Here in Nakhon Sawan: Loi Krathong

Apologies for being lax on the blogging front lately, being back at school has kept us busy but I promise there is a Hong Kong post and a video from way back in July coming your way.

Our first week back in Nakhon Sawan coincided with the Loi Krathong festival which celebrates the end of the rainy season. Thais Light 'krathongs' (traditional made from banana tree and leaf but these days can be anything from plastic to bread)  and set them off on the river along with all their bad feelings. Some people also set off lanterns and in Chiang Mai, where this festival is a much bigger occasion, it can be quite a spectacular sight!

Here in Kuala Lumpur

We had bought our bus tickets from Penang to Kuala Lumpur the previous day, so full of optimism we turned up at the advertised time of 1130. We waited a bit and just after 12 we were ushered into a mini-bus which was to take us to the bus station.

It actually took us just down the road from the bus station, where we clambered onto an amazingly comfortable bus with huge reclining seats and bags of leg room. Feeling excited, we got to the bus station about 12.30pm for our fellow passengers to hop on. 

But they didn't. Or rather they did, but soon realised they weren't actually supposed to be on our bus and got off again. Or they got on and quibbled over who's seat was who's. The staff had about as much idea as the rest of us but eventually we departed just after 1.30pm

Here in Penang

A big highlight of Penang for us was the food but I’ve written about that here so I won’t repeat myself.

Our visit did not start very well. After a 12 hour trip which involved two mini-vans and a car (luxury!) we were dropped right in the heart of backpackers-ville on Penang.

In colonial times, Penang Island was an important outpost of the British Empire and the bustling city which sprung up has kept it's colonial name: Georgetown. These days Georgetown is a UNESCO heritage sight. However, none of this rich history commands that money exchanges must stay open beyond 9pm. So, we found ourselves in the middle of the hustle and bustle with no Ringit (Malaysian currency) and our preferred guest house full to the brim.

Here in Khao Sok

After a week lying on the sandy beaches of Koh Phangan, we are all beached out and ready for adventure. So we headed back to mainland Thailand and to the striking limestone cliffs and jungles of Khao Sok National Park. Arriving in the dark and rain, we briefly missed our warm, sandy bungalows but soon we grabbed some dinner and booked ourselves on to a two-day guided trip to Cheow Lan Lake, starting 8am the very next morning.

Cheow Lan is a man-made lake which is used to produce hydro-electricity. Damning the Klong Saeng river created the 165sqkm lake and more than 100 islands. The limestone cliffs jut out from the still water, dwarfing the long tail boats fishing for dinner or ferrying tourists.

Here on Bottle Beach

We swapped the postcard beach of Haad Salad for the waves, rocks and power outages of Bottle Beach and I loved it! Haad Salad was beautiful, it was everything a beach lover would want from a Thai island - the soft white sand, lined with palm trees leading you to calm, clear water warm enough to lie in for hours. There was an array of resorts and restaurants, some average but some served up really great Thai food. 

But still I have to say that I preferred Bottle Beach. It is more remote and can be reached by an extremely rough track or by boat. There are just four accommodation options and they all run off a generator which is switched off for a couple of hours each day. It was quiet. Very quiet. There were far more workers than guests and at one point we could have told you by name the only three other guests on the whole beach!

Here on Haad Salad

After travelling for 18 hours by train, bus and ferry we arrived on the infamous party island of Koh Phangnan. I was bit nervous about coming here because the island is so well known for it’s full-moon parties and we are far too boring to wear rave paint and drink from buckets. 

So we ventured further round the coast from the bright lights and beer bottles of Haad Rin and found that most of the island remains fairly unspoiled. We found some nice little bungalows set slightly back from the beach at Haad Salad and then it was a race to the sea!

We spent a lazy few days enjoying the tranquility of low season, dipping in and out of the warm turquoise sea and rediscovering the joys of hot showers. I wish I could start every day with a swim in the sea and accompany my breakfast with the sounds of gentle waves lapping the soft white sand. 

Dokbua Games 2014

This is not just a sports day. This is not even just a sports week. It is the Dokbua games 2014 and I’ve never experienced anything like it!

Alongside the usual athletics and football it also featured tug-of-war, chess (don’t get me started!), table tennis and the Thai games, dacour and wing dial There are eight teams and they each have a colour so all week the school has been a sea of red, blue, pink, green, orange, yellow and maroon. Matt was on the orange team and I was maroon which was annoying because it’s the only colour that doesn’t appear in my wardrobe!

Almost all of the weeks lessons were cancelled and we spent our afternoons out in the sun cheering the kids. They all did brilliantly although my kindergarteners struggled with concepts such as which direction to run in and how to win the game!