Khao San Road and Beyond

---

With great sadness our time in Asia is fast drawing to a close and that nagging feeling known to most as reality is almost upon us, and with it, a long forgotten pastime known as work. Since we last spoke Carissa and I descended on Thailand and made our way to Khao San Road, the backpackers mecca in Bangkok.
We sampled some of the best street food in Asia (I still get a little teary when I think about just how good Pad Thai can be) before bussing our way down to Koh Chang. Koh Chang is Thailand's second biggest Island and is a days travel from Bangkok. Unfortunately being in such close proximity to Bangkok also means that every tourist imaginable has also made their way to this major tourist haunt. Disillusioned with the pasty flashpackers littering the beach and 'angry' euro resort guests, we hired a scooter and went in search of our own idyllic paridise. We were after cheap beachside bungalows, laid back happy hour and uncrowded sandy beaches, which we figured had to be hidden out there somwewhere being such a large island.
Unfortunately it didn't exist...
However what we did find was all of the above minus the sandy beach. We settled for a rocky cove with amazing sea side views, which worked in our favour and kept most of the punters away. We knocked it back a gear at this stage and read books in our hammocks, swam, and drank the occasional fruit shake. It was terribly hard and I can't bear to dredge up those painful memories anymore.
We emerged four days later, realising we better start heading back to Bangkok for our return flight. We spent one night in Pattaya, a party town on the coast which attracts all types from families to sex tourists the world over. Go go bars and strip clubs were jammed into every available space if it wasn't already occupied by shop fronts peddling the usual assortment of tacky tourist trinkets.
Needless to say the 'dirty old man' convention must have been on that weekend because the place was crawling with them, however the locals assured me that the 'farang' (Thai for 'annoying' westerner) have been coming here for the last 30 years and are a permanent fixture in the town.
Realising our final night was upon us we raced back to Bangkok and made our way back to Khao San road where we managed some serious shopping, do $3 t-shirts count? I also tried my luck on a $5 Thai hair cut, the results speak for themselves. Finally I was reunited with No.14 the Pad Thai with crushed chilli and peanuts before boarding a plane and flying back to reality.

Asia has been alot of fun.

We will post again after we pop up somewhere else around Oz.

Hoo Roo

---

Comments

[Renee]

I like
Thai version of the mullet? Same same... but different. When are you kids coming to Brisneyland? I want to steal some of your tan. And hook you up with an ENT surgeon...