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February 10, 2005

Water, sand, and a terrific sunburn

Today started off with Shaunna and I doing more shopping and vendor-hopping. All over Thailand (as in America) there are tons of stores with every imaginable knick-knack. If you're in the market for designer brand knock-offs or poorly made decorative pieces, Asia is the place for you.

Of course, there are also all kinds of high-quality (but low-priced) silks, clothes, and pieces of art. There is a tailor on every street corner, and a plethora of artists flock to the tourist towns to sell their goods. If you want statues or carvings or wall-hangings or funky-looking skirts, you can find it in Thailand.

I'm a typical guy. To me shopping is about as enjoyable as a cold water enema. But I've found myself digging around through the piles of junk trying to get a good deal. By the time lunch rolled around, I was itching to hit the beach.

Ao Nang as proven to be a great launch pad for other excursions on the Andaman Coast. If you want to go swimming at Maya Beach (where The Beach was filmed, you can hire a long-tail boat to take you there for about $5 an hour. If you want to check out the islands where The Man With The Golden Gun was filmed, no problem. Ao Nang is located almost pefectly between these two landmarks... and it's so close to other beach destinations that we may not have to leave anytime soon.

Since the tsunami wiped out Koh Phi Phi and various areas north of here, we've decided to make Ao Nang our base for the next few days. In order to prepare for our sightseeing excursions, I did some price-checking on tour groups and boat fares. I read in the Lonely Planet that there is quite a bit of price-gouging and less-than-ethical practices that can occur when Westerners try to book tours. Knowing this, Shaunna and I ventured out to find the best deal.

When we arrived at our guest house the other day, the lady running the operation offered us some brochures for various snorkelling and sight-seeing tours. One in particular was for an all day excursion to Koh Phi Phi and various islands & coral reefs in the area. She quoted us a price, and I wanted to double-check it.

Yesterday we headed north on the beach and looked at some of the so-called "travel agencies" in the area. There are as many travel agencies as there are Thai massage parlours. Basically, anyone with a good internet connection and a phone can be a travel agent... so they've popped up all over the place. The biggest advantage these people have (of course) is that they speak fluent Thai and haggle for a good price.

I found a sign at an agency that was an exact replica of the brochure our landlady handed us. The girl at the door was friendly and offered us a price of 1000 baht a person (about 26$US each). My landlady's price was 1600 baht (about $44US each). We left and did some looking around. After talking it over last night, we decided to go back and sign up.

When I got there this morning, the same girl invited me in. Shaunna was still in shop mode, so I told her I'd take care of it. I was carrying a large Beer Chang and sweating like a pig, so I must have looked like an easy target. The travel agent sat me down and immediately started filling out paperwork. I asked her about the Koh Phi Phi trip and she said the company who made the brochure was "no longer open".

I tried to get her to tell me, "Do you mean they're out of business, or are they just closed for the day?"

"They not open," she replied.

She pointed to another brochure by another company that offered the same trip. She assured me the price was still 1000 baht.

Fine. I wanted to book the tour for Friday (tomorrow), and she said no problem.

She made some phone calls while I finished my over-sized beer. On the wall was a missing persons sign from the tsunami. It occured to me at that point... I've seen them all over the place around here. But it only set in at that moment what they were for...

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Once she got off the phone, she told me that the company who had that brochure wasn't open either. I asked her the same question:

"Do you mean they're out of business, or are they just closed for the day?"

She said that there was another company that could do the tour, but they couldn't do it until Saturday. It was smelling really fishy to me, and I was beginning to get a little frustrated. I asked why, and she said they couldn't go out to Phi Phi until Saturday. I was getting no where, and my beer was empty.

I stood up, thanked her and told her I'd have to talk it over with my wife. She tried to get me to sit back down, but I was already out the door. Shaunna and I walked back to the guest house and inquired about the trip. The lady said, "No problem", and immediately went to work.

Later this morning she came back to tell us that our trip was set for Friday by the original company with the original brochure - and she even gave us a discount. Just as I thought, the travel agency was a scam.

We also booked another snorkelling tour for Saturday that goes to five different islands in the area. That entire package was cheap. Only 800 baht for Shaunna and I together (about $22 US dollars).

We decided to hit the beach and finally get some time under the sun. All along the waterfront there are long tail boats with eager drivers seeking business. These enterprising guys have joined forces to set rates, and they proudly advertise their rates on large white boards.

As we walked into the sand we were immediately approached by a young guy offering his services. We wanted to go to Poda Island and do some swimming. Another older guy came up and explained that there is a four person minimum for trips like that, BUT we could rent the boat for 800 baht for a half-day and go whereever we wanted. Deal!

We hopped on the boat, and I clicked a bunch of pictures of Ao Nang as we sped off into the distance... our guesthouse is located in the middle of the houses that back up against the cliff...

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We headed straight past Poda Island and headed to a cluster of smaller islands further north. We pulled up to it and realized that three of the islands were joined together by a small strand of sand bars - thereby making them all accessible by foot. I stood at one spot on the beach and took the following pictures by moving around in a circle, capturing the view all around me...

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We were in awe. There were a few other clusters of people on the beach, but mostly couples doing the same thing as us. Only a few boats were around, and everywhere we looked the scenery was postcard perfect.

We walked through the gritty sand and broken shells until we found a nice spot just shy of the water. I dropped our pack and towels and snapped a pic of Shaunna...

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I spent the next hour and a half swimming in the waist high water and exploring the desolate beaches of the nearby islands.

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Shaunna did some reading and soaked in the sun.

As the tide rolled out, we noticed boats leaving for other islands in the distance. The entire area is covered with islands... some are as small as a compact car, while others (of course) are massive with multiple villages and beaches.

Our guide, Jah, hastily came over and told us it was time to head to Poda Island. Before we headed there, he took us past Chicken Island so we could snap a picture:

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We didn't get a picture of Poda, but we managed to snap other pictures of rock formations in the area.. here's the nicest one from that set:

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After another hour of hanging out on the beach, we asked our guide to take us to Raileh Beach, which is one of the prettier beaches in the area. A dark patch of clouds was forming over Ao Nang and Raileh, and I could tell he was anxious to get the boat back to the beach. With some persuasion, he agreed to take us over. We spent a few minutes snapping pictures and then immediately headed back home... I'll post those pictures later... gotta pay 1 baht a minute here, and they're about to close (it's nearly 11:30pm).

Once we got back to the guesthouse, we were spent. My head was beet red, and we developed a nice sunburn on our bodies to match it. We treated ourselves to a large dinner of Thai seafood and curry, and we headed for the massage parlour. We paid 250 baht each (about $8 US) for an hour-long head and foot massage.

Once again, the Thai technique was rough and erratic... and once again, they used the rotten mayonaise massage oil. The ladies also used short, stubby sticks to prod and pry at the tender areas of our feet. A few times the pain was so intense we begged them to stop. The shoulder and neck massage was much nicer, but by then we were high on our natural painkillers.... a few cocktails. Surprisingly, my feet feel a heckuvalot better.... too bad my skin doesn't.

Posted by coywest on February 10, 2005 11:29 PM
Category: Out and About
Comments

beaches, beer, massage parlours, being poked with sticks and an island named after a chicken.

that's my kinda place.

Posted by: bobby-jo on February 11, 2005 08:27 AM

yeah, Bobby... this IS your kind of place... save your duckets and get your ass over here any way you can...

Posted by: Coy on February 11, 2005 05:29 PM

"I'm dreaming of a Thai Christmas..." I think you've got me sold on this one...PS Coy, I'm submitting all your blog entries to a travel company--you are better than a tour book!

Posted by: Nork on February 11, 2005 10:23 PM
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