view from the front of the bus ... and i mean the very front

Why am I on a bus squished between two Thai men at the moment? Let's just say it is all part of thailand's charm. Thailand is incredible, everything I have ever heard about it is true. The beaches really are that gorgeous. The food really is that spicy. The jungle really is everywhere. And Thai massages are a little strange.

Almost one week ago, my fair companion and I dragged ourselves out of our overly air conditioned hostel bedroom, and said goodbye to Paul the owner and were then hustled and jostled onto a minibus. Lucky for me and my long legs, the three shortest people ever were sitting on the front bench, their legs hardly reaching the ground. but at least we had an entire bench to ourselves in the back. 20 minutes later, our minibus had acquired a slew of other characters. I am now separated from the Fox, and am squished next to a poor old dude who had to relinquish half of his chair space to my crumpled legs. Observation number one in Thailand : locals are short. Very short. I bet I don't stand out even a little bit ...

The minibus experience got a wee bit more comfortable once one of the passengers got off early, but the experience was stressful none the less mainly because Lo and I really had no clue what we were doing. This bus was strange in that it had no identifiable stops, and people would just say things to the bus driver, he would pull over where ever we were (gas stations, markets, middle of nowhere roads) and people would get out. Plus, Thai rock music which can only be described as ... Charming ... Was the drivers choice of music and it was just one click too loud. But finally we were the only people left after a few hours of driving, and we hoped the driver understood we were trying to catch a boat.

Yes, a boat to ko phagnan island. Home of the famous full moon party which we were curious about. Not just any boat, but a overnight sleeper boat. Since I wasn't expecting the presidential suite on the queen Mary, I was pleasantly surprised to see that each person got a mattress and I think Laura has gotten used to me rolling into her in the middle of the night, so the overnight boat was a success ... That is until 515 in the morning when Fox wakes me up and I realized we have arrived when I hear all the cab drivers on the dock yelling "miss! Where you go? Sunrise beach? Full moon party? I have good price! Stay in my bungalow!" observation number two about Thailand: these people are all business when it comes to money. Even at 5 am.

We get in a cab, which by the way, is a truck with benches in the back, and pass out in the first hostel we find with a free bed. When we wake up a few hours later, we happily find that our bungalow is right on the beach, with hammocks and a bunch of cute dogs. The restaurant has an entire vegetarian section on the menu, the sun is shining on the private beach, and we settle in.

We discover that even beach bungalows have their drawbacks. Everything is always sandy, Laura had a few epic struggles with swarms of mosquitoes, and during one thunderstorm the power went out, leaving me to shower in the TOTAL. BLACKNESS. but here is observation number there about Thailand : it is totally intoxicating. By the time we lost power, I had been eating delicious food, and lying on gorgeous beaches, and hoofing it all over the jungles of the island for me to really care anymore. I was under the spell of thailands charm.

The big night of the full moon party at last, and it was just as good as people said. We shared traveling tips with the other backpackers we met, engaged in some serious beach dancing, and had our first experiences with drinking Thai whiskey out of a bucket, which is what all the kids are doing these days.I am proud to report that we made it home (around 7am) in one piece and to steal the famous words of one Katy Jane Tull, we were excited, exhilerated and exhausted. Thankfully the only thing we had to do the next day was lay in hammocks and eat spicy curry, so that worked out ok.

Then this morning, I somehow find myself squished between two Thai men again. One of the men is driving the bus Lo and I are on, the other is some sort of copilot situation because he gives all the orders to the driver, which inexplicably involves some sort of complicated honking turn signal situation, but my Thai isn't so good to get it yet.

This bus is taking us to the western coast of southern Thailand where we will island hop for a few more days. Then get to Bangkok to catch a quick flight to vietnam where a special guest and general leader of team Fox will meet us for a week of adventures!

Now fully under Thailand's spell, I can't wait to see what the rest of se asia brings, as long as the mosquitoes stop bothering the Fox.

I miss everyone at home and send love and baci to all.

Jca

For Marcus - it is starting to be unfair how badly we are beating the world. Sometimes days are so great we should get extra points! Alas, the copilot Thai man is blocking access to my purse, so I can't give you exact numbers, but we are KILLIng it! Xoxo