17th October - 20th
It was a 5.30am start on the day we had to leave our idyllic beach on Ko Phangan to get a pick-up truck to the port, a ferry to the mainland, a bus to Surat Thani, a second bus to Krabi, a tuk-tuk to Ao Nang and a longtail boat to Ton Sai Beach on the peninsular of Rilay, south west Thailand. We arrived literally on the beach, our bodies lurching over the side of the boat with the weight from our rucksacks onto sand, and waded through the water, clenching our toes to our flip flops with every step. We were met with stunning scenes and ones which reminded me of Ha Long Bay in Vietnam - huge limestone rocks towering above us, turquoise water and fun-looking wooden beach bars with "chill zones". It is no wonder that the place draws rock climbers from all over the world - intriguing and colourful rock formations with enough overhangs and caves to keep even the best climbers occupied for months.
After a day of checking things out, watching climbers and walking between the three local beaches, I signed up for a morning climbing session with a local instructor. We did four great climbs, the view at the top of each one of the blue sea below making reaching the end of the rope even more rewarding. An Irish guy had signed up with the same instructor. He told me, only after his first climb, that he was afraid of heights and that his sports were really scuba diving and rugby. I remembered how nervous I had been about scuba diving and tried to offer him some words of encouragement - as our instructor in Vietnam had said, "remember you can never fall off the rock when we are using ropes ... you can only let go."
The fact that Ton Sai beach has basic wooden hut accommodation but is a five minute walk from West Rilay, a beach with plush resorts, is quite satisfying. You get to share the same stunning views and beaches but only pay a fraction of the price (our hut was $6 a night - albeit the water did run out one afternoon when I was in the middle of showering and it took a good 15 minutes, standing outside in my towel with shampoo in my hair, to get some more pumped back into the tank). It was probably no coincidence that we met some fun, life-loving people on Ton Sai - people who enjoy nature and outdoor sports, who were on a similar budget to us, and who would rather climb up a rock face than lounge at the side of a pool. I loved the vibe there. We ate each day with a lovely family from South Africa - Tyron, Roz and their 5 year old son, Josh - who we had met during the journey to Ton Sai. Josh was one of the most chatty and intelligent 5 year olds I have ever met and I'm sure that he will start school in South Africa next year as the most travelled and informed child in his class.
On our last evening on Ton Sai we celebrated Tyron's birthday by tucking into some cheap food from a food stall and then spending the money we had saved at one of the beach bars. Another South African I had met at the same food stall the day before, his Serbian friend and a couple of Americans we had met climbing (brother and sister) also joined us. I got talking to the American girl and found out that she had picked up a gold medal in rowing at the Beijing Olympics this year. It was fascinating talking to her and hearing about how much her life had been dedicated to her passion. I did feel a little humble, however, when she turned to me and said, "so, what did you do before travelling?"
Most people we talked to were going to hang out on Ton Sai for a couple of months to make the most of the rock-climbing (there are some 700 climbing routes in the area). It would have been nice to have stayed with them as "the group" seemed to be just coming together ... as we were preparing to leave. Whilst not having a precise travel itinerary (in short, we are heading south), we do, have to make sure we are in Singapore for meeting Eva on November 19th. Alas, we had to leave another bunch of interesting people and another fantastic place. Still, from what this trip has taught me so far, I can be confident that it's not the last beautiful place we are going to come across. And if there are beautiful places still to be seen, there has to be some more interesting people to meet - usually those with their lives on their backs trying to get in on the fun for less than half the price.
