Greetings,

While in Thailand in October – November of 2009, I took a trip to Koh Lanta. It’s in the Andaman Sea on the western coast of Thailand. It’s a really relaxed predominantly Muslim island that is near Phuket and Koh Phi Phi. Often people come here to relax as it has a really chilled out slow pace of life compared to the other two islands.

I stayed at the Blue Andaman Resort which is a nice place for about 500b a night. Big clean room, hot shower and A/C. It had this beach bar with some really cool staff. The sunsets from the bamboo beach bar were epic, this is one of them that I captured.  Used to love just sitting there with my cold beer, relaxation & self actualization station.

While there I met a Swiss family, the gent was about 12 years older than myself and we got along great. He traveled most of the world and gave me lots of tips. If I wasn’t sick while in Switzerland, I would have contacted him. Hopefully I turn out like him, he’s banking coin with a beautiful wife, family and thriving business.

Will next time, if there is a next time?

I loved this island, I’m sure you can see why.

Cordially,

I sit here, with the sobering and sinking sensation that I’m getting sick. A few days ago it started, I fought it off with some oregano oil and gargling with ocean water. Now I think it’s gotten worse. The kind where it feels like you have a dagger in your throat and your glands are burning, not so cool.

I went out last night, said my goodbye’s and passed out. I awoke 3 hours later, shivering, freezing. No more air con for this character, whenever I put it on at night, I wake up so incredibly cold it’s not worth it. The only time it’s great is during the day when you go from smoldering heat to a virtual icebox.

Caught the ferry from Koh Lanta to Krabi Town, on my way from the ferry I ran into this guy pushing luggage, we started chatting, told him where I was going and he asked if I wanted a free transfer “indeed” I replied. Got to my guest house and got what could only be described as VIP treatment, there was a line of people to get rooms, they all remembered my name, grabbed my bags and escorted me to my room, not my “fav room” but it’s taken and this place is completely sold out. I effectively got the last room which, sadly, doesn’t have a good wifi connection. Not sure how much the room is either as they never asked for any money, they said we could settle it when I left.

Taking the bus to Kuala Lumpur or from here on in, KL. It’s ~12 hours or so and half the price of a plane. I could go plane but… I came on this trip to see the world, not airports. Also, I enjoy pushing my “comfort levels” to the point that one day, I’ll be comfortable anywhere, anytime, doing anything. You follow?

Passed out for a while, when I arose it was Tesco Lotus time. Tesco Lotus is like a Wal-Mart here, only with more. Things there are incredibly cheap and don’t be shocked if when you get there, you’re the only person who speaks your language there. That said, the deals are incredible and I’m freshly stocked on white t’s, white socks and some other rando purchases. Typically I’d take a metered cab but I asked the lady how she would get there, she said she’d lend me a bike but I still don’t know where it is. As a result I took my first local pickup-truck cab today. The lady who filled me in on something I was unaware of did me a favor, as a result I bought her a loaf of banana bread. They asked if I wanted some to which I replied “no thank you”. Truth be told I eat so much of the “free samples” I’m kinda off that.

You stand by the side of the street, when you see a red pickup truck coming you flag them down. They charge based on length of trip, I went “the whole distance” so to speakand it only cost me 20 baht each way. Typically I’d pay ~70 baht one way and thing I “did ok”. The way back was different, no stop nothing, so I crossed the highway and flagged the driver down. It’s weird when you don’t know where you’re going, if you’re on the right cab and a host of other questions you’ll get the answers to in time. Kinda like buying stocks, hopefully you believe in where the company is going but until it gets to the destination, you never know what’s going to happen. I thought metered cabs were the way to go, wrong.

When you write everyday, you begin talking to yourself sometimes as though you’re writing, lots of the time it’s what you think is gold. Then you sit down in front of your PC and it becomes a struggle, there has to be an easier way.

As much as I miss the beach, the resort, the people, the parties, I’m really glad to be back in sleepy old Krabi Town. When in these types of places, it brings you back to reality instead of the fantasy that is the resort. It also motivates you to do some work, some business or something like that as you see others hustling, day and night, to a larger extend then yourself, for a smaller wage.

I’m going to miss Thailand, I’ve had an incredible month, visited incredible places and met some incredible friends. Truth be told, I didn’t even know about the islands, nothing. I just winged it when I found out I was going to LA and didn’t feel like paying $100-$200+US for a night. One thing I do know, without any doubt is that I will be back to Thailand. The people here are so incredibly happy and kind it’s unreal. Everyone is always smiling. Also the people you meet at resorts, don’t assume they all live “around there”. Most of them are actually incredibly special, extroverted people who come from all around the region. One of the resorts I stayed at had people from Laos, Burma, Cambodia and Thailand… Not everyone can stay up late everyday, wake up early each day and be in such an incredible mood that it’s contagious. If you suffer from depression, just visit Thailand for a while, you’ll leave smiling, if you aren’t smiling, go back to your Dr. and tell them you need to triple your current prescription.

I think I have to leave tomorrow, but may be able to push it one more day, it’s just if I pass the border even ~1 hour late (I’m getting that close) there could be fines, considering I’ve had ample time to leave, it would be akin to paying interest on a credit card, something that just isn’t right in this gentleman’s mind.

If you “truly” want to escape, like you are a workaholic, want to leave everything behind and just forget about the world? Try Koh Jum or something that sounds like that, on the way to Krabi, several times we stopped and longtail boats came out and docked up with the ferry, then people got in and out. There are still places in Thailand where electricity is recent and you can find beaches where the only tracks are yours, seriously. They are also considerably cheaper. I’d like to go to a place like that, but then how would I login to the internet? Met a guy from France who spent the last 2 weeks in a bungalow, totally secluded, right on the ocean, for 200 baht a night or ~$6US.

I’m off to eat a big dinner that is so spicy it will burn out any “whatever” is making me sick.

Good day,

P.S I saw the gentleman rowing below in the middle of the ocean, you think you have it rough when you get a flat? Or your car doesn’t work? Try being in the middle of the sea, having your engine die and rowing a boat a few miles to shore, puts your little “mishap” into perspective, yes?

P.P.S If you have a surplus of cash, YOU NEED to get it working for you. “They” want you to leave it in some GIC at bs %. The only way to be free in this world is to get the point where your $$$ works for you. You trade your time for $$$, why not trade your $$$ for more?

Spent what has to  be the laziest day of my life today. Maybe lazy isn’t the word or it’s exactly the word. I basically woke up, eat a gluttonous dejeuner and passed out in a bohio, woke up went to my room and passed out some more. At this point I eat a 3 course meal and then, you guessed it, passed out. I slept in numerous positions, in numerous places.

A major website of mine is getting bombarded with spam or some type of attack, I’m just sleeping it off as there is nothing I can do at this moment. I leave that to the gentleman I pay to take care of my hosting. I believe it’s an overzealous affiliate sending hundreds of thousands of junk traffic hoping, wishing, one would convert. Sadly that is not the case as garbage is garbage on the web. Not just the web really, if you think about it, life is about quality and not quantity for the majority of things with considerable worth and value, yes?

I’m going to start a budget plan, at the very least writing down daily expenditures to find where my money is going and over the long run be able to be mindful of my weak points while continuing my strong points. When visiting more expensive countries this will be even more applicable. Talked to a guy today who said “I must of been paying with 500′s for everything last night” trying to explain the concerning weight reduction in his wallet. That got me thinking and I thought, I must have 8,000 baht left, counted and only 6. Where does it go? I have an idea but if you do know, I’m all ears. That said, waking up in Thailand and asking yourself “what happened” is very different than say Las Vegas. Same same but really different.

The resort I am staying at is cool but next time I come, I will go further from the ferry into more “no mans land” and really get some “interesting” accommodations. Met this couple going to a place where you sleep in a boat, they also have tree houses there.

On the note of ingenuity, I’d like to say that I find the Thai people some of the most entrepreneurial I’ve seen. They put 95% of people who have the gull to consider themselves “salesmen” in North America to shame. They buy things and flip them the old fashion way like it is nobodies business. As a result I always try and buy things at the local “grocer” where it’s the same woman who works 7 days a week smiling doing business with you, no harm no hassle. Need to return? Receipt, who cares, she remembers you.

Off to Malaysia tomorrow, or very least Krabi for a night then Malaysia. I’m not sure if I’m getting ripped or not buying a ferry / bus ticket direct from Koh Lanta or I can swing less going from resort, buying a ferry ticket at the harbor, then buying a bus or train ticket, at the respective station. Both have pros and cons. If my experience from Koh Tao taught me anything, it is cheaper to take the deal, Bangkok was only 950… Then again it was 500 from Bangkok to Koh Tao… hmmm. That said if you bought alone it wouldn’t be any cheaper and the ferry is one of the most expensive components. They want 1400 baht from Koh Lanta – KL.

The thought of a visa run is simply out of the question. I want to see the world and it’s not going to happen getting waited on by some of the most hosipital people in the world on a remote island in Thailand. I also want to make my way to Phillipines before going, I dunno where. That said Tanzania is also in the cards. I’m pretty sure I’m going from KL (as the locals call it) –> Singapore. From there, whether it’s Indonesia or Tanzania is undecided. Australia is not even on the radar at this point. Too westernized for this character. I’m sure I’ll have a valid reason to go, I had one but I didn’t get around to planning this trip properly or it would of started there.

I digress.

I heard when in Indonesia, you hear about the odd “techo dance club bombing” in Bali. It’s typically places like that I’ve been told as the cultures and customs in Indonesia are quite different from your average western country. As a result if I do go to Indo, it will be more a tour through and or relax in some smaller places, beautiful islands. Make sense? I think too many people travel to far away lands without respecting the ways of the world. People do things different in differently places. Most are accepting and at the very least tolerant to different cultures and travelers but… Take heed and know how people get on there and what makes them tick. If not you could be in for a surprise and I’m not talking about getting what you really wanted for Christmas.

Tonight, I need to buy that ticket, find out when the ferries leave and all that fun stuff. That said, not really in the mood to leave but as the French would say, “c’est la vie”. It’s absolutely pouring outside again. Maybe it’s time for another nap before that ticket and some nourishment?

God speed,

Another great place for a nap

Greetings ladies and gentlemen of this here interweb,

Did nothing today, got a massage then passed out in this “bohio” or whatever next to the ocean, I awoke with the sweet aroma of tobacco smoke. I asked the gentleman if he had a light, conversation ensued. Ran into a guy who has traveled most of the world and ended up chilling the entire day, then met the people he was traveling with, good people, the kind of people I like to meet.

I typically talk more than most but today, I just listened. Some of the stories of some of the stuff going on in the world that I had no clue of was truly mind blowing, I’m realizing that even though this trip is ~2 months in, it hasn’t even started yet. Side note, reading books about the world is one thing, talking to people who have already been around it in similar styles to yourself is priceless. Supposedly India is a trip in itself and if you spend time there it will change you. A guy I knew from canada said the same thing, I must go but start in the South as it’s “easier” on the system.

On another note, last night was quite “eventful”. After I updated, I took a shower after procrastinating a while. When I got out it sounded like the sky was coming down. It rained and rained and rained, winds so strong the rain was moving horizontally, seriously. When the rain ceased I left on my “trusty scooter” on the ~2 mile drive to a resort where my friends were for dinner.

The road was so wet that it was basically a lake. Water was well above my knees. I saw tuk tuk drivers pushing their vehicles on the side, a baby standing on a scooter loving life much to the chagrin of his concerned mother. Also saw one guy that said “You’d be better off swimming”.

I sat there, on my scooter, realizing that if I left, it would be dark when I returned, no street lights, roads littered with pot holes and I wasn’t even really sure where I lived, let alone finding it at night. Decided “screw it” and went for it. My motor bike was suddenly almost submerged but it made it through. It’s getting dark, I find the place.

Hang out and meet some cool new people, jump some fire rope and do some other things. Decide to leave as well, the ladies were cool but my friends passed out and this guy with the girls was giving me weird eyes. There was nothing there for me.

When I left, the motorbike was making weird noises, that aside, it’s really interesting driving these roads at night and supposedly 40% of Canadians who die abroad die on rural roads, late night. I didn’t have a single drink, I’m not an idiot and I knew I was in for a sketchy ride home.

So I’m going and the bike makes this horrible noise, the kinda noise you dont’ want to hear when in the middle of a jungle road in some strange country with no street lights. Suddenly I’m slowing down and pull over, before coming to a full stop I just turn, crank it, and it starts up so slow but accelerating. Earlier in the day I remarked “Wow, this thing has near 140,000 miles”, that’s about when stuff gets weird in vehicles, what happens if it breaks down”?

Sure enough it keeps going, and then dies. Luckily for me, it died RIGHT at my turn like if I was to miss it, I couldn’t of. This was good as I was scared I missed the turn while checking out the bike. Push the bike the rest of the way and go for a beer. Turns out the real party is at my resort.

My visa runs out soon and I gotta get out of Thailand or this “trip around the world” will turn into a guy who left to go hang out in Thailand, alright but still boring. Seriously, a beach is a beach is a beach is a beach and I’m not even that “into” the sun. It’s midnight and I wasn’t going to update today because I just didn’t get a chance, then I realized, I update this everyday. To not update, would be a travesty and possibly start a negative trend, that said…

Good day,

P.S Tried posting this last night but the network was down, go figure.

Update: Still down, talked to the gentleman who runs the place yesterday and said this place was great but the internet much too pricey, he said it was no problem. They want 160baht an hour for wireless or the cafe, just today, I noticed it’s only 2 baht a minute now. Perfect.

Mark my words, in 20 years from now this island is going to be extremely developped. Supposedly 20 years ago, Koh Phi Phi had like 5 huts, now it’s a booming island with lots of construction and this is post-tsunami. You can’t own land in Thailand as a foreigner, for business you need to have a Thai resident running 51%. There are opportunities abound for those who dare. I have several ideas that don’t need to be shared with you. Now I just need to meet a reliable Thai resident / associate should these ideas have a chance of coming into fruition.

If you learn a little bit of Thai, your world changes. You go from someone they over-charge dramatically to someone getting going rates or just slightly overcharged (everyone has to make a $). Just a little bit goes a long way, it’s worth the investment any way you look at it.

Today is going to be much the same as yesterday. I also broke down and did laundry. If you’re going to do laundry, when you’re at a classy resort is probably your best time of not having your clothes associated with those of “riff-”raff” so to speak.

My Photo of Bohio was corrupted, (insert random picture)

Slept a ridiculous 15 hours last night, 7pm-10am and am “fully recharged”. Rented a motor bike and met up with some Canadian friends at the pier as none of us knew where we lived.

Drove around the entire island today and stopped off at the “Caves” in the national park. For 200 baht we had a tour guide bring us through some pretty awesome caves. Also saw my first elephant and monkey’s in the wild. It’s a treacherous 30 minute hike through dense jungle to the caves, then the caves themselves are intense. Not somewhere you’d want to get injured, somewhere you’d want to visit though.

Watch out for goats, my friend was driving and a goat ran into his scooter which resulted in a bail. Luckily both parties left “unscathed” so to speak.

Koh Lanta is beyond “chill”, I wish I found it earlier in my travels.

This will be brief as I have things to do, including but not limited to : Massage, Dinner, Hanging out, having a shower, swimming in the pool. Life is tough, seriously.

My friends (Canadians, Germans and Danes) are all about 1 mile down the road so I’m off to go visit now, they are staying slightly cheaper but with no aircon, I’m kinda liking it here, just isn’t so hot considering I have to drive to get anywhere, especially to hang out.

That said, my business stopped sending sales but I figured “C’est la vie”, then I got an email saying “Your categories aren’t working”. That makes sense… Sent an email and most likely need to go to Krabi soon to “get to the bottom of this”. If there is one thing I hate, it’s “Losing money I’m entitled to”.

There was also this awesome viewpoint, I had the best shrimp cocktail of my trip there, totally delicious and the cheapest I’ve found yet on my travels. It pays to get off the beaten path.

On that note, I’m off to eat some creature from the sea and hang out by the beach.

Do I regret leaving my job? No. It’s funny how often people would ask me to go out in my “previous life” and I’d say not really, I’ve kinda “lost my joie de vivre”, that is no longer the case.

If you have time to kill, check out Koh Lanta and check out the caves. Ok Ok, don’t need to see the caves but they were awesome, just come visit Koh Lanta, it’s truly the most relaxed place I’ve ever been, not to mention beautiful.

I’m the dirtiest man on the island because my knees are shot, we had to crawl through this tiny hole, we asked how obese people get through and the guide said “coconut oil” I would not want to be wedged in there. Long story short I had to drag myself on my stomach, I’m filthy and off to have a shower. I’m so filthy that at the local market everyone was pointing at me and asking what happened, I mean just totally and completely covered in mud.

Good day,

P.S A tour around the island takes ~2 hours if you go for it all, you run out of road and spend a lot of time on a dirt road to get to the end of one of the parts, then it’s just jungle, after that you need to backtrack to get to the main road.