Aaaah! The beach at last!

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I made a point of seeing some kickboxing matches in Bangkok before I left, and it was definitly worth it!  I paid the extra bucks to get the ringside tix, and when they say ringside they mean RINGSIDE.  I was getting hit with the sweat and water from the fighters, who only weighed in at a paltry 100-130 pounds.  The fights were short and vicious, with the crowd behind us gamling on the matches and shouting advice.  The last match of the nigh ws a couple of 150 lb beefcakes who really put their all into it.  I got more than enough video of the mathces and even a few great shots.Time to go home, in the pouring rain and get some sleep for tomorrow would be a big one.

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Whew, finally made it after a busy half day of travelling with full packs and opressive humidity.  We flew from Bangkok Intl. to Koh Samui island, and arranged to take the high speed ferry over to Koh Pah Ngang island.  Then for a taxi bus to take us to Haad Rin Beach, the most popular beach on the island with B-packers, and for good reason.  The beach is beautiful, with the warmest water I've ever jumped in and white sandy beaches with nary a rock to be found.  I've seen MAYBE three people over the age of forty since we've been here, and the crowd is supremely laid back.  The shops on the road behind the beach are all the same; some version of either a travel agency, a tattoo parlour, or selling beachwear, or serving up some amazing food for even more amazing prices.  And this is the mainstream beach, other beaches and towns would be even cheaper.  The four of us- three Canadians (two from Ottawa and myself from Red Deer) and a Brit that we picked up along the way- are staying about 25 yards from the beach at the Northern edge.  My room is 700 Bt and I'm splitting it with the Brit.  The bros are splitting a 500 Bt room w/o AC.  We were really lucky to get these rooms too as there is a big party this week (the full moon party, largest of its kind in the world!) that will have about 4-7000 people flock to the beach here and the rooms will disappear in a matter of days.  Tomorrow I will probably rent a scooter to get around, for about 150B a day, cheaper if I rent for a longer time.  I couldn't get rid of the excees weight in my pacl on account of the post office being closed on Sat and Sun, so I was stuck carrying an extra 15 pounds of gear that I don't need, taking up valuable space.  There is post office in Haad Rin and I'll get rid of it there, it only takes five minutes to walk from one side of the penninsula to the other.  So I can catch the sunrise in the morning and walk over and catch the sunset on the other side!  I'm thinking that I'll spend about two weeks here decompressing from Nepal, then catch a ferry up to Koh Tao, an even smaller island which boasts the cheapest PADI certification anywhere and do some Scuba diving and snorkeling for another two weeks.

MAYBE three people over the age of forty