I will be back stateside tomorrow evening and I'm not sure how to feel... Excited, sad, scared, etc?! Not looking forward to traveling for 22 consecutive hours, that's for sure.
Retrospective post on my year in Thailand to come soon, maybe.
I hope y'all are as excited/happy to see me as I am to see you!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
China: Guangzhou
OK, this is going to be super short. I visited my bro in China for 5 days. It was a vast improvement on my first visit to China (http://nattinspain.blogspot.com/2007/06/what-asia.html) and I was actually too busy having fun to take too many pics! We ate a lot of good food, met a lot of my brother's girlfriend's super nice fam, and I got to see my bro perform for the first time, which was awwwesome!
So I partied and ate and lived like a queen for five glorious days -- my brother and his gf were amazing hosts. Totally changed my opinion of China, that's for sure! I was also glad to get a glimpse into my bro's badass lifestyle and learn a few things. :)
I'm going back to Koh Tao tomorrow and I am going to try to get as much diving in as possible before I leave Thailand, eek!
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| my brother is a rockstar! errr, he prefers the term musician, sorry |
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| The Hooligans at a cowboy-themed restaurant and bar |
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| second time I've rode a mechanical bull... and I'm still sore! |
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| aww so proud |
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| The Panda Band put on a super great, energetic show for its fans |
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| In China, sometimes bars have cat mascots, heeh |
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| enjoying red wine and cute dog Cafe on a beautiful terrace |
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| dim sum - yum! |
So I partied and ate and lived like a queen for five glorious days -- my brother and his gf were amazing hosts. Totally changed my opinion of China, that's for sure! I was also glad to get a glimpse into my bro's badass lifestyle and learn a few things. :)
I'm going back to Koh Tao tomorrow and I am going to try to get as much diving in as possible before I leave Thailand, eek!
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
April Happenings and Two-Week Vacation
I don't have much time to do this, so this'll be a picture-heavy post, with long captions. I am currently on day 8 of my two-week long break/vacation and will be going to China tomorrow to visit my bro for 5 days!
First up on the recap menu: the April 11 wedding that I coordinated and shot went really well, much to my relief! The weather was beautiful and the bride and groom (who met on Koh Tao years ago!) and their respective families were happy with everything, so yay! We had 3 videographers helping out who took a few stills, which took the pressure off me in terms of NOT being the only photographer.
Next event of note: Songkran, better known as Thai New Year, on April 13th, was a blast. The idea is to use water to wash away the bad from the last year, a sort of cleansing thing... but it's basically a huge national water fight that lasts for many days in certain parts of Thailand. I'm glad it only lasts for one day on Koh Tao, because getting water thrown at you gets old after a full day. Also, while I didn't really partake, the mass amounts of drinking started at noon, which is just nuts!
My videographer friend made a cool, dramatic video (in which I make a cameo, at the end) here
Around mid-April I had to help out with a few Thai snorkeling trips back-to-back, which, as I've mentioned before, can be tiring because all I do is tow the customers (who usually cannot swim...) but I enjoyed the excuse to be in the water and occasionally got to show off my bubble ring skillZ.
I found some time to go fun-diving and work on my underwater photography, woot!
My Spanish friend Gemma, who I met on the Queen Scuba, recommended a tasty chicken quesadilla from Buddha Cafe and despite my skepticism, I had to try it... Verdict? tasty!
My college friend, Hyung Joo, came to visit for a couple of days and ended up staying for a week or so because he fell in love with Koh Tao and diving (as well he should!). He ended up doing his Open Water Certification and we have the awesome video to prove it!
Luckily for him, HJ wasn't around when I got triggered (attacked by a Titan Triggerfish) while snorkeling and I summarized my experience (on facebook) thusly:
Getting Triggered while diving = a little bit annoying, a little bit funny.
Getting Triggered while snorkeling with flimsy split fins, no boots, no wetsuit = scary as hell!
About a minute into the attack I managed to press "record" but didn't have the presence of mind to white balance -- was too busy avoiding a nasty bite. Have never seen such a persistent and aggressive Triggerfish. Just my luck, I guess! :P
Forget sharks, I think I'm more scared of nesting triggerfish! The video I posted is here and here's a pic of the evil bastard:
Near the end of April, we had a group of 250 Thai people staying at both resorts and we were busy and stressed for a few days but everything went OK. I was going to leave Koh Tao to got BKK right after that, but the dive shop manager organized the annual staff party and I decided to stay for that, haha. We went to a mini-golf, bowling, pool/snooker place with a bar and restaurant and it was a lot of fun. Island-style bowling is ghetto and awesome!
So now I've been in BKK for awhile now, visiting relatives and generally relaxing. I went to Rayong (3-4 hrs away from BKK) to visit my dad's relatives in the countryside for a day and to eat/take tons of delicious Thai fruits.
I went to the Bangkok Sea View Restaurant with some family from my mom's side, and that was a bust. We drove waaay too far and then were late so it was dark (meaning that there wasn't much of a view to enjoy) and the 15-minute boat ride from the pier to the restaurant wasn't pleasant, and the food was mediocre... and then! The boat died on the return trip and we were stuck getting eaten alive by mozzies for what seemed like an eternity until another boat came and towed us back to the pier, where we transferred boats. Long story short, we are not planning on going back to this place, haha. :P
I've stayed at my doctor aunt's house, mostly, shopping and lazing around. On Saturday we went to the Benjakiti park, which is maybe Bangkok's version of Central Park? It was nice, though the juxtaposition was weird for me.
Uhh OK, that's it. I will try to update again after my China visit, before I return to Koh Tao May 13-21 for another wedding and another huge group of Thai people.
First up on the recap menu: the April 11 wedding that I coordinated and shot went really well, much to my relief! The weather was beautiful and the bride and groom (who met on Koh Tao years ago!) and their respective families were happy with everything, so yay! We had 3 videographers helping out who took a few stills, which took the pressure off me in terms of NOT being the only photographer.
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| taking too many photos... it was maybe a little too hot, too. (too, too, too!) |
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| the sweet bride and groom asked me to join in this group pic |
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| Frenchman Max with Anup's ridiculous lens |
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| Anup, a famous Indian wedding photog, took this cool shot |
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| I took this (and am proud) but got suggestions from Anup |
Next event of note: Songkran, better known as Thai New Year, on April 13th, was a blast. The idea is to use water to wash away the bad from the last year, a sort of cleansing thing... but it's basically a huge national water fight that lasts for many days in certain parts of Thailand. I'm glad it only lasts for one day on Koh Tao, because getting water thrown at you gets old after a full day. Also, while I didn't really partake, the mass amounts of drinking started at noon, which is just nuts!
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| we started early, on the boat. I stole Neil's awesome water gun w/ built-in shield |
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| we weren't even on land yet when the first assault came! |
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| with DMTs Martin, Imran, Sacha and Ben |
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| mayhem |
My videographer friend made a cool, dramatic video (in which I make a cameo, at the end) here
Around mid-April I had to help out with a few Thai snorkeling trips back-to-back, which, as I've mentioned before, can be tiring because all I do is tow the customers (who usually cannot swim...) but I enjoyed the excuse to be in the water and occasionally got to show off my bubble ring skillZ.
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| a customer snapped this |
I found some time to go fun-diving and work on my underwater photography, woot!
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| blue-spotted ray |
My Spanish friend Gemma, who I met on the Queen Scuba, recommended a tasty chicken quesadilla from Buddha Cafe and despite my skepticism, I had to try it... Verdict? tasty!
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| first taste of proper Mexican food in a year, made with proper cheese, yay! |
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| "Freak Out Party" at Moov Bar |
My college friend, Hyung Joo, came to visit for a couple of days and ended up staying for a week or so because he fell in love with Koh Tao and diving (as well he should!). He ended up doing his Open Water Certification and we have the awesome video to prove it!
 |
| beautiful day to be diving! |
Luckily for him, HJ wasn't around when I got triggered (attacked by a Titan Triggerfish) while snorkeling and I summarized my experience (on facebook) thusly:
Getting Triggered while diving = a little bit annoying, a little bit funny.
Getting Triggered while snorkeling with flimsy split fins, no boots, no wetsuit = scary as hell!
About a minute into the attack I managed to press "record" but didn't have the presence of mind to white balance -- was too busy avoiding a nasty bite. Have never seen such a persistent and aggressive Triggerfish. Just my luck, I guess! :P
Forget sharks, I think I'm more scared of nesting triggerfish! The video I posted is here and here's a pic of the evil bastard:
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| chill out, dude/ma'am! |
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| This pic is from google, but check out those teeth! |
Near the end of April, we had a group of 250 Thai people staying at both resorts and we were busy and stressed for a few days but everything went OK. I was going to leave Koh Tao to got BKK right after that, but the dive shop manager organized the annual staff party and I decided to stay for that, haha. We went to a mini-golf, bowling, pool/snooker place with a bar and restaurant and it was a lot of fun. Island-style bowling is ghetto and awesome!
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| no shoes needed... or allowed! a little dangerous, maybe? |
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| the pins were reset and bowling balls sent back by guys sitting in the back, hahaha |
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| paradise. why am I leaving?! |
So now I've been in BKK for awhile now, visiting relatives and generally relaxing. I went to Rayong (3-4 hrs away from BKK) to visit my dad's relatives in the countryside for a day and to eat/take tons of delicious Thai fruits.
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| eating at a roadside restaurant on my aunt's land! |
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| With my aunt and my grandma's sister (left), who is 85! |
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| with my uncle in his fruit and rubber tree grove, looking at Durian fruit |
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| the amazing view from my cousin's BKK condo |
I went to the Bangkok Sea View Restaurant with some family from my mom's side, and that was a bust. We drove waaay too far and then were late so it was dark (meaning that there wasn't much of a view to enjoy) and the 15-minute boat ride from the pier to the restaurant wasn't pleasant, and the food was mediocre... and then! The boat died on the return trip and we were stuck getting eaten alive by mozzies for what seemed like an eternity until another boat came and towed us back to the pier, where we transferred boats. Long story short, we are not planning on going back to this place, haha. :P
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| before the boat departed from the pier |
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| the view may have been nice during the day, but at night, I couldn't tell! |
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| the boat operator tying his boat to ours so he could tow us |
I've stayed at my doctor aunt's house, mostly, shopping and lazing around. On Saturday we went to the Benjakiti park, which is maybe Bangkok's version of Central Park? It was nice, though the juxtaposition was weird for me.
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| my aunt relaxing with a book |
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| this is not a pic of me, but I did enjoy biking with my nephew |
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| mm mmm Korean BBQ! |
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| tasty Thai treats (yay, alliteration!) |
Uhh OK, that's it. I will try to update again after my China visit, before I return to Koh Tao May 13-21 for another wedding and another huge group of Thai people.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
March Monsoon and Rock-Climbing
Hello all! I don't know if you've heard the news about bad weather here in Southern Thailand, but it's currently beautiful, sunny, and humid -- typical tropical island weather. We did have some very crazy winds and rain in late March, and it was a bit scary for awhile. Normally, monsoon season on Koh Tao is November-December, and it does rain heavily during those months, but apparently this freak "March monsoon" was the worst weather Koh Tao residents have seen in 10 years. All boats stopped running for four (five?) days and electricity and hot water and internet was going out all over the island, so you can imagine it was no fun for the stranded tourists. It wasn't very fun for me, either, because I had to deal with unhappy guests and cold weather (jeans and a jacket, in Thailand??! Whyyyy?)
Near the end of the storm, the Thai government sent Navy cruisers and helicopters to pick up stranded tourists, and the news made it seem really bad, so we had a ton of hotel booking cancellations and even though the weather has been great, it's been very quiet here all April -- but don't worry, I haven't died of boredom!
Just before the bad weather turned to a full-blown storm in March, the island hosted the annual Koh Tao Festival, and that was quite fun. Muddy, dirty fun. Two of our Coral Grand affiliates (DMT and instructor) competed in the Mr. and Mrs. Koh Tao contest in costumes made of recycled material, designed by another DMT.
I have been hanging out a bit more with the new DMTs, because I've had to work at Coral Grand in order to prepare for a wedding we're hosting tomorrow. I see them more often (while working around Coral) so they invite me out. They're a fun bunch. Last week five of us took a Beginner Rock Climbing course with a local company called Goodtime Adventures. I've been indoor fake-rock-wall climbing a couple of times, nothing challenging, and this was a whole new animal. So much fun!
After some theory and practice in the morning at the Goodtime Adventures Beach Cafe, we took a 4-wheeler waaaay high up into the mountains. Devine Wall was not too challenging, but we had a few great beginning climbs. At Eagle Wall, I managed to get pretty high up, but didn't make it all the way because the rental climbing shoes were way too small. I had an exciting fall -- good thing Ben was belaying me, or I might've been seriously hurt. I am pretty disappointed that I didn't make it all the way up (maybe next time?). We learned how to tie knots and belay and climb safely. If I weren't so broke, I'd definitely go climbing more... we'll see if I get the chance to go again before I leave Thailand.
In other news, one of the front office staff at Montra got dengue fever from a mosquito bite and had to go home, and now I'm even more scared of contracting it, because I get bitten ALL the time. We recently acquired these nifty electric tennis racket doo-hickeys that zap the mosquitoes.
Pleeeease no dengue fever! It seems to be that the front desk has an especially high concentration of mozzies... and since my laptop screen decided to kick the bucket, I have to stay at the front desk (hooked up to an external monitor) if I want to use my computer.
It's quite annoying that I can't use my computer in my room anymore, but I should be thankful it's still running -- it won't turn on unless I remove the battery now, so it's definitely on its last legs.
OK, off to bed now, so I can be prepared for the wedding tomorrow. I have been running around like a proper wedding planner, and tomorrow I will be both the planner and the photographer, so wish me luck!
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| I didn't take this pic, but I feel bad for the motorcycle owners! |
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| the resort's front path turned into a proper river - luckily I live on-site! |
Near the end of the storm, the Thai government sent Navy cruisers and helicopters to pick up stranded tourists, and the news made it seem really bad, so we had a ton of hotel booking cancellations and even though the weather has been great, it's been very quiet here all April -- but don't worry, I haven't died of boredom!
Just before the bad weather turned to a full-blown storm in March, the island hosted the annual Koh Tao Festival, and that was quite fun. Muddy, dirty fun. Two of our Coral Grand affiliates (DMT and instructor) competed in the Mr. and Mrs. Koh Tao contest in costumes made of recycled material, designed by another DMT.
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| Kristy and Kris, representin' Coral Grand Divers |
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| it was quite crowded |
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| can you spot me? |
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| some people embraced the muddiness... |
I have been hanging out a bit more with the new DMTs, because I've had to work at Coral Grand in order to prepare for a wedding we're hosting tomorrow. I see them more often (while working around Coral) so they invite me out. They're a fun bunch. Last week five of us took a Beginner Rock Climbing course with a local company called Goodtime Adventures. I've been indoor fake-rock-wall climbing a couple of times, nothing challenging, and this was a whole new animal. So much fun!
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| the first wall we climbed, Devine Wall |
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| in action |
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| proud (?) of my battle scars |
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| it was a little difficult to get to the second wall... |
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| but the view from up top was spectacular |
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| this is my "where the heck are we going?!" face |
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| Eagle Wall was completely different from Devine -- where do we start?! |
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| Do I look legit? haha. (I am so very not.) |
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| with the Goodtime Adventures team |
After some theory and practice in the morning at the Goodtime Adventures Beach Cafe, we took a 4-wheeler waaaay high up into the mountains. Devine Wall was not too challenging, but we had a few great beginning climbs. At Eagle Wall, I managed to get pretty high up, but didn't make it all the way because the rental climbing shoes were way too small. I had an exciting fall -- good thing Ben was belaying me, or I might've been seriously hurt. I am pretty disappointed that I didn't make it all the way up (maybe next time?). We learned how to tie knots and belay and climb safely. If I weren't so broke, I'd definitely go climbing more... we'll see if I get the chance to go again before I leave Thailand.
In other news, one of the front office staff at Montra got dengue fever from a mosquito bite and had to go home, and now I'm even more scared of contracting it, because I get bitten ALL the time. We recently acquired these nifty electric tennis racket doo-hickeys that zap the mosquitoes.
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| two rackets are not enough. |
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| those mozzies deserve to be zapped! |
Pleeeease no dengue fever! It seems to be that the front desk has an especially high concentration of mozzies... and since my laptop screen decided to kick the bucket, I have to stay at the front desk (hooked up to an external monitor) if I want to use my computer.
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| yeah, not so much a laptop as a desktop PC now. sigh. |
OK, off to bed now, so I can be prepared for the wedding tomorrow. I have been running around like a proper wedding planner, and tomorrow I will be both the planner and the photographer, so wish me luck!
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