Its been well over a week since i got back to this cold hell-hole that is England. What can i say? To think this is the first time i've been to Thailand, it sure won't be the last.
People told me my life would never be the same again, in some respects they are right. Its not the first time i've been travelling, i did 3 months around Australia and New Zealand, albeit some time ago. Nevertheless its a good reminder of how great the whole backpacking experience is. Of course this time i was not alone, its truly a great thing to share such an experience with someone close to me.
Thailand is an amazing and beautiful country, culturally speaking the difference to the western world is immense in so many ways. To see a nation that has such a relaxed attitude toward the things that over here would be considered a health and safety risk is at first strange but soon became refreshing. At many of the beach bars there was loads of fire-based entertainment, the sort of thing that you simply would not be allowed in this country. I guess their philosophy is if you are stupid enough to try jumping a fire-skipping rope drunk then its your own fault if you get burned.
The shabbily-built wooden huts that provided most of our accommodation are again something you would never see in England, although that is mostly due to the weather here. Similarly, the vast bulk of public transport around the country consists taxis of one form or another (taxi-cars, taxi-boats, even taxi-buses!), again a lot of these seem like they have been knocked up at home and would no way ever pass an MOT. It seems that everywhere there is a kind of shanty-town attitude towards many of the things we consider to be important health and safety issues.
Its this attitude that characterises Thailand and its culture. For a country that has not really known democracy for long and is really quite poor in comparison to ourselves, they experience a type of freedom we simply can't in our "Nanny State" society. Of course, its all relative, nowhere is perfect and Thailand is not without its faults but thats not what i wish to discuss right now.
The most striking thing about Thailand for many is of course the natural beauty of the country, particularly its many islands. My own "Final Destination" voyage (see previous post) led us straight to Phuket, a place we spent very little time, it reminded me very much of any number of holiday resorts, i might as well have been in Majorca! Next point of call was Ko Phi-Phi (the place i now realise i would likely have spent my Christmas on that ill-fated tsunami year), this is possibly one of the most beautiful places i have ever been, with gorgeous beaches and some amazing scenery. I even managed to (eventually) overcome my fear of drowning (i'm not much of a swimmer) and went snorkelling, another opportunity to see much of the islands beauty.
The beach at Tonsai was not in itself a great beach but the cliffs surrounding it were spectaculkar enough to make it the next point of call. Staying in a wooden hut partway up the mountain was also an experience. We didn't have enough time to do much though because our next destination was Ko Phangan ready for Christmas and New Year and its many parties.
Ko Phangan is in many ways the most westernised of all the places we visited, with many Brits and Europeans living there for long periods. The fact that there seemed to be a party every other day (all vaguely related to the moon) is probably reason enough for many hippies and ravers to want to spend long periods of time there. Whether these parties are as good as the festivals and free-parties we enjoy in England and Europe is a matter of debate, nevertheless they are cheap, fun and warm. Thailands hard-line zero-tolerance attitude towards drugs seems somewhat at odds with this party island but, again, thats not something i want to discuss here now.
My own personal ambition of spending Christmas in the sun was unfortunately hampered by the sudden, uncharacteristic downpour of rain Christmas day which continued on/off through to New Year, alongside plenty of cloud cover the rest of the time. Guess i'll have to go back there again next year.
Following Ko Phangan, we left to visit Ko Tao, a smaller island a little north within the gulf of Thailand. This island is another beautiful place, laidback with plenty of nature and scenery. Following that we had to return to Bangkok and reluctantly prepare ourselves for the journey home. Our flight got delayed/cancelled and we had to stay at a posh hotel for an extra night, paid for by the airline. :)
Coming home was not the nicest experience, not that there was anything wrong with the flights, just the knowledge that our holiday was over and we had a particularly cold England to look forward to. Still, as for life-changing experiences, it certainly had an impact on both of us. Now, our main objective is to find a way to go back there next year.
Personally i feel quite refreshed and inspired, my creative juices are flowing and i'm hoping to get some more tunes finished soon, this holiday has inspired me in new ways. I have plenty more thoughts on Thailand, society and everything else i like to rant about but they can wait another day. Hopefully this little memoir hasn't been too long or boring, i guess its been more for my benefit than anyone elses. I might even throw a few photos up on MySpace at some point.
Anyway, if you are still reading this and have yet to visit Thailand i strongly suggest you make some plans, its not an expensive holiday (apart from the flights) and its worth every penny. Next New Year (2009/10) is actually a proper Full Moon, something surely worth celebrating in style.
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