All-aboard the refugee-style ferry for Ko Si Chang!

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I made it over to Ko Si Chang (a little island off of Sri Racha) all in one piece yesterday, though I had my doubts at first. The ferryboat seemed to be packed just about to capacity. I asked to sit on the deck with a ragtag group that looked like refugees, rather than in the available seats on the bottom level. You know how passenger ferryboats in developing countries are always sinking and all. I’m a pretty good swimmer, but I might not get a chance at it if I’m trapped below decks, so I wanted to give myself a fair shot. It’s the same reason I prefer an aisle seat when flying—at least if we go down I have less distance to cover to the emergency exit. Morbid or safety-conscious? . . . you be the judge.

Ko Si Chang is a delightful little island, hardly developed at all, and perfect for a day trip out of Chonburi. I got a free tourist map from a Chinese man on the ferry and read about the best beach on the island. So as soon as I hopped off the boat, there were moto-taxis galore and I hopped on the first one, headed toward that beach. Kyle told me that she and her roommate from the Ban Phe days (who is now teaching in Hat Yai, far to the south, near Malaysia) were also considering going to Ko Si Chang, and sure enough, I found them laying out on the beach. I arranged with the moto-taxi man to pick me up at 5:30, in time to catch the last ferry at 6 PM. I didn’t even pay him anything for the ride to the beach; he told me to pay him the whole price (about $3) when he dropped me off at the ferry at the end of the day. We spent the day in the sun, reading, napping, and occasionally cooling off in the ocean. I found a lot of beach glass (glass smoothed by the pounding of the waves), especially brown. It seems like there is some kind of craft project that I could do with it. I’m sure I will be back to Ko Si Chang another day, and I will keep hunting for more sea glass, especially the elusive white glass.

I was really pleased with my trip. It’s quite accessible for a day trip, but still feels like a tropical island getaway. I guess that’s because it IS a tropical island, but not so much a getaway. I don’t think too many people stay overnight there because there isn’t much going on or too many accommodations.

It was also really easy to get there, but I always need to remember to hold my self-congratulations on ease of transport until I am safely back inside my apartment. When we got back to Sri Racha, I went to get some spices at Tops, a Tesco-like semi-western grocery store, and then Kyle, Alyssa, and I went for Japanese food. It was really nice to have a change of cuisine! By the time we got out of dinner, though, it was close to 10 PM, which meant the buses weren’t running to Chonburi anymore. Though I ran through a couple scenarios in my mind (staying in Sri Racha with Kyle, making it to Bang Saen and then having to find a place to stay there), I actually made it back to Chonburi via 2 different songthaews and a moto-taxi. As I collapsed, exhausted, on my bed, I allowed a brief self-congratulatory smile before I closed my eyes to rest for the upcoming school week.

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Comments

[Kay]

Jewelry
Laurie: Grandkids had someone make necklace and earrings from sea glass. The craftsperson used wire and twisted it around to hold seaglass.