Life's a Beach

Last weekend was the wedding of one of my coworkers (American) and her fiancee (Thai). In Thai Buddhist culture a wedding begins before the sun rises with the blessing of the monks. This part wedding ceremony is most commonly attended by family (perhaps the only ones who love you enough to get up that early!) I took off a half day of work with a number of other people in the office to make the 2.5 hour drive to Rayong where the reception was being held Friday evening. But, because we also had monday off for a local holiday and since we were so close to the beach I decided to make it a beach weekend!

The reception was nice, taking place in a dirt lot next to the home of groom's relative. They set up a stage where a band, singers and dancers performed in Thai and next to it was a screen with Thai boxing showing :-). The guests were feed an amazing 5 or 6 course meal while enjoying the entertainment. It was a very cultural night.

The next day I headed to the Island of Ko Samet with Miro, Jenny and Mateo. We were driven to the pier where we took a speed boat to the island. After the 20 minute ride across the amazingly clear, aqua water the boat backed up as close it could to the beach and we jumped into the water, grabbed our bags and walked ashore. It was great. We walked along the white sandy beach lined with hotels, restaurants and sun bathers until we found our resort. It was more beautiful than I expected.

Immediately we checked in and found lunch. Then we switched into our swim suits, smothered ourselves in sunscreen and headed to the beach! The sun was high and hot. We found refuge under the umbrellas where I basked in the beautiful scenery and took a nap. Then it was into the water which was surprisingly warm. It was so nice to be in the water, feel the sand on my feet. There is something therapeutic about the beach. Cares seem to wash away and life seems so manageable. What is it about the beach that is so refreshing?

Our stomachs told us it was dinner time so off we went in search of food. I had one desire all weekend...Seafood! Luckily it was plentiful and cheap. Most of the restaurants seat out in the open air on traditional Thai triangle cushions on the ground. We chose one of the many restaurant options and ordered our food. A live band started performing and we found ourselves on the front row. Miro and Jenny's 2 year old son danced to the music and invited himself on stage with a few other little people. The singer let him shake the shaker to the music and encouraged his enthusiasm. What a cute child he is.

After dinner Miro and Jenny headed to put the performer to bed and i decided to wander through what looked like a popular shopping street to see what more the island had to offer. I found a studio of an artist from Sri Lanka and talked to him about his work. After admiring his work but not finding anything I wanted to purchase I thanked him and began walking out when a man across the street says, "you mean to tell me you're walking out without buying anything?" After a bit of friendly harassment he introduced me to Aaron, the owner of the bar next door to the studio. Aaron showed me the picture he purchased from the studio and then invited me to stay and celebrate his birthday. I thanked him for the invite but told him I was on a self-guided tour. He let me go and told me that he expected to see me back later. I continued my walk and found nothing real interesting so I decided to head back to the resort but knew that would require a walk by the bar again. I tried to make it past unnoticed but was caught. Aaron insisted that I join him so I stepped in and became engaged in conversation with some other patrons. No one seemed to understand that not only do I not drink but I have honestly never tasted alcohol in my life! That was beyond comprehension. One man tried so hard to get me to share his concoction of pepsi, rum and something else that was being drunk out of a small sand pail. I politely declined and he wanted to know why I was so afraid. I ensured him I had no fear but he insisted that I was afraid. I asked him what he thought I was afraid of. Germs was his answer. I tried to convince him that I was not afraid of germs but he was beyond reason. It was becoming uncomfortable and lucky for me his friend jumped in and told him to knock it off, that if I hadn't given in to drinking at age 16 I probably wasn't going to give in now.

This man who had saved me told his wife it was about time to go but she wanted to stay..."Can I stay and hang out with the girls for a bit" she asked. He could see that she had already had enough to drink that she was pretty comfortable with the single men in the bar and told her that he didn't think that was a good idea. She complained and he said he'd come back to get her in 30 minutes. He looked at me and and I promised to keep my eye out for her. During the next 30 minutes, Aaron jumped on one of the picnic tables dancing to the music and then broke the table and the woman I was supposed to keep my eye on was becoming very flirtatious as she danced with a couple of the guys. I was becoming nervous wondering what I would do if she went any further. Luckily, her husband showed up and things cooled down. Phew! It was time for me to leave. I excused myself but the old man who had tried to get me to drink held my hand, kissed it gently and asked if he could continue the evening with me. I thanked him for the offer, told him I was flattered (left out the part about being repulsed as he was twice my age) and declined despite his attempts. Aaron thanked me for celebrating and commented that while i'm very innocent I'm also very true. I was grateful to have met some interesting people and glad to be back in my hotel room. :-)

Sunday was a religious day on the beach! As I headed to the beach I saw several faces the I recognized from the night before...the man and his wife I was supposed to keep an eye on as well as the old man who kept hitting on me were all staying at the same resort! I snuck by unnoticed. phew! Back on the beach I'm afraid I absorbed too much sun and became quite burnt. I decided that before the pain set in I should get a massage listening to the sound of the waves rolling in. Very relaxing!...very cheap...$10 for an hour massage on the beach. :-) Lunch and dinner involved seafood... after dinner I made the wise decision of returning back to the hotel with Jenny, Miro and Mateo instead of venturing out on my own again.

Monday was check out day. I got up early and went to a rocky beach in search of sea glass. I found a nice stash of pretty pieces. Then I enjoyed the delicious buffet breakfast included with the room and headed back to the beach for a final swim before we checked out and headed back to the Big Mango. Unfortunately, the time came too quickly to say goodbye to the white, sandy beach, the crisp, aqua waters and the relaxing feeling of the beach. The good news is that the beach is really only about 2.5 hours from me so I can go ANYTIME! A coworker who has now returned to her Canadian home gave me her emergency beach bag filled with all the beach emergencies so that at a moments notice I can now grab the bag and head to paradise!

A week later, my tan is now pealing off and I will soon be back to my pasty color...but my freckles have found their way back to the surface of my skin. :-) Life is good.