Krabi bound

Posted under Southeast Asia 2009

Krabi bound requires that we arise before first light. This does not make for a happy Bonnie 🙁 but it am what it am and if we are to make our boat we have no choice. The price of our ticket includes minibus transport from our hotel in Kata to Phuket town, and our transport to our hotel in Ao Nang. The ferry ride is about two hours and the taxi rides total about an hour. When we arrive at the ferry dock in Phuket, and turn in our ticket, we are identified by a little colored sticky badge, which identifies which ferry we are to catch. You then put your faith in a higher power and several dockworkers, as the ferries are all rafted together. You climb from one to the next and stop at whichever one somebody points to, based upon your little colored sticky. While this is going on, these same workers are passing your luggage from one to another until it hopefully arrives at your boat. Now I know that the luggage that Bonnie and I have entrusted to their care, weighs more than the fellows trying to pass these from boat to boat and it crosses my mind that if I were in that situation I may accidentally hurl those heavy suckers into the brine. These individuals are obviously more dependable than my own sweet self, for both our luggage and our bodies arrive at Ao Nang, on the same boat and at the same time. 😀 Actually we have one small transfer before our land arrival. The bay is a tad too shallow for the ferryboat, so “long-tail boats” transport us to our mini bus shuttles for our delivery to our respective hotels. All this for about $45. Listen up B.C. Ferries.

The Andaman Sea on the west coast of Phuket is very open, with few small islands. Phuket Island are like connected mountain ranges (tall hills). This is not the situation around Ao Nang. The bay takes on the appearance of the lower jaw of some prehistoric creature. Numerous small vertical islands thrust skyward from blue – green waters, erratically spaced like staggered teeth, in varying degrees of decay. These islands are very steep sided, and have generally about the same height. It would appear as though they were all submerged as a general landmass, and the softer materials eroded with water action. This same general appearance carries on to Krabi Island itself, as though the general land mass was forced upwards, with some areas only rising high enough to break the waters surface. Hey, what the heck — it’s my story, and who’s to argue?

Ao Nang is a beach town and touristy —- like the other tourist beach towns. Same, same –but different. Still have the same friendly peoples, the same tuk-tuks, the same suit outlets and the same sidewalk vendors. It is, however, a bit smaller than beach towns on Phuket, and thereby seems a little more laid back. Or maybe it is just us? I’ll have to put some thought to this to see if it is realistic to do less than nothing. Well not totally nothing, we still have to find sustenance. You can eat your way for blocks via the street vendors, or eat your way for blocks via the restaurants—–decisions, decisions. You can get quite a good chicken-on-a-stick from the street vendors. They are cooked on small charcoal barbeques fastened to the side of little motorbikes. They also cook fish on the same barbeques. As much as Bonnie enjoys the vendors fare, she has not worked up the courage to try the fish. Neither have I—not even on a bet. 😛 These delectable little morsels are about the size of baitfish, and once properly cooked, take on the appearance of an overcooked tongue from an old sneaker. Add to this the fact that it is still looking at you. I guess that we have to keep the tasty head bits attached. Takes some getting used to, methinks. Lots of other great stuff though, from noodles to dessert. There are also lots of vendors selling “Muslim Food”. Now this is actually food prepared by Muslims, so there ain’t no pig. Well pig is really called moo in Thai, so I guess that you get no moo in Muslim. Food is still good.

Krabi Island is apparently comprised of about 50 percent Muslims, 40 percent Buddhist and 10 percent whatever. Notice a significant difference in the ratio of mosques to temples. They seem to tolerate each other well and nobody has tried to measure me up for a black bag over my head, at least not to this point in time. I’ll soon be so brown that I will probably just blend into the crowd, — well maybe I’ll look like a crowd by myself. They keep trying to sell me items for big! big! “Got your size, papa, big! big!” I’d smack them if I wouldn’t look like such a bully. Maybe just Bonnie will blend in.

Nuff for now – more to follow.
T