Thai-boxing in Koh Phangan
The guys we know from the gym, four of them where going to fight in Koh Phagnan. So me and Vanja decided to join them. Vanja is also together with Bow, one of the traineers from the gym.
Thursday morning 7th May 2009 they came to pick us up outside our place where we stay. We were about thirteen to fourteen people in the pick-up truck. 7-8 people in the back of the car, on the board and the rest inside. We took of from Koh Lanta, picked up William at the BBQ place – he own it.
It took us all day to get there. On the way we stopped in Trang were Bow and Williams family live and have their small rubbery fabric. We stayed there for a while, chillin, smoking, eating mangoes while waiting for them to get ready to go again.
Outside Trang we stopped for some food, rice, curries, fish and some chicken. We shared, did the loo, bought some softdrinks at 7eleven and continued.
It was very hot, sunny, cloudy, rainy and cold when we’re driving. It’s that time of the year now. Sometimes it rained a lot, we then covered ourself with a blue piece of cloth made of plastic. Had to cover up with something to not get totally soaked cause it was really raining heavily sometimes and going in the back of the car the rain sometimes feels like hailstones. Kind of hard-core travelling but we had a lof fun on the way.
Arriving in Surat Thani, we left the car to take the boat over to Koh Phangan. Nice to be able to stretch your legs for a while.
A friend of William came to pick us up with his car/pick-up truck and we continued to the Chokana resort, almost next to the Thai-boxing arena where the fight where going to be held the next day. Time was now about 7 pm. We ’re all got our bungalows, me and Vanja decided to wait and see if we wanted to stay here with the others at Chokana in Ban Tai or if we should just get a bungalow down at Hat Rin Beach.
Hat Rin Beach is famous for their full moon parties, thrown every month. Hat Rin Nok (Sunrise Beach) is the Full Moon party beach, while Hat Rin Nai (Sunset Beach) is the more quiter one where you can find more of the accommodations.
William and the others where going to hand out some flyers so most of us jumped in the car again. Once in Hat Rin we split and Vanja and me took off to check for a place to stay. I was very happy, I don’t know why, just to be back I guess and to recognize things. And to be somewhere else then Koh Lanta, see something new. We wondered around, trying to locate ourself. I found the place where I stayed before, 2005. This night they had a pool party but it had totally changed and the relaxed atmosphere that was there before were totally gone. It had become commercial now and there were also a big sign telling that thai/local people were not allowed. Vanja decided that she wanted to stay at Ban Tai tonight, also much because of Bow, her boyfriend. Soo we decided to buy some spy’s and beer and snacks at 7 eleven before we went back. By the way, everything in the 7eleven were much more expensive here then for example Koh Lanta. Some stuff where almost the double price.
They picked us up outside one of the thaiboxing arenas. Bow was angry and it was a really low feeling in the car. I started to regret that I went back. Back Bow and Vanja had a fight. I was hanging in the reception area for a while before entering our bungalow. Vanja came later, took a blanket and some stuff. Bow and she were going sleep on the beach.
Next morning, Vanja wook me up around 8:30 am. I was soo tired I just wanted to sleep, somehow I succeded to get up anyway. I had a toothbrush in my mouth when Bow and Kun told us we’re going to Thong Sala to have breakfast. Bow is very impatient of him, so it’s sometimes hard to not feel pressure when he is waiting. Off we go, they had some rice and curry, we had some coffee. Back we’re fooling around little bit before renting two motorbikes. We took of to Hat Rin, Bow and Kun driving. Once there Vanja and Bow started to fight again. Bow had been in a bad mood all day. We ended up going back the same way we came, half the way to Thong Sala and then back to the guesthouse.
The atmosphere was very bad and Bow was very angry. Yelling and shouting all the time to Vanja but we’re all got affected by it. So when they wanted to take off again, I decided to head down to the beach. I felt I needed some piece in my mind. I were so happy from the beginning and now everything felt soo wrong, and I didn’t know what to do, I just felt lost in the whole situation. Needed to clear my mind, also asked God to show me the way so I could make the right decisions.
The beach below the resort was cool, fun for a day but boring long-term. The water was so shallow so you couldn’t swim, just walking around on the banks. And the banks where strecthing out quite far in the ocean. Two hours later I was in the shower, Vanja came knocking on the door, letting me know that she wanted to rent another bungalow so Bow and she could stay together. I had a talk to William and decided to stay here instead of getting down to Hat Rin.
I had a walk into Thong Sala (the little capital of Koh Phangan) to check for something to eat. Time was about 5pm and I hadn’t been eating on all day. To my surprise Thong Sala wasn’t that far, and it only took me 15-20 minutes to get there. I wondered around, found a pair of sunglases, bought some more toothpaste in one of the supermarkets, had a look at the food market. Bought some pineapple 10 baht and a whole fish with red curry 30 baht. On the way home I got lost when I tryed to take a short cut. Instead I found a big supermarket named Lotus, short of time but curious as I was I went in, also thinking I might find some farang’s to ask for the way back.
A couple of people tryed to explain how I should walk to get in the right direction again, and they succeeded doing that though I found my way back. I tried to hurry up a little bit, because time was now about 7:45pm and we were soon going to the match.
On the the way back I met Bow, Vanja, Kun and the other guys on two motorbikes. They were going to eat. I kept walking when Kun came back just to drive me home before heading back again to eat. Sweet J
Quickly I jumped into the shower, got dressed, put some make-up on and had the food I bought even though I weren’t hungry anymore. Everyone started to get ready and we took of to the boxing-stadium.
William quickly directed us to the bar, he wanted us to sell beer and stand behind it all night. He is very moneywise so I guess because me and Vanja was there for free and also because it was a Buddha-day so thai-people weren’t allowed to sell alcohol but foreigners where.
So we stood behind the bar almost all night selling beer and other soft drinks. Got freezingly cold of my hands though all the bottles where in ice-boxes. The last fight where between Kun and another guy. We left bar to see the game. He won aswell as two of the other guys. Kun and Ek is around 30 years old. The other two, Noj 17 and the youngest, 14 years old.
We had a great fun all night, drinking beer and joking. After the game me and some other guys went to the hospital with Kun, he needed to sew.
We went back to the resort, time was about 4 am in the morning and some people ended up on the beach, drinking. I was to tired for that and went to bed. 7 o’clock in the morning Kun came knocking on my door. He wanted to sleep at my place, I tried to make him go, but he wouldn’t just get up from my bed where he falled asleep. Finally tired as I was, I thought he could sleep there as long as he didn’t tried to do something.
I couldn’t get any deep sleep after this, just dreaming a lot all the time. By 10 am I kicked him out of my room though I was very hungry and were going to find something to eat.
I went to a store nearby for some soft drinks, later I walked in to Thong Sala, I wanted to by the pair of sunglases I’ve seen before. On the way Vanja called me and told me that Kun forgot his mobile and motorbike key in my room. Bow and Vanja came on their motorbike to meet me up to get the key to my room.
Back at the resort I finally caught a cab to Hat Rin, I wanted to see if I could find any shopping or at least a new dress, aswell as I wanted to wander around a bit alone without having anyone waiting for me all the time. The taxis here are expensive, and have a fixed price of 100Baht. I didn’t want to rent a motorbike either though the roads to Hat Rin are horrible. It is very hilly and some parts of the road are very step and slope and descend abruptly. Soo there was no way I would drive myself in this roller coaster. Bow and Kun on the other hand didn’t have a problem with it, but I guess they’re more or less born on the bike.
Today whole Hat Rin felt chaotic. Loads of Englishmen everywhere, running around in their bikini’s and swimwear on the streets, in the shops, in the taxis and in the restaurants, yelling and shouting loudly. Not getting dressed before doing any activity. Thailand was way far away. Respect and harmony seem to be totally gone here.
It started to pouring rain. I kept wander around looking for at least one dress, trying to avoid the rain as much as I could to not get totally soaked. I have actually been wearing the same dress all the time now since I came. My thought were to shop in Bangkok before heading to Koh Lanta. But no I didn’t. Had to much to carry that day, also it was Song Kran, New Year, meaning Thailand = water party. It’s not a easy day to handle with a computer and big camera in your hand. Also increasingly hot and humid. Koh Lanta on the other hand have like null clothes that I want. Same same everywhere, expensive and bad quality.
Time started taking off/ticking away and I decided to go back to the first shop and buy an overpriced dress so I could go home. 650Bbaht was the price of the dress. I tryed hard to get it down to at least 300-400B. But impossible, she just sayed if I wanted it cheaper I could just go back to Bangkok and buy it there. I ended up paying 500baht for it. With a new dress in my hand I caught a taxi back to the resort just in time soo I would be able to take a shower, get dressed and do some make-up before we would head back to Hat Rin for the full moon party.
After Kun, Bow and Wanja been eating, me and her went to 7eleven to buy som beer and spy. Spy is a alcopop, sweet and carbonated and comes in different flavours. They’re about 30baht. William obviously didn’t feel ready to go yet so we all gathered on the beach, drinking and some of the guys already been smoking to much.
Finally about 11:30 pm, we all got in the car and went off in totally wrong direction, to Thong Sala.
It showed later that William were going to buy alcohol, buckets, Cola and straws here.
We parked the car in Hat Rin and took off to the beach were the full moon party is held.
They had made an entrance to the beach, making foreigners pay 100baht and thai-people go for free. I didn’t want to pay, but felt that it would be ridiculous to take another way and let the others wait for us, so we payed those fuckin’ 100 bahts. I really had to try hard to keep my mood up, though nothing was as I remembered it. Just so commercial, just so horrible. People everywhere painted in those silly colours yelling and shouting out of nothing. Buckets everywhere and everyone superduper drunk. It was not a cool party, this party has ended up to something like ”Mallorca”. But here in a culture that not really support this kind of behavior, just except it because of the money.
I did my best trying to be happy though. We were like 15-20 people going together so we made a group of our own. I think no one really fancied the feeling at the party except one guy, Ek J We had a great time anyway. But I would never go back myself for the full moon party again. That is soo over and done. Just a bunch of very uncool, half-fucked people in one and the same place.
We all had a walk around the beach and sat down sometimes to chat and refill the buckets, with Bow as the best man to run and buy more ice, Sodas, Colas and snacks at 7eleven. I run away for awhile to find a place to dance but I didn’t really fancy the music anywhere.
Meantime Vanja called me and told me that they’re were moving and probably going to the car. It took me awhile before I found them. And by then also William and his team were gone. The others had been waiting for me so now we all started confusedly to walk around, scattered but moving forward. Two of the guys holding my hand so I wouldn’t run away again. They’re quite funny sometimes J
We wandered around for awhile before I remembered that I actually had William’s mobile number. I try to call him a couple of times but no answer. Ek, one of the guys, thought William and the others already gone back home and wanted to take a taxi. I suggested we all just went back to the place where we parked the car. And back at the parking place they were actually waiting for us. We all got into the car and drove home.
We went to the beach at our resort for a short while. Rita (English girl) went to bed, I didn’t feel to stay alone with the guys, so shortly after I also headed to my bungalow. Kun came around, I told him he needed stay in his room. The thai-boxing guys are sharing a big bungalow together. I really needed to get some sleep. Haven’t really been sleeping anything at all during this weekend trip.
10:30 was the time for leaving. I luckily could go to the loo and boom boom before, which I always appreciate so the stomach will alright during the day.
We sat on the board outside behind the car as usual. This time Bow succeded to organise it little bit more comfortable. It took us the whole day to get back. Trang is known for its cakes. We bought some but I didn’t really fancy them. William and his team left the car for another car. Some people from the behind jumped into the car and we got some more space. Leaving us to be only 4 people in the back, me, Wanja and the two younger guys, Noi and the 14 years old one.
By 09:30 pm we where home, back to Koh Lanta. It felt strange. Back to reality. It took me a couple of days to feel comfy again being back, but now it feels ok again.
