km to travel to where i knew i catch the bus i needed... within 2 minutes a motorcycle with sidecar stopped to offer a ride... dropped me at the bus stop and within three minutes the bus showed up, would have been hours until the next bus but i had no kdea of any of the timings when i started out...
on the way i was considering taking the train the rest of the way to bangkok and then sure enough, the bus stops right at the train station, saved me from going to the bus station and then making my way back... i booked a ticket for the night train at a cost of about $7cdn for a 12hr trip... when
the train arrived i realized why... i was in a third class seat... so facing bench seats that fit 2 people each with very little padding... i was facing backwards, no problem... i wish you could have seen this, a true experience of the common thai... there were people sleeping in every possible spot and every possible position... under the seats, in the luggage racks, sitting, standing, and almost all of them were on the train longer than i was... the best part, all smiles big hearts...
as we are pulling into bangkok i decide to look at my guidebook to see how i will get from the train station to my guesthouse and sure enough, about 2 minutes before we reach it i see that there is a station about a kilometer from where i am going instead of about 5km... when i arrive back at my guesthouse, almost before i have time to say 'sawadee khrap', they are handing me the key to my room, same one i was in before... good to be back, until i leave again for the next part of the journey...
may you all be happy and healthy...
peace and
tilak... a nepalese brother...
i am wearing the sabong he gifted me since i only had one with me... what a kind gesture... love...
a brother being...
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