Krabi - Ko Lanta

On Friday night we went to a Thai boxing match. It was good but different to what i'd imagined. The arena was quite small and never got half full throughout. Before it started we all had to stand for the national anthem. There were 10 fights each lasting 5 rounds. Before the first round of each fight both boxers entered the ring and music was played that sounded indian to me?! Both of them went to all 4 corners of the ring and touched the cushioning with their head and gloves as if they were praying. Then they would kneel in the middle of the ring and lean forwards to touch the floor with their gloves and head. Nextthey did a type of dance which involved squatting in a lunge position and rocking back and forward on either foot whilst spinning their arms in front of them, they did this to all sides of the ring. Eventually the ref brought them into the centre of the ring to touch gloves and the first round began. The music played through every round and they would start out by moving back and forward on their feet to the beat of the music, usually with one leg slightly suspended so they could kick out at the other in defence. They also tended to wobble their head slightly to the beat whilst staring at the other as if to psyche them up. Most of the first rounds continued like this with each of them punching or kicking at the other every now and again. Each round lasted about 3 minutes, then a stool was put in their corner where they sat and the coach came into the ring, rubbed ice cubes into their arms and legs, poured water over their head, slapped them around the face a few times and shook their head, all the while giving them advice on the next round. Usually by the 2nd round the fights increased in violence. The only protection they had was a box around their private parts and gloves, no head gear. There didn't seem to be a limit on where they could punch and kick each other. As the night progressed the fights became more violent. One round had to be stopped so a boxers bloody head could be cleaned and 2 other boxers were knocked out and fell to the floor like a sack of spuds. Probably only 5 of the 10 fights went the full 5 rounds.

On Saturday we were picked up by mini bus and driven to Ko Lanta which involved 2 ferry crossings of about 5 mins each. After a long journey around the island as the driver didn't know where the accommodations were that other people had booked on the bus we decided to get out with an Irish couple we'd been chatting to as the place they'd booked sounded nice. We are staying in Ao Phra Ae (aka Long beach) at the Lanta Marina bungalows. THe bungalow we took is 3.30GBP a night each and has a partial sea view. It's raised off the ground on stilts and made of wood and bamboo, with a thatched roof and a balcony. It only has one room with nothing more than a huge bed, fan and mosquito net. It has a small bathroom attached with a cold shower and western toilet but no flush so we have to fill a pan with water to flush it as with squatting pans in Thailand. We've had a few visitors, ants, bettles, a cockroach, a flying insect a bit like a bee and the worst a rat. Despite this we love it and Mott the owner has given us a hammock for the balcony, bliss! On our first night Mott was doing a BBQ so we had chicken, rice and salad, it was delicious. Later in the evening the wind started to pick up so we knew we were in for another storm. We moved our bags away from the edge of the room and the gaps where the rain could come in and went to bed. Soon after the storm started, strong winds and rain. Then thunder and lightening. We were used to this from Krabi but i have never heard thunder so loud. I realised i'd left a beach mat out on the balcony and went out to get it, then i couldn't lock the door again as the wood had swelled from the rain and the wind was so strong Nicky had to push against it whilst i fiddled with the lock. Eventually we managed and got back into bed. We started to feel spots of water dropping on us and thought we might end up sodden, but didn't luckily! Next morning we found a French deli fro breakfast and go there every morning now for tea and toast.

On our first full day we sunbathed on the beach a few yards from the bungalows. It's quite rocky mainly in the water but it's so clear it's easy to avoid them. A Thai guy came over and gave us a coconut he'd just choppped from a tree above the beach. I tried to pretend i was enjoying drinking the coconut juice but it reminded me of salt water! His name is Jai and he spent the next few hours with us chatting and teaching us some Thai. Yesterday we sunbathed in the morning then sat on the balcony to shade from the midday sun. Jai joined us shortly after and took Nicky with him to the beach to get a coconut. Nicky said he scaled the tree in no time which is as high as a 2 storey house, then shook it until coconuts dropped to the floor. He stayed with us for a few hours until we went back to the beach. He is lovely and very chatty but both of us had begun to wish we could just relax on our own and read etc. We'd already decided after much thought to stay on Ko Lanta until we fly to Bangkok from Krabi on the 7th April. We were only going to stay for a week then go to Ko Phi Phi for a week but we have fallen in love with Ko Lanta and the relaxed and peaceful way of life. Phi Phi is more expensive and crowded and we need to save money for Bangkok. We will definitely do a day trip to Phi Phi as it's supposed to be beautiful and we want to snorkel one more time. For now we will stay at the Lanta Marina, hopefully for the full 2 weeks but if Jai's visits continue to be daily we will probably move to a resort further south on the island.

Today we went further down the beach to sunbathe, it's even more beautiful there and the shore is covered with millions of shells. At times it feels as though we have the beach to ourselves, there are so few tourists compared to everywhere else we've been. Also the stray dogs don't seem to be on the beach there. Everywhere we've been in Thailand (city or beach resort) has lots of stray dogs, a lot have bad skin conditions. They are always on the beach in front of of bungalows and don't usually bother us but sometimes they try and sit with us on our towels!