Water Fight!!!

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So I thought I'd escape to this peaceful island and avoid the chaos of Songkran, the water festival, but it's in full swing here!
From the docks to our hotel we rode in an open pick up and got completely soaked! The locals would be standing with buckets of water and water pistols and just drench you in water! At one point there was basically a fire hose shooting water at us! And on top of this they cover you in talcum powder which smells better than I do at the moment, but really!
Koh Chang is amazing. It's a lot bigger than I thought it would be and it's covered in lush jungle with crazy steep and windy roads. Sometimes I am sitting on the beach and look down a ways at the view and it's stunning. I will have to start taking pictures now that my camera isn't at constant risk of getting ruined with water!
I am staying at Nature beach resort and it's very fun! I just had my roomate Sonya leave me for Cambodia this morning, so I will have my deluxe bungalow all to myself for the next couple of days. When I say deluxe, I mean no cockroaches. God I hate those things! The people who work at the resort here are awesome and it's nice to get to know them and learn some thai (very little retained and mostly bad words!!). Every night there is a fire show, where they twirl the fire balls or sticks with fire at each end. Very cool. I'm sure I"ll see a lot more of that on the other islands in thailand!
Well with Songkran over I am going to relax for a couple of days on the beach. I am feeling a little rough from the last few debaucherous nights. I am in search of some swim goggles over here and have had NO luck! I really feel disgusting since all I do is sleep eat suntan and drink (not too much don't worry!)... and the ocean is very calm in the morning so it's perfect for swimming. I am going to kayak to these three small uninhabitated (I think!) islands tomorrow. Apparently they are quite beautiful so I'm looking forward to the exercise and the views.
I will try and leave for Cambodia soon.... !! It's so hard to leave this place! I have to remember that there is so much more amazing stuff to see. I am really excited to go to Cambodia though. Especially Angkor Wat.
As always, I hope all is well at home. Miss you all,
S.

P.S. Apparently, Koh Chang is going to turn into a very upscale resort area so I'm glad I got to see it while it's still pretty mellow. And I recommend the rest of you get over here soon!!

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