So...Thailand is great. Peter and I had a great time just north of Malaysia the week before picking up Mike. We rented bikes in a town called Trang, then rode down the coast until the rain forced us to stop at the Hat (beach) Yao Nature Resort. The owner was a really friendly Thai couple, the husband a former Anthropologist and currently working to establish several self-sustainable and eco-friendly island resorts. At dinner our first night there, he gave Peter and I rough descriptions of how to find caves hidden among forests of mangroves - caves that were apparently used by pirates to store booty as recently as 60-80 years ago. Early the next morning we rented a kyak and paddled towards a nearby cape. We were inside a big inlet from the coast that carved a grid of canals through shores thick with mangroves - their roots branching out above the water and plunging down to the mud below. We entered a small canal barely visible from the main waterway. After several detours in the maze of mangroves, we approached a cave opening up from the water. The top of the cave was about a meter above the water, then the rock continued upwards creating an enormous cliff. We paddled inside the cave to a small room with walls all around, except for a small dark patch to the left. We moved to the left, using our hands on the ceiling to propell us through, and were soon enshrouded in complete darkness. We crept forward and, just as we ran into a wall, saw a dim light coming from our right. We turned once more and now paddled to another small room that opened up to a lagoon of mangrove canals enclosed on all sides by cliffs dotted with greens that reminded us of home (picture of Pete above). In the side of one of these cliffs there was a dry cave that, after getting stuck in mud up to our knees, we entered and explored. The walls of this cave were tiered with natural shelves - a natural trophy room for pirates. Afterwards, we left the lagoon and caves, returned to the main canal and continued to paddle around the cape. Far ahead, we spotted a rock hanging of the water that looked like a good place for lunch. Just before reaching the rock, we saw and turned into a little canal to our left that wound us through the mangroves to another cave. We pulled our kyak onto the mud and, rather than going towards the cave in front of us, climbed a ladder to a small plateau that turned out to be the mouth of an enormous cave. The ground quickly dropped into the cave as the ceiling towered above us. We walked up a little ridge on the left side of the cave to a small opening that looked into anther section hidden from the entrance. It was amazing - Peter and I sat in this tiny nook in the far corner of the cave and looked down onto a natural cathedral of rock. The sides again sloped down in tiers to the center of the room where a giant pillar of rock shot all the way to the ceiling, supporting the enormous cavern. We sat in awe for a long time and ate our lunch despite the strong wind tunneling from the mouth of the cave, through our little hole and out a small opening at the top of the cathedral's far side. This opening gave the cave a brilliant light that sparkeled off the smooth rock. After spending a long time exploring this cave and discovering new routes between the two rooms, we geared up to leave - unfortunately, we spent a little too long in the cave and by the time we left our little canal had completely dried up. No problem. Peter and I grabbed the bow line and sprinted up the muddy canal, dragging the kyak. Now we were muddy and sweaty...time for a swim. We kyaked to a beautiful beach and played frisbee out in the water for several hours until sunset, when we returned to the resort for dinner and bed.
The next day it was onwards to our next adventure. We loaded our motorcycles onto a small wooden ferry and crossed over to Ko (island) Libong. Our two days spent there were wonderful. We saw the whole island on our bikes - riding single-track dirt roads with leaves falling in the wind and blowing all around us, beautiful scenery - it was amazing. We found several spots with decent snorkelling and some beautiful, deserted beaches. On our way back to Trang, while riding through pounding rain, my bike broke down, which caused some hassle with the renter and we missed our train to Bangkok. We hired a driver to take us 120 km north, to Thong Lo, where we got on an overnight train in the only section available...first class! I'm never going back to second. We had our own booth with comfortable beds...I think it was the best we slept the whole trip. On the sixteenth we picked up Mike at the Bangkok airport and went directly to the bus station and caught a ride going southest to Trat, a town just west of Cambodia.
Early the next morning we rented motorbikes (the only way to travel). It was Mike's first full day in Thailand and we already had him on a bike. We caught a ferry to Ko Chang, a fairly popular island with tourists - the west coast is lined with bungalo resorts. We spent lots of time in the water and enjoyed exploring the roads with steep hills, sharp turns and incredible vistas of the coastline. While enjoying the nightlife, we went for a little skinny dip in the tropical waters and I managed to lose my wallet...minor setback but its all worked out. For our last day on the island we rented a great two-story bungalo right on a beautiful beach. From this spot we rented a kyak and, in the pouring rain, paddled out to a small island a good way off shore. As we paddled out, the water was deep blue all around. I put a mask on and dove as deep as I could and still could not see bottom - so I just relaxed underwater and lay suspended, my senses drowned out by the temperature and silence of the water and the deep blue that expanded in every direction. It was a very tranquil experience...despite the lack of oxygen. As we approached the island, the deep blue was cut off by a shelf of coral. This patch of coral turned out to be the most incredible snorkelling ever. There were fish of all shapes and sizes, bright coral with giant neon anenomies and huge, daunting sea urchins...and we had it all to ourselves. The next day was an all day journey back to Bangkok where we saw Peter off on his plane back home. Then Mike and I boarded an over night train to Chiang Mai...first class of course. It was nice to see Liz again - her hospitality is so warm and her house so comfortable. However, we were only around a day before heading on our bikes (first thing we did in Chiang Mai was rent motorbikes) north to Mae Sai, the border town to Myanmar. I needed to cross the border and return in order to renew my visa - I can't believe I've already been here over a month! We stopped along the way and took a nice hike and later explored a market in Chiang Rai before finally arring in Mae Sai just at dusk. The next morning we spent about an hour in Myanmar buying DVDs at the market that practically sits on the border. We couldn't resist; the DVD's are from China and are the real thing, not pirated qualitly, and are dirt cheap. Mom and Dad...you'll have a nice package arriving next week. The drive home from Mae Sai was incredible. We took a small mountain road most of the way that wound us in and out of incredible hills and made for some of the most fun roads on a bike I've yet to ride. The last several days in Chiang Mai we've hung out with Bryce, a college roommate of Mike's, and his friend Joe. Tonight we are going to a Muy Thai match, Thai boxing (with a little martial arts mixed in)...it's 9 fights in three hours and I can't wait! Mike and I are hoping to head south in several days to enjoy some more beaches before I leave next week on the 7th! Having a great time here, but am also very excited to see Michelle and explore Europe. Sorry for the long post...hope I haven't bored you to death. I'm gonna put another post up right now with some pictures from my trip (something I should've been doing the whole time). Take care everyone!
-Sam