The light at the end of the tunnel pt1 a 6 week adventure story

Red white and blue was waving in the dawn's early light.




[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaduck/12188012544/]DSC_3933 by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/seaduck/]Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




Me and Anya had her little sister drive us to the Samut Sakhon Bus station late last night.
We waited for about 40 minutes and the bus came.


Should have been a comfortable 6 hrs to Chumpon (the county) but for some reason, the whole trip was like something from the twilight zone.


When we entered the bus, Everyone was bundled up in blankets and asleep.


Me and anya were handed a couple of blankets and then things got dark and the bus rolled into the night.


Anya knocked off pretty quick, but I got really cold.
I am known for wearing my shorts in November, and I was surprised how cold I was.


I looked around for the stewardess, but I'll be damned if I could find her.


No one was awake, and I was freezing cold.


I dug out my pack and put on a 2nd shirt and my Jefferson State XX hat.


Still no good. I swear, God as my witness,
I could see my breath fogging as the double decker bus pushed past palm trees and swayed like a ship overloaded


Whacking and slapping at the limbs as they wrapped their way around her bow.




We arrived at a gas station food stop, and there were tables set with Con Gee makings.
Con gee is a rice porridge, you throw pickled greens in it, scrambled egg, pork meat, fish etc.



It was good, I was so tired and glad to be out of the freezing bus.


Soon the bus keeper said it was time to load, and back into the freezer I went.


A few miles down the road, the folks sitting in front of us got off, and I grabbed both of their blankets and bundled up in them. That felt better, although I didn't get a lick of sleep as I shivered all night.
 
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Eventually, the sun decided to rise again.
I was glad it did.


We got to the ferry dock after chatting with a rally cool guy from Germany.
Anya was the only Asian tourist on the entire ferry (probably 200 souls.)


It was becoming apparent that the island may have changed some since the last time Anya was here. About 15 years ago.







[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaduck/12188001464/]DSC_3935 by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/seaduck/]Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




There were mostly Europeans on the ship. Me and Anya sat at the stern, because the water was rough.


I talked with a lady from france, Told her Je MaPelle Todd


And told her I had a yellow banana (in French), because that was I could recall from 7th grade French class.


She howled and thought that I was a real comedian.




We talked a little in English, and watched the ships on the sea.


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[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaduck/12187804053/]DSC_3938 by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/seaduck/]Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr


We were on a twin hull ship, with a set of big diesels chugging.


I'd venture that we were running close to 30 kts. It was about an hour and a half out to the island.



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[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaduck/12187566665/]DSC_3937 by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/seaduck/]Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr
 
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Anya's folks had a fleet of 7 of these ships.



[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaduck/12187951064/]DSC_3942 by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/seaduck/]Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr



Her father wound up on the wrong end of a gun when Anya was only 8, and that left Anya's mom with no husband, a big business to run, 3 daughters on board
and one about to be.


I can not fathom the hardship her family went through.
Fortunately, anya's uncle (her mothers brother) picked up the pieces and they ran the business as best they could for another 20 years.Once, one of their ships strayed too far into Cambodian waters, and the Cambodian Navy scuttled the boat and all the workers died but the captain.


20 men with families and no insurance to help them..... Anya's mom made financial reparations as best she could to help.


The engineers and captains were here for Her mothers funeral... they didn't forget what a tough but kind woman her mother was.
 
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The boat trailing is a squid rig.


Squidders go out at night and fire up some seriously bright lightbulbs on their booms.


The squid can not resist it.




DSC_3951 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr



When we left bkk last time, I remember seeing the bright lights of the squidders out at sea.




I probably should give squidding a go before I split for New Zealand.
 
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Todd,

Thanks for taking the time to post all your photos. It looks like your having a great time.
 
was a great but long day today,
Rode a moped up some impossible hills and down some too.


I've got bunches of photos to share of the day, but need to knock off for a few hours first.


One of the highlights today was scaling a rock and doing a backflip off the top into the ocean.


I used to be a pretty decent diver back in the day, and I wasn't going to let a chance at a backflip with a twist get by me.





[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaduck/12207640224/]DSC_4118 by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/seaduck/]Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr


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I realized that the potential for an ass busting experience was just a slip away, so I yard hauled myself
up this rope to the top.




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I swam out past the point earlier and it was about 60 feet deep, so I knew I'd be safe on entry.


I stood there with my heels out over the water.


My rock friends said, "you should just go off regular, don't get crazy"


I laughed and said, "boys, I've been flying upside down and backwards all my life, this is as easy as falling off a rock"


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[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaduck/12207163405/]DSC_4142 by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/seaduck/]Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr
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if felt good to splashdown without busting a front or back flop.


It is easier to do the backflip with a twist, because it allows you to keep your eyes on the water and make a safe and sound entry.


There is a degree of timing involved, as well as motion and gravity.


It is imperative to time your point of entry so that whatever antics you do during the fall are going to land you feet first when you make entry.


If you don't time it right, you can flop.


A front flop or back flop from 20 plus feet can put you in the hospital.


It is sort of like leading a bird with the shotgun. You need to look ahead and follow through.
 
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once I was in, everyone went after me.



DSC_4148 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr

DSC_4149 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




my diving friends all said "jesus man, where did you learn to dive like that"


I laughed and told them the truth... "I used to jump off my folks roof into the pool... It always felt good to fly"






I'll share more adventures in the morning. I am a little tired out, and need to rest.


Oh, It still feels good to fly,


even if it is upside down with a twist.
 
getting around the island requires a moped. The roads are not all paved, and some are very very steep.



DSC_3973 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr






I used all of my outback riding techniques with this little 125cc bike and it hauled my old ass and my wife to the end of every road.
The cost is 200 baht per day.


we had a nice breakfast.
Dragon fruit, pineapple, con gee and anya had duck eggs and bacon with toast etc.

DSC_3978 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr





DSC_3994 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr


after breakfast, we decided to drive to the end of every road.


One of the roads brought us to a neat bay.
The water was very calm, and there was a little dog that wanted to be a Labrador.


He was actually fishing!


He was not into fetching balls or interacting with the swimmers at all, he was after fish.


He'd watch for their shadows and then paw like mad at what he saw.


He caught a few too!

DSC_4003 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




The island is very different from Samut Sakhon... there is no garbage to be seen, and the dogs are not temple dogs.
The dogs here are well fed and well taken care of. they are pets.
 
I saw several flocks of these birds. They looked like pigeons, but slightly larger.


White but for Black tips on their wings


they moved like pigeons, flew in big bunches.

DSC_4016 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




we decided to hhead into town and found this big turtle statue.


Koh Tao means "turtle Island"

DSC_4031 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




Saw some boats and decided I needed to contribute some boat related content to this great site.

DSC_4032 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




These are called "Longtail" boats.



DSC_4033 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr


Anya was born in one on the banks of the Chao Phraya.


Apparently, her mom was going to have her at home, but she refused to come out.
So her dad was going to shuttle her to a clinic type place, and she arrived.
 

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DSC_4044 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




The People of Thailand are Proud.


Proud of their heritage,
proud of their good King,
and proud of their freedom.


Thai means "free"


Reminds me of another place which flys similar colors.

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here is a shot of how the motor mounts to the ship.


There appears to be a post and socket and then they can just muscle it around.
1

DSC_4075 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr


after we fiddle farted around in town, we decided to go up high.


The roads here are akin to gold cart paths as far as overall width,


They vary from paved in sections, to not paved at all heavily rutted and downright treacherous.
Some are so steep, that I can not walk them... But
That is why the mopeds have knobby tires right?


We had a fine time driving to the top of the mountain. What a view.

DSC_4080 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




Met a couple of girls from New Zealand. and a nice young couple from Scotland.


We all decided to hit the road as a gang.



DSC_4082 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr


together, we rode the backroads and helped pull each other out of ruts.


It was fun..


We did some terrible things to our mopeds.




One of the NZ girls stacked it going uphill. I gave them a quick lesson in dirt riding.


Scoot to the back of the seat for downhill... go slow.
Scoot to the front of the seat for uphill.... go slow.




Nobody got hurt. smiles were readily available and free!



DSC_4087 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr
After a while we parted ways.
 
I am not certain what bird we have above.. Kind of looks like an oystercatcher.


We hit the extreme nW side of the island.


They have a restaurant and bungalows' for rent... no beach, just rocks.


Anya decided to get Pad Thai, Not sure why she did since we sell it all day each day.


It was good,



DSC_4095 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




The cats seemed to be big fans of it.

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DSC_4096 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr
 
Another perfect day here on the island.


Yesterday, I decided to spend some time out fishing.


I hitched a ride on a local boat with these nice folks from France, A newlywed couple and their pal in the hat. Everyone spoke English, so that made conversation much easier.


The fellow without the hat was serious about fishing, he even brought a bunch of his own equipment.



DSC_4187 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr





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The sky drew in with heavy looking clouds.
The night colors transitioned from pinks and scarlets
to indigo and deeper than we can appreciate with our eyes.


the rain came heavy and soaking
with sincerity


In a moment It was done.


We went on anchor about 4 times. Four different spots.


The crew was trying to put us on fish,
But the tide was very low, and the normal spots were not fishing right, and the other spots had a lot of current.



DSC_4190 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr


we were using platu as bait. A kind of mackerel cut in strips and jigged off the bottom.


I was able to get this barracuda, and he was not happy about being brought aboard.



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Oh, we had a fine time out there.



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DSC_4208 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr


This may have been her first fish as a married woman.

DSC_4201 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




she seemed happy to have one aboard.

DSC_4202 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




I think we were all hoping to catch some squid, but the squid were not cooperating this night.


Back to cutting bait and more fishing.



DSC_4206 by Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr
We all were tired out by midnight and shook hands and went our separate ways,


Nice to meet some new friends and have some time out on the boat.


bed felt good.
 
Sorry for no updates as of late,
The internet is not a steady thing here.


I am sitting in my hotel which looks out over the Gulf of Thailand.
The sun is huge and red and rising slowly behind swaying branches of Palms.


We will be leaving the island today after 5 days.


It was an enjoyable experience and the food was great.


The only thing that wasn't so great was a 4 hour visit to a smaller island where Chinese Scuba people had invaded.
With 500 little screamers,
toddlers with their parents on this small patch of sand.




Shade was not possible, and we were ready to leave well ahead of time.


I contemplated swimming off of the island.


Apparently a few folks drowned over our stay. and at least 2 motorcycle accidents.


People who have never even sat on a bike will rent them and invariably drive way too fast.


It can kill you.


One of the folks we met on our longtail boat taxi off of toddler island said his friend jumped off of the very rocks I did the backflip off of
and he didn't land correctly.


Broke his back.
After 3 weeks in the hospital here on the island, His girlfriend flew out and picked him up and took him home.


It has been over a year, and he will never be the same.


I decided to stop doing backflips off of the rocks after hearing that story. I got in my share, and lived to tell the tale.

but here is a video clip of me doing one last one (not technically perfect)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UAnXuqMxFg


I guess he also saw the locals pull a dead scuba visitor out of the water right near the docks.
The innkeeper here said it happens all the time.


It'd be a pretty awful deal. We are glad to have had such a fun time and have been blessed to remain safe and sound.


I gave the fish to the restaurant where we are staying, and they cooked it us for us for dinner.


They fried the barracuda and then used garlic sauce on it. It was great.

[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaduck/12259030013/]P1030782 by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/seaduck/]Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr
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Some of the fish was used in a Tom Yum soup.


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[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaduck/12259315604/]P1030780 by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/seaduck/]Duncan Tennyson, on Flickr




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I'll be back in Samut Sakhon tonight, and will follow up with more photos when I have a better connection.


Looks like things are coming to a head in BKK. Lots of folks sporting shotguns, revolvers, machetes.


They just absolutely ruined a lady's car as she was trying to leave. They didn't hurt her, or her little dog in the car, but they destroyed the vehicle.
 
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An incredibly long day today.


Me and Anya were up at 0530 hrs to pack and eat and settle up with the hotel.


I drove the Motorbike back into town and got our deposit back, and she hitched a ride in a pickup truck with our heavy luggage to the ferry dock.




I was glad I had my walkie talkie to let her know I was able to get our deposit back, and her ID too.


We arrived at the terminal and the place was a zoo.


Boats were running 2 hours late and when they arrived, all three were there at once.


So everyone got to sit in que for at least 2 hrs.




Once we got on, the boat was jam packed and terribly overloaded. About 30 minutes off shore and both the screws stopped turning.


We were adrift in the gulf of Thailand.




The Captain ran to the back of the boat. I figured the folks that had a little wirehaired terrier lost it overboard. No leash and that thing was running around.


Soon more of the crew were out back and a couple of them put on their scuba masks and dropped off into the water to inspect.




After about 15 minutes, one of the divers came up with a garbage can full of rope that must have been 4 inches in diameter.


It had fouled one of the screws but he managed to cut it loose.


When he got back onboard, everyone applauded.




Soon we were underway.




We got to shore and made a dash to bus #1, got on and it took us to another town.
Then we got on a minivan, and he took us to the bus station...


Unfortunately, they overbooked the seats, and said we'd have to wait for our bus for about 7 more hours.


Anya was pissed, and went out and talked to the driver.


The driver said we could sit in the back where the luggage goes if we really needed to go.




So we got on board, a big relief.


Something I learned about riding where the luggage goes, it is a super bumpy ride.


The roads here in Thailand are piss poor, especially if you are behind the back wheels of the bus.


Seriously,
I've driven the roads of hells canyon, and the hiways here are no better.


Another kind of bad deal, was there was a major detour and It took us 2 more hours to get back to Samut Sakhon.




Finally, when we got there,


I got off the bus and realized that my Leatherman tool fell out of that shitty scabbard it comes with when I was lying down where the luggage was. to stretch my back....so an $80 tool I use every day was gone.




I suppose that when you travel, sometimes things happen that are out of your immediate control.


Frustrating, Yes.


But sometimes really great things happen,


so I will try to remain an optimist.


Tomorrow will be a new day.
 
Went into Town today with Anya and Pim and Paew.


We hit this place that is kind of like Costco.


It is huge and offeres everything from Blankets and chips, to Whole sides of beef, frozen tuna fish, Sauces bby the gallon, cooking oil in tins that are about 5 gallons.




It is more to supply the little food stands and restaurants, than to supply households.


I can not tell you how valuable my little motorolla handheld radios have been.


I got them back in the states at Costco, I think they were $70 for a set and a charger.
The package said they have a range pf up to 35 miles, but I have found them most reliable within about 2 miles.
They are worth their weight in gold.




It got hot today before the breeze picked up, and I shut down... Fell asleep in the back of Pim's car.


Soon we were home and I had nothing cold to drink,
So I said goodbye to the girls, Opened the huge iron gate to the homestead and took off to the duck noodle shop.




I walked about 1/3 of a mile, but she was still closed from Chinese New Year.




I knew that they had cold pop up at the 7-11 so I kept walking about another 1/2 mile.


I got something cold and refreshing to hose down and took off back tot the ferry dock (about half way between the 7-11 and Anya's place). It is right across from Wat Krok Krak, you can't miss it.




Guys were just leaving the dock with their fishing boats, and were lighting off stringers of lady fingers and cherry bombs.


I took my hat off, covered my heart with it and said "Chok Dee" That means "good luck."
The guy next to me nodded and smiled in agreement.


The breeze was picking up, so I sat a while in the shade and watched the next few ships take off.




While I was watching, I saw another lizard sneak up through the cracks that cover the dock drains.
He was shining and wet from swimming,
cautious and still


He scanned the area with his eyes
and then with his tongue


Lizards smell with their tongue, not with their noses (just like snakes.)


Soon he scurried away into the baking sun...




Big ships dock here in Anya's port village.
They weld up seams and fix busted parts.


They load and unload and work.
They work hard.






The men next door have deconstructed a house that was ready to go.


In the states, they'd of bulldozed it , buried it, or burned it down.


Here, they have pulled the nails one by one.
They have taken each board and arranged it for use elsewhere.


Upon the framework with no shoes,
no gloves,


and only a couple sets of sunglasses for arc welding new supports.




It is a different way of living here.
 
I really enjoy looking through your eyes
To the detail that draws your attention

I get a real sense of what is
If only this computer could smell

Thank you
 
Todd
I spent a couple of hours this a.m. traveling thru Thailand thru your eyes (posts) and really thank you for taking the time and effort to share it. Having done a lot of diving I winced watching your back flip :)
wis boz
 
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