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a little adrenaline.
Entry 45 of 61 | show all | print this entry |
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so i spent one day exploring Railay East and West (Railay is a small peninsula) via jungle paths and beaches, and rocky coasts and caves and whatnot. lots of fun trekking around with no agenda, other than to see as much as possible. there are huge limestone cliffs all over the place, and a few islands that you can walk to at low-tide, then circumnavigate on foot, popping in and out of caves that are filled with water at high tide.
the next day, despite my slight fear of heights, at least fear of falling from a dangerous height, i went rock climbing with Darko and Jimmy (two of the four Aussies i've been hanging with; the others are Luke and Emmanuel, and they took a 3 day course, because they climb like monkeys). Chai, our TINY Thai rock climbing guide, gives us shoes and harnesses, and takes us to a rock wall where there are heaps of other climbers of various skill levels. the guys have been climbing on indoor walls before, but i've never done any, so i get a 5 minute lesson in belaying (taking up the slack on the line of the climber and holding on, should they fall), and before i know it, i've got chalk on my hands and i'm climbing this rock wall to a height of about 18 meters. it is hot as $#!& and i am sweating all over the place, as is my tendency, so my hands do not want to grip the rock properly, nor does my brain want me to go any higher, but looking around, there's no way i'm going to be the chump who wants to come down. instead, i slip up at the top after getting stuck at one point on the wall and yell "Jimmy!" as he tenses the line for my safety. after a few climbs, we change the order, and i go second, so i get to see where all the holds are (the scariest part for me was getting to a point where you can't see where your next hold will be), and i fare much better, making it to the top of all the climbs, no worries. finally, on the last climb of the day, all of us reach a point that we cannot get past (except Chai, who is an amazing climber), and call it a day, fully exhausted, arms tense with fatigue, covered in chalk and dirt and a little blood, but totally psyched to have climbed to heights of 25 meters and overcome the feeling of falling, feeling like this is it, when do i hit the ground, and then just trusting in yourself and the person holding your line and coming out a little bit better.
the following day, we wake up just after sunrise to take some pictures of the area before the crowds and clouds of the afternoon. when we get to the beach, we are greeted by a big group of monkeys, eating food scraps from the trash. they show no signs of fear at our arrival, and go on as if we weren't there, allowing for some great pictures. later, at breakfast, the monkeys are back, and one steals a napkin holder. when a waiter approaches, the monkey simply starts pulling napkins out of the dispenser and dropping them, as if to say "what are you going to do about it?" then drops the thing and takes off. we feel like some exercise, so we decide to rent kayaks and head paddle over to this pristine looking beach across the way, the white sand shining in the hot Thai sun. Michael and i are in one kayak, Jimmy and Darko in another. we take off, paddling around a couple islands, then over to our target destination, through more the BIGGEST jellyfish i've ever seen. they're about the size of a large pumpkin, and there are hundreds of them. the paddle takes us about 50 minutes (it would've been 25 minutes or so on a longtail boat), and our muscles are aching when we reach the beach. we wander around a bit and explore the island which has little more than a house and a restaurant for the random tour groups. we spend a while in the water, which is warm, but refreshing in the midday sun, and i feel so lucky to be on this island. i know it is not the most secluded place in the world, and that many people have enjoyed it, but many more people will never even get close to a place like it, and i can't help but be happy, and feel fortunate to enjoy all of the places i have so far.
we reluctantly head back to our kayaks. a rain front moves in, as per usual for Thailand in the monsoon season, so we decide to wait a little bit for it to pass, also, as per usual. but it doesn't. it gets worse, and shows no signs of letting up. the few people who are there, begin fleeing the island. we begin wondering where we can find better shelter from the wind and rain and sand, and try to figure out who is going to start crying first. two Thai women who work a tour group come over to us and offer us left over spring rolls that the group didn't want, thank god, because i was already starving. the rain is pouring, and whipping around with the wind that blew one of our kayaks across the beach. hopes for clear weather are dwindling, and Jimmy starts negotiating with a longtail driver to take us back, when his group is ready to go. they are all young backpackers, and they think it's sad/funny how we're stranded. but i don't want to be stranded, and i start eyeing the weather and the currents, and the weather lets up a little and i suggest that we go for it. Darko is with me. then Mike. finally, Jimmy sees a patch of clear sky, and he's on. we say goodbye to the longtail boat, and the others think we're stupid, but we're young, arrogant Aussies and Americans who will not let a silly rain-shower ruin our day. we head out, and take on water and get knocked around by waves and hope that we don't capsize into a school of jellyfish, but eventually the weather isn't as bad, and after an hour or so, we reach the beach, where we are greeted by a Kiwi guy who heard about some Aussies and Americans who were stranded with kayaks, so he bought us all a beer, and it was the best beer i've had in a while.
later we checked a map to see how far we paddled... 6km there and back. we trek through the jungle, we rock climb, and we kayak for (a few) miles, and we drink beers and we are men. hahaha. we celebrate our masculinity by going out for dinner and eating spicy Thai and Indian curry, burning my lips and tongue and stomach until i am begging for more steamed rice. i will post pictures of me sweating my way up the rock walls, among other endeavors, most of which also involve me sweating, because i pretty much do that all the time now. More thumbnails ...
Latest Comments (2)
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Railey (reply)
Jun 23, 2006 08:38 EST by rspchef
incredible pics buddy. almost looks like too much fun happenin. send me some of those huge prawns. rock climb not for me. monsoons sound like fun to be in a kayak. who did cry first? stay safe peace out.
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