So, I finally picked up fire

  Tonsai, Thailand
Friday, December 28, 2007

riding in longboat (taxi) to Au Nong

Because thhe beach is only accessible by boat, there are boat taxis waiting for you, if ever you want to leave the beach. We love this, because the boat ride is only about a dollar and the scenery is jaw dropping!

10-riding in longboat (taxi) to Au Nong

All ATMS, money exchange, and specified items like batteries can only be found on Au Nong, so if you need anything specific, Au Nong is only a 10 minute boat ride away (which is how we spent the first day: taxiing boats and running small errands, & having fun doing it!)

riding in longboat (taxi) to Au Nong

You can also taxi a boat to East or West Ralei to enjoy an alternate beach....

Almost all of Tonsai's local community spins fire, either by stick or poi (chains). The women and the men each have their own "personal" style and dance with their instrument of choice.

Tonsai Beach

Even during the day, you will see some ladies spinning practice poi and dancing on the beach just for fun.

One of the bars on the beach is called, "sheisha bar" and run by a local Thai and his Swedish girlfriend. They teach fire poi everyday on the beach from 5-6pm. They dont ever seem to want to sell any beer though, as they always forget to put the beers in the fridge. They seem more keen on petting the pet rabbit and showing newbies how to play with fire. I like rabbits and I like fire, so this works out great for me! :D

We got talking, and I told the owner that I have been practicing with glow poi for a bit (since we started travelling), but that I never picked up fire before. This conversation developed into him coaxing me to pick up fire that night. So, a little nervous, later that night I did just that.

Nilus first time picking up fire!

I used his poi, which he shortened the chains for me.
What an awesome feeling! I LOVE hearing the fire whirl around. It is so loud and warm! My first time wasnt so bad - I never burned myself, so thats good! The good thing is that he said i was very good and that i have a trick over my head that he has never seen before: somehting about me doing a five point turn and he only knows a 3 point turn. I have no idea what he is talking about...

:D Mathew decided that he would like to join in on the fun. SO, he picked up the fire stick!

mathew picked up the stick!

I am pretty impressed. He just picked it up that night for the first time, lit it on fire and actually looked pretty cool doing it! A natural, I guess :D...... I took some pics of Mathew and although there arent any pics of me, Mathew video'd part of my first performance.

mathew picked up the stick!