Hello again! My first days in Thailand have been treating me with utter kindness and consideration. If anyone has been reading my posts, then they know that I arrived in Ao Nang last week with a bad case of jet lag (which I will use as an excuse for the quality of my writing).
This being my second time in Ao Nang, I kind of knew where I did and didn’t want to go. My general rule is, unless you need something elsewhere, stay north of the Fisherman Monument. Beyond that area, I spend most of my time dodging overzealous women wanting to give me a massage. Nothing against massages mind you, I just don’t care for being chased.
Note: Between the FIsherman Monument and Masijd Aonang Al-Munuawarah, there is an AIS shop for all your SIM card needs. Really much cheaper than at the airport.
On Tuesday morning, I left my room at around 8am looking for breakfast. Now, I stay at Forest Homestay, where Ao Nang’s one main street cut’s inland to avoid an outcropping of jungle covered limestone. At this bend there is a rotee (Thai Pancake) stand that I visit like once a day minimum.
This morning, I passed by my usually indispensable rotee stands and turned right towards Noppharat Beach. Across Do Do River Bridge, thatch roofed restaurants, beach bars, and hostels line the road looking out over the Andaman Sea.
The Beachwalk. (Only I call it that.)
I walked along admiring the water and occasionally dropping a Sawat Dee Krap to a friendly local. I kept walking until I reached the Watt Beach Bar. My new friend Nok was sitting at one of the tables strumming an acoustic and appeared deep in thought until he noticed me.
“Thai food?”
“Rakha tou rai?”
My Thai language skills are atrocious, but Thais are always kind enough to act impressed. I decided to start my day with some Pad Thai and Nok passed me his guitar to pass the time while I waited.
Now, I had just barely decided not to bring my own guitar along, thinking of the leg of my trip that will be by motorbike and so my entire day was made right there.
After some delicious Pad Thai and fun picking, I walked back along the beach, eventually returning to my room to work. Apparently code for “crash and passout for another nine hours”.
On my way back, I stopped at a Seven Eleven for my favorite convenience store snack (available only in Thailand). If you’d like to know how good these things are, get this. I have a friend teaching English in Hanoi. His reply to the above picture was, “bring me pies or I’ll make sure you get stuck out in snake village”, whatever that is.
It was almost dark when I woke up again, thinking about food. I don’t know if you know this, but after dark is a great time to get food in Thailand. Street stalls appear out of nowhere and start selling the best food you’ll ever stuff in you face.
Back to the Beachwalk.
Because in the middle of the Beachwalk is Ao Nang Landmark. It’s a wonderful thing. Like, my favorite things are food, music, and furry animals. In the stalls surrounding the Landmark, the finest seafood, landfood, and overall Thai food in the world is being peddled at an average price of 100 baht. Walking to the Landmark, there is live music playing in all the beach bars as well as at a pavilion in its center. And two out of three is freaking outstanding.
So that was my first day back in Thailand. Overall, lazy and unproductive. I loved it! But to maintain, we got to grind, so the next morning was an up at 5am kind of morning. Adding products to my Etsy, writing 600 new words for my book, and a three page journal entry to aid with writing the next one. Before an 8am stroll on Noppharat. The Beachwalk.
Cheers now from Koh Lanta!