Island Style

Hello from the Gulf of Thailand! I'm sorry I haven't gotten around to throwing my two cents in before now but Sam's been doing a pretty good job summing up the experience so far. Right now we're hanging out near near Haad Rin Beach on Koh Phangan, the island made famous by the Full Moon Party, a monthly rager that allegedly draws 20,000 people to the island. The palm lined walks of the bungalows display bright neon battle scars from the last of these parties, splashes of blacklight paint that make it easy to visualize what this small town's streets must have looked like packed with party-goers fueled by buckets of redbull and Thai whiskey. That last party was about a week ago now and things seemed to have slowed back down again. I have to say the island pace is definitely what I've been looking for.

When we decided to take this little adventure of ours one of the big things I wanted to do was just hang out. I was really excited to be free from my daily routines in order to be able to think a little clearer. But then between the madness of everything terrific and horrible about Bangkok and then transitioning straight into our SCUBA courses, there wasn't a whole lot of breathing room in our first week and a half in Thailand. Now we've finally made it to a beautiful island and have all the free time in the world, and its just a matter of learning to slow down. In my spare time I find myself thinking: "What should I be doing?! Am I missing out on something amazing right now!? I want to do it all!" I'm learning to ignore those questions, because the answers don't really matter in the context of a vacation. I'm lounging in our bungalow and on the beach, catching up on some reading and enjoying a lot of good food, and that's incredibly enjoyable in and of itself!

I think we're going to be spending another week or so on Koh Pangan. As I type this I'm listening to some of the music that will be going on at the Half Moon Party in a few days. Sam and I agreed it would be crazy to be here during on of the parties and not attend so we're going to check it out. There are also some more chilled out beaches that are only reachable by boat that we want to spend some time on. I have yet to enjoy a coconut or lay in a hammock since we've been here! I'm hoping to check both of those of the list in the next couple of days. Hopefully at the same time.

-Avery-