4 Thousand Islands!

Whew, what a day! It started with a bus trip to the 4 thousand islands (southern laos). I was traveling with Kristy the Aussie. Our bus was full of other farang....some going to the islands, some going to Cambodia. After a few hours, Kristy went to the driver to ask how much longer because she had to go to the toilet. Here's what she came back to me with:

Kristy: the driver just said the strangest thing
Me: yeah?
Kristy: yeah. He said we were 2 kilometers from the border...

As in the Cambodia border! So that started a full conversation between us to figure out if we were on the right bus. We couldn't do anything else but wait it out. A few minutes later...we were at the border. But no worries, just the cambodia group got off...the rest of us were to continue on to the islands. Whew!

Once at the stop for the ferry, we exchanged our passes for the boat tickets and got on the "ferry". It was smaller than a longtail boat, and sat 2 people wide, and 4 people long. We drifted over to Don Det and then hopped off and ventured for lunch....which I had  BAGUETTE sandwich. Yes, I had bread! Fresh, toasted, not-sweetened bread. Oh how I've missed you! (Fresh bread is hard to find in Thailand).

After lunch, and finding a bungalow, we scooped up some bicycles and headed out!

We did the perimeter of Don Det, and saw tons of pigs, chickens, buffalos, and fat cows. We cycled along the mekong river past bungalows, rice paddies, and laos homes. Then we crossed the old train bridge from WWII and explored Don Khong. Both islands are around 4kilometers in perimeter.

Once back on Don Det, we headed to the west side of the island and sat down to dinner on the river....and stayed through to watch the gorgeous sunset. The orange and blue hues, and the quietness around us was so relaxing, and a great way to end the day.

Sabaidee!
Apes :)

PS. Since I'm typing this on the go from my phone, I don't have any pix. I'll try to remember to upload some to the posts, or take some with my camera to attach.

Crossing into Laos!

Once I took the bus from Korat to Ubon Ratchatani, I waited at the bus station for my bus to Laos.....and there it was!

We all loaded up and took the 2 hour trip to the border. I've been to a few borders now (some by land, most by air) and this one was definitely the weirdest.

Once out of the van, to exit Thailand and go into Laos they actual made you walk the tunnel! In from Thailand, and out into Laos. It was silly becuase it was a few meters, and once out of the tunnel you could turn around and see where you just came from.

But while crossing and getting my Visa, I met the other foreigner on my bus. Her name is Krissy (from Australia) and she just came from backpacking in Vietnam. She was wearing leopard print pants with one leg rolled up! She's gotta be fun, right?? Anyways, since both of us heading to the 4000 islands as our first Laos stop, we've decided to travel down there together.

And boom pizza....my first travel friend! See Pops, I told you SE Asia travel is never REALLY traveling alone :)

Adventure on,
Apes :)

And I'm off...

I'm in the tuk tuk leaving Ian's and I am so excited. I'm off on my own adventure. Now you are probably thinking "you have been on an adventure this whole time!" And while that IS true....this time it's alone. I've got a little over a month to just do as I please! So many thoughts are running through my head...

Who will I meet?
Where will I go?
What will I see?
Where will I stay?

It should be terribly frightening to have none of these answers, but I am filled with more excitement than anything!

So I've got my back pack, my purse, and my oversized stuffed gorilla...I'm about to take on 3 (if time, 4) countries in the next month!!

Adventure on,
Apes :)

Ranch Friendships

Random thought/reflection that I had today.

I think the love of Ranch is the most common denominator of American travelers. Seriously, if you are an American and meet another American and need something to bond over don't bring up Snookie, Pop Music, News, the state of economy, or the weather. Bring up RANCH DRESSING! You will immediately be best friends. If they don't like Ranch, then they aren't real Americans.

I cannot count how many times I've had the ranch discussion while traveling. What is my favorite thing to put it on, how much do I miss it, and how much better "this meal" would be with a side of Ranch.

From what I can tell, no other country has any food they love as much as this. Even non-American travelers say "Oh, you Americans and your Ranch! It's JUST a salad dressing!" Well, my idiot friend, it is NOT "just a dressing" It's a dressing, dip, condiment, etc. Anything you want it to be. They don't know the awesome-ness of it until you let them have a taste. Then they want more and more!

And no, Ranch is NO WHERE to be found in Asia (or at least in Thailand and Myanmar), so if you have it - you are holding (or eating) the creme de la creme (no idea if I used that saying correctly). So hide it. It's not being selfish here - it's preserving a taste of America. And use it sparingly.

Needless to say - Ranch is #1 on my list to become re-acquainted with when I arrive back in the states.

Sawasdee Kha,
Apes :)

So long Surat....

Well, I'm sitting here in Korat at my friend Ian's house. I haven't made it out of Thailand yet, much to my dissatisfaction. Why haven't I cross a border yet? SICK GERMS! I started my travels with a stop over to Krabi Town to see my old Myanmar roommate, and attend a pirate party. I ended up getting strep throat and was couch-ridden for a few extra days. Then I started my trip out of Thailand, crossing over to Laos. Ian's house is on the way out, so I stopped for the night. Then of course, I woke up sick again. Same thing as in Krabi. So I have my whole plan of Laos laid out, but my sick body won't let it happen. So I am stuck in Korat until these meds work and I am healthy enough to travel.

BUT, while I'm sick on his couch, I guess it's time to say my final goodbyes in a blog to my home for tha past half a year - Surat Thani.

I lived in Surat for about half a year, and it is sad to say goodbye. It was the first time in my life that I actually lived completely alone. I was responsible for everything....my rent, daily life of finding food, getting around, and making friends. It was an amazing time.

The favorite part of my town was of course the people. Many of them left at the end of last term (Julie, Birney, Janet, Meghan, etc) and when I came back this term, there was a plethora of new people to meet, and a few old teachers to get reacquainted with. Unfortunately, I got closer with the old teachers, and I have since had to leave them. Becky, Angie, Tigger, Francis, Evan, etc...I wish I had more time to spend with you guys, but my body is aching for a new adventure!

And of course, I collected a new family during my stay in Surat. My Tattoo Parlor Family. Eve and Dew - my sister and brother. They are an amazing couple, and I miss you guys a TON! Thank you for always making me feel most at home when I was with you guys....language barrier included. To the rest of the group: Sexy Sexy, Ro Bert, Bomb, Aof, Model, and everyone else...you guys always made me so happy when I was around you. The group as a whole was always so welcoming. Communication wasn't as hard as I would have imagined and being around you all always made me the happiest while in Surat. I can't wait to come back and visit you all again soon...you will always be my family :)

Eve and Dew :)

Part of my Thai Family

Now that I am gone, I miss the town something terrible. I know I can always go back...but it's time to move forward. I am here for an adventure - and an adventure is what I'm about to get!

Thank you for everything Surat...you will always hold a special spot in my heart :)

Sawasdee Kha,
Apes  :)

Open water diving certified!

So as i sit on a porch surrounded by paradise, let's look back at my time in koh tao....

In case you didn't know, koh tao means "turtle island".

I arrived in koh tao on the ferry from the full moon party in koh phangnan. I checked into my room at ban's and spent the rest of the evening sleeping.

Thursday I woke up, and it was time to start my OPEN WATER DIVING CERTIFICATION!!!

I met my instructor, Nat, who was awesome! We crammed 3 days of lessons and diving into 2 days! We did some pool skills, where he was impressed on how quick I picked them up. Then we practiced our bounyancy (sp?) and floated around in a Buddha pose.

After the pool was done, it was time for the school stuff. I learned all the theories, and safety info. I passed the final exam, and so it was time to dive!

Friday morning I woke up (with my pinky toe giving me some pain) and got suited up for the dives. I was to do 3 dives, all before lunch!

So we took the boat out, and I did a 25 min dive, and worked on some stuff I did in the pool. Then we went back to the boat, got a new tank, and went back down again. The water was choppy, so getting was tough. Once we were back in the water, we did some compass work, then spent the rest of the time swimming around. We were at the white rock dive site.

Then it was time to go up again, and we prepared for my last dive at another dive site - red rock. Once at the new site, we got back in and I did some emergency surfacing skills. Then it was playtime again! We went in caves, saw needle-nose fish,  and spent the full 45 min down there.

Then it was back to the surface to practice removing our gear in water...and then.....I WAS DECLARED CERTIFIED!! Wooooo hoooo!!

Back at the dive shop I was shown the video that my friend Steve had made of my diving, and it was awesome! 18minutes of me gearing up, and diving underwater. What a great souveneir!

So now, as I sit on steves porch, I'm relaxing in the hammock and saying goodbye to this little piece of paradise called koh tao.

Back to surat to pack up my apartment, then off to my next stop...

Sawasdee kha,
Apes :)

*I ended up going to the doctor about my pinky toe, and I had an infection. The pulled out my nail, and am taking antibiotics. I should be healed in about a week!

Full Moon

If you ever go to the south of thailand you will no doubt here of the full moon parties. And your favorite Apes finally made it to one!

Courtland and her friend Dan arrived in my town on Sunday, and we took the night boat over to Koh Phangnan (the full moon island). We arrived that morning, found a room, then did some exploring. We had lunch, bought some "full moon" gear (think all neon, zack morris style!), and went down to the beach to see what it looked like BEFORE the party. That night we went to the "warm up" pre full moon party and had a blast! My guests had their first buckets, we watched fire shows, and danced the night away.

On Tuesday we woke up...and it was FULL MOON DAY! We decided to take it easy and be lazy, so we would be able to last all night.

Once the night came, it was time to gear up! We got decked out in our neon, body painted sweet designs, collected some friends we had made, and headed out!

Once at the beach, we started in on some buckets, and dancing. It started raining, but that didn't deter the full moon crowd!! We danced right through the rain! I was able to meet up with Clem and Monis (friends I met in Myanmar) and then kept dancing into the night....then before you know, the sky started getting light! The sun was already coming up! So we did one last walk along the beach to see the full mooners in daylight, then I went back to our room to collect my friend Hazel from my town (this was her 8th full moon) and headed over to the after party.....

BACKYARD!! This was my goal. I wanted to make it to the backyard party, and i did! It was up in the mountains, and I recruited others along the way. Once there, it was buckets again, and more dancing! It was around 7am at this point. I stayed until around 11am, then went back to the room to say bye to Courtland and her friend. Then I packed up my stuff, jumped on the ferry....and was off to my next stop....

Sawasdee kha,
Apes :)

*bucket = a 5th of liquor, a bottle of red bull, and a can of soda.

On the road blogging....

Whelp, I've left my school and started my Holiday.....or adventure through SE Asia till I head home. From now on, my blogging will be done from my small Android phone, so my posts will be fairly short, misspelled, but hopefully frequent.

Sawasdee kha,
Apes :)