The next morning we accidentally overslept. We wanted to wake up at 7 a.m. to make the most of our day incase we weren’t staying. When we frantically awoke at 9 a.m. we were kicking ourselves. We hurried down to breakfast where we checked the weather on my iPod. The forecast had improved since last night, only a 30% chance of a couple scattered thundershowers. Once we saw that we agreed that we would definitely stay. I think we both knew we were staying when Dave brought it up the night before, but we pretended that it was a hard decision with many variables. After breakfast I called my coordinator to make sure I wasn’t going to get fired for missing two more days in such a short period of time. She couldn’t care less. She told me to have a good time, enjoy myself and get better (she could hear that I had caught a cold). Now it was time to buy the train tickets, but I remembered you have to do it with a credit card and I had left mine in Chonburi and so had Dave. After .7 seconds of panic I realized I could call my all time fixer of problems, Katie Schu Daenzer. It was only 10 p.m. in the U.S. so she was definitely awake. Thankfully I had just memorized her number a couple months before (different area codes make it a lot more difficult) or else we would have been S.O.L. I called her up and she was glad to front me $30 so we headed off to the Internet café and purchased two train tickets from Surat Thani to Bangkok.
After our tickets were printed we packed up and checked out of our hotel. It was nice on Railay East, but our hearts still lived on Tonsai. We scrambled over the sharp, hard, slippery rocks and waded through knee-high water in order to get to the backpacker beach. As we walked by climbers struggling to finish their routes and their kids playing in the sand right below them we turned to each other and smiled. We were staying. A few more days in paradise.
We could have shopped around for a cheap bungalow, but we had such a great experience at the Tonsai Bay Resort that we decided to go back. Admittedly it is probably the priciest option on Tonsai, but our motto is ‘go big or go home’ and we obviously weren’t going home. We rented a villa for two more nights and this time the lights even worked. We threw our stuff down and decided it was time to grub again, but first we needed to get our laundry done. A couple of the places were full so we trekked deep into the woods, past some simple bungalows and shacks to the Mountain View Resort. We handed off our smelly shirts and skipped back down to the beach in search of a smoothie and pad thai. After lunch we rented a two-seater kayak, which cost us about $15 dollars for the entire day. We were so excited to go on an adventure that we left completely unprepared. We didn’t realize this until we were out in the middle of the Andaman Sea with our eyes on a far away island.
We were ambitious to say the least. We saw an island with a beautiful white beach that looked pretty deserted so we decided to paddle there. As we paddled, and paddled and paddled for what seemed like forever, and was realistically a couple hours, the island was not getting any closer. We contemplated going back, but of course we couldn’t stop now. We had to keep going. We finally reached the one island that was in between Tonsai and the one we wanted to get to. When we realized that that island wasn’t really close to our destination island like we thought it was we were a little crushed. It was all an illusion. I tried to look up the islands on Google Maps to give you an idea of the distance, but unfortunately they’re so small that they aren’t even on the web. Anyway, I think this is about the point we realized we were getting absolutely fried by the sun. We had only put on one coat of SPF 15 and that was hours ago. Call us idiots, grumble to yourself, write me an angry letter about how irresponsible that was, I know. We know and we paid for it. From that point on we couldn’t think about anything else, but our burning shoulders, chests and thighs. We were in pain and I was thirsty. I closed my eyes and started silently counting each stroke of the paddle. For some reason that was keeping me going. Once I got to two hundred I counted backwards and once I got to zero I opened my eyes. We were still really far away. Imagine another half hour of agony and then we floated right up onto the white sandy beach that we were so determined to get to. It was really rewarding, but at the same time we couldn’t fully enjoy it because we were getting third degree sunburn. I kept kicking myself for making such a dumb mistake. Why did I not pack sunscreen? I still don’t have an answer for that. We pulled our boat up onto the beach and took a walk in search of some water. There was a small restaurant, but they were out of water. They did offer me beer or soda, but I politely declined. We stopped at a few long tail boat food stalls. They’re kind of like food trucks, but boats. The first two we came across were out of water, but luckily we found some at the third one. We also bought a couple fruit shakes. With our hydration in hand we took a long walk down the beach.
It was a bit more crowded than we had expected, but it was still quiet. We passed sunbathers who looked just as red as us and families building sand forts. We also admired some makeshift beach huts that people made out of pieces of driftwood and towels. I really wanted to sneak into the shade of one for a while, but I didn’t know how well that would go over. As we kept walking we passed couples napping, parents reading and kids searching for seashells. Dave and I stopped every few steps to pick up some ourselves. Once we came to the end of the beach we took a little dip to soothe our skin before heading back. When we got back to the main beach we took refuge in the shade. There we found all the long tail boat drivers playing a Thai game called Da – gror (Da is pronounced with a low tone and gror with a falling tone). It’s a game where any number of people stand in a circle kicking and heading a small woven rattan ball. It’s basically like juggling a soccer ball, but the ball is much smaller and made of natural fibers. During a match there are usually four people and the object of the game is to keep the ball from hitting the ground. Points are acquired through style, difficulty and kicking maneuver. These guys weren’t playing for points. There was at least a dozen of them and they were just having a good time and passing the hours before their long tail was chartered again. Dave and I watched them for a little bit and then I started to take photos and videos. One of the guys motioned Dave to play so he took off his bag and joined in. That’s one of the things I really admire about him. He hadn’t ever played this game, but he was willing to try in front of a group of strangers that were damn good at it. The first couple times it came to him he either missed it or sent it flying, but after the third time he was money. He was kicking it and heading it like the rest of them. I should have known. He has a knack for being good at everything. Sometimes it’s annoying. Annoying in the ‘I’m jealous and I want to be good at random things I try for the first time like juggling and guitar hero’ kind of way. As he was heading the ball and twisting his leg behind his back to launch it back up into the air, all the Thai men were ooowing and awing. It was really a great sight and luckily I have it all on video. While I was standing in the shade, another taxi man came up to me and gave me a decoration that he wove out of leaves and twigs. He just handed it to me and said, “For you,” and walked towards the circle and joined the game. I’m sure it’s something he makes all the time and he did it out of sheer boredom, but it meant a lot to me and it’s still hanging in my room.
After the Da- gror game we inquired about a taxi ride back. You didn’t think we were seriously going to paddle back did you? It was too far and we did enough skin damage for one day. We asked the taxi men how much for a kayak and two people and they all laughed hysterically. I’m sure they’ve seen it before or maybe they haven’t and they were laughing at how weak and unable we were. Either way, we laughed with them and decided one kayak is like the price of two people so we paid up and we were on our way.
It was a long ride back. We sped through the blue water for at least thirty minutes, which really opened our eyes to how far we had actually come. We were torn between laughing at ourselves and being proud of journey. Once we pulled up to shore we stashed the kayak under a tree and went to our villa, for what you ask? Sunscreen! We applied and applied again until we were white with SPF 15. We stashed it in our backpacks along with some water and believe it or not we got back in the kayak and paddled over to Railay East. We wanted to watch the sunset and cliff jump and that was the place to do it.
Cliff jumping was terrifyingly awesome. The only time it’s scary is that moment when you have to force yourself off the rock. Other than that it’s a fun ride down. We also have that on video. I somehow managed to record my reaction as I’m falling through the air; it is hilarious. Dave is working on compiling all of our footage so hang tight you’ll see it someday. After jumping a couple times we relaxed on our backs in the water. I still can’t get over the sight of those overhanging cliffs. I must go back there. The thing is I don’t want to go now or before I leave because when I picture myself there I imagine Dave by my side. I’m not even starting a cheese fest here, I’m just saying sometimes it’s about the people you’re with. Yes, the scenery and natural beauty was a-f*cking-mazing, but it was more amazing to enjoy it with someone who was just as taken back and appreciative of it all as I was. I can still picture the crazy, swirly colors of the limestone and I can hear the drips from the water runoff as they hit the sea, I can also feel something stinging me, which is why we decided to get out of the water and onto dry land. I have no idea what was biting me, but it was biting everyone else to. We took turns watching the skilled climbers behind us and the sun sinking in the sky before us. Eventually we walked back to the other side of the island before the sun completely set because we had to return the kayak. We sat on Tonsai and watched Earth’s star fall into the ocean which proved to be a work of art. Deep pinks and yellows set off by the silhouette of limestone crags. At the end of the day I was so happy and relieved we decided to stay. It felt like the first day that we were actually able to sit and relax. No rain, no traveling, just adventures and enjoyment.
