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Asia 2008 - 01135 - Satun
Focused. Satun, Thailand [May 2008]. May 18 - May 19
Ko Tao --> Surat Thanni --> ?? --> Pak Bara --> Langu --> Satun
The first step in moving on to Malaysia was getting back to the main land. We bought a joint ticket which would take us south to Pak Bara. From there we would have to get a ferry across the border to Malaysia. Our boat was leaving at 8pm, and would reach Surat Thanni around 4 am. Funny, because when we started island hopping with Ko Samui each trip to the next isle wouldn't take more than 1,5h and now, the non-stop journey back to Surat Thanni was to last 8 hours. The guy who organized the whole excursion said the boat was a sleeper and for a moment I envisaged private cabins with comfortable beds and private bathrooms. How silly of me. The boat had two levels: I don't know what was on the lower one, must've been crew compartments and the deck, I never went there, except once to the toilet. The floor on the upper floor was tightly covered with mattress save for a narrow aisle on the centre going from one end to the other.
Asia 2008 - 01130 - Satun
Little warriors. Satun, Thailand [May 2008]. Each mattress had a number assigned and a pillow lying on it. Luckily, less than half the seats were taken, so the trip was quite comfortable, that is after getting used to the boat rocking on waves. I managed to get some sleep although for the first hour I fell like I had a few too many.
After arrival, a mini bus gave us and few other travelers a lift to the local travel agency. We were to wait for another mini bus. We quickly set off to get some breakfast at a 7/11. It was very early in the morning but the streets were already filled with people, either opening their business very early or closing them up very late. I finally got to see a monk collecting alms. Every morning they leave with an empty bowl and present people with an opportunity to feed them. The monk accepts whatever is put into the bowl, but he never thanks. It's him that doing you a favor not otherwise. By giving you a chance to make a good merit and collect good karma, so you're the one owing him. So you prepare the food, feed the monk and are
Asia 2008 - 01136 - Satun
Satun, Thailand [May 2008]. grateful he ate it. That simple. I read how it works but never had seen any of that before because the monks get up long before us.
A minibus finally picked us up, but it only took us to another stop where we had to wait some more for another bus. We went through it before already, that's how Thai transportation service works. You wait, they pick you up then drop you off after having gone few kilometers, you wait some more, different bus picks you up and if you're lucky, it takes you to your destination without another bus swapping. We got dropped off after few hours at a big bus station (had no idea where it was), where we had to pass some time waiting for the bus to Pak Bara. Luckily this time it didn't take long.
We knew we wouldn’t make it in time for the last ferry so we found accommodation first and then went to the pier. Pak Bara must've been the smallest Thai city we visited. If it wasn't for the ferries the town wouldn't probably have a reason to exist.
At the pier: bad news, ferries to Puala Langkawi
Asia 2008 - 01144 - Satun
Last preparations. Satun, Thailand [May 2008]. don't leave from here but from Satun, some 40km south. (sigh!) When is the last leaving? 4pm, you won't make it today (sigh!) The accommodation lady was cool enough to give us the money back. It must've been for the best, since we didn't feel like staying there anyway. A very basic, free standing concrete room, with very basic en-suite bathroom. Opening the door was like opening a long dead pharaoh's tomb, clearly it hadn’t been used for a while, and the insects really didn’t' appreciate the light. So, it seems that I evicted those two roaches from the bathroom for no reason, but then again, I'm sure the trees in the front will appreciate the fertilizer.
When we reached Satun, we were desperate to find a place to sleep and get some rest. A Chinese hotel near the city's mosque was a good choice (not like there was much too choose from anyways): cheap, clean and spacious rooms, with air-con. Great. The large hallways reminded me of my high school and I expected the ring announcing the end of break to go off any second. We dozed off.
We were waked up some time later by screams
Asia 2008 - 01145 - Satun
Concentrating before the fight. Satun, Thailand [May 2008]. and cheers. From the window we could see a part of a boxing ring, surrounded by excited crowd. Muai Thai! Thailand's national sport - Thai boxing. I wanted to see it live, back in Bangkok, where, on two national stadiums, one can watch the sport at its best, but the tickets then seemed to expensive to bother.
The fights had been taking place for some time when we arrived. Oddly, the first bout we got to watch was between two teenagers. Female teenagers. They were as ferocious as men though, kicking and punching the living crap out of each other. The last of the 5 3-minute rounds ended, the referee collected the judges' verdicts, and the blue short was the winner. The girls were gone but instead of grown up men, two kids showed up. 12-13 years old. Again, fighting like men. They left, and onto the ring entered...what 8, 9 year olds? The gloves were as big as their heads. What next, they're going to pit two infants against each other?
There's more to Muay Thai than a mindless beating. There's a strong ritualistic and spiritual aspect. The most characteristic ritual takes place just before the fight,
Asia 2008 - 01148 - Satun
Red trunks is about to go down big time. Satun, Thailand [May 2008]. when the competitors perform a slow dance, which serves as paying respect to the fighter's teachers, parents etc., and on a practical level, as a warm up (later on, one guy, went on with this for few minutes but it didn't help him avoid a punishing straight left right into his face, knocking him unconscious in the first round)
Unfortunately, English subtitles were non available on this feature, and we didn't understand anything of what the commentator was saying. Luckily, someone pointed out to him that there are foreigners with them tonight. He greeted us (in English), welcomed to Thailand and remembered to introduce the fighters to us after having done so in Thai. How thoughtful of him. If adults were curious by the white faces, they tried not to show it but the kids had no such problems. We felt them staring at us all the time, and some found us more interesting than the bouts. Yes, there were kids present. Whole families were present. I guess they are so used to the sport they don't even notice the violance anymore.
Things got really interesting later on. Another bout, another two young Thai men trying to KO each other. However, at some point, things were thrown at the ring; a plastic bottle now and then, a rock almost hitting the judge. One of the fighters was getting his butt kicked, and some people from the crowd didn’t' like it. The referee had enough and finished the fight, hailing the obvious winner. The angry crowd just could like that. A plastic chair hit the mat, booing was natural. They got into heated argument with the judge. The guy who threw the chair was really funny, taking the matter really deep into his heart, crying the complaints out loud. We, along with the neutral part of spectators, found it all very amusing but I didn't look too happy in fear of them taking it all out on us ("The foreigners jinxed the fight, let's get them") 😊 The fights finally resumed after some time, but we had enough for the night. We retreated back to the hotel and went to bed.
The next morning we had to take another lift to the pier, 10km away. Brief waiting, flashing the customs with the passports, embarking the ferry - exit Thailand, enter Malaysia.
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