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Hi Everyone,
Okay, on with the final bits of Thailand and onwards, I arrived in Krabi town for my final days before flying off to Bali,I was staying at K Guest House in the town which is excellent and recommended, it's an old restored Thai house with private rooms, some with air con and En-suite, clean and wonderful it is such good value. I was lucky as I got the last room (I hadn't booked) but still had a double room, shared bathroom which no-one else seemed to use, so it made little difference.
Down the road was the main link to the small Port / dock and jetty from where taxi boats would take you round the coast to the beaches or Islands if you wished. Every morning a small group of 'Lads' would congregate on the corner of the main road looking cool in their 'fake' RayBans, designer jeans - not, and everything else including baseball hats. They all looked slightly ridiculous and I couldn't help myself talking to them. They were a real laugh everyone of them had a fast tongue and a slick comment, you just had to give as good as you got and I became an instant hit. They wanted me to go everywhere with them but being old enough to be their Dad I politley declined too many fancyful outings but did let them take me around and about which was a good laugh! They were in their element with the young girl travellers and they came onto them at every opportunity, they were so funny and got so many knock backs it was true entertainment just sitting nearby having a coffee and watching their reactions. Totally affronted by rejection they would adjust hat, glasses, jeans etc and try again.
Everynight I went down to the Pier where there was an outside eating market typical of all Thailand, good food and good value, I've told you about it many times before I know. After a bite to eat I normally made my way to The Western bar where the music was good the entertainment even better and the owner, a real eccentric Thai. The first evening I spent in the company of Anouk and her friend Chantal, both originating from Holland, I had a lovley evening chatting to them and basically got back into the 'being on my own' mode again. Unfortunately they were only around for that evening as they were off on further travels but they did impart some useful info regarding another Island before we parted company and for that I thank them as I will be visiting at some point in the future.
The next evening I spent in the company of an English couple due to being sat at table adjacent to them and not getting served for simply ages, it became a bit of a battle of attrition just to get my food, but I stuck it out. We were talking about how unusual it was to be kept waiting for so long but it made no difference because everything was superb as usual. The next day I took the bus (well sort of) to Ao Nang and waited on the corner where the lads hung around, that was when I met Ali for the first time, a local of about 25 but looks older and clearly revered by the others, he's a bit of a ladies lad! He came to the fore on my last night in Krabi as I was sitting quietly in The Western and he was chatting with a friend just across the way to me. Nothing much was happening, the music was its normal decent level, everyone was cool, the beer was ice cold, you couldn't ask for much more really. Then, in came a very red headed American lass, she clapped eyes on our Ali and went for it, She tore him off a strip and then some, she just let rip verbally at him. Now bear in mind what I had told you about fast tongue and slick comment, well he was floored! From the word Go he was dumb struck, speachless, completely without retort. I actually ended up feeling sorry for the poor guy, whatever he had done, it probably wasn't very decent, he was paying for now infront of all his mates and in a very public display. All he could do was just shrug his shoulders and he visibly shrank into the table, it was very amusing. How he didn't get up and walk out I just do not know. The final flourish was coming and then the Girl simply said, 'and that's that!' She then walked out leaving him too it in a hushed bar. Brilliant. He started looking around relief written all over his face and then caught my eye, I wanted to sing him Bruce Springstein's Red Headed Woman but luckily I can't sing, but as the great man wrote, 'Listen up Stud your life's been wasted until you've got down on your knees and tasted a Red Headed Woman' - Fire indeed!!
It amused me for more than half an hour at any rate. The Western is full of interesting characters from the owner down, they also play some interesting music like a guy called Xavier Rudd, who I had never heard of. I found out a bit more about him but can only describe his music as a mix of Didge with rythm and female vocal similar to Dido but with more life! I liked it enough to find out about it so I'll get to it in the future. The Western was also home to two Swedish sisters, known simply as The Sisters! because their names are simply unpronouncable and I couldn't remember them even if I tired. All I know is that they were in thier late 40's,nothing wrong in that! They had incredible tollerence to alcohol until a certain moment and then they became totally drunk and then the fun started. Ya Ya is a really really good bar man and a really good laugh. He constantly played games with these two and left them in a state of total confusion every night. If nothing else they were entertaining especially when they started to dance as it seemed that the more they danced the more their clothes fell off to which they seemed completely oblivious. Ya Ya would be doing his best to patch them up as he went along but it never really did much good as the very next minute the said item of clothing would be on the floor again. After one such session Swede the Younger, clearly dissorientated from all her gyrating, decided that she wanted to sit infront of an couple to my right who were sat on a raised area where you could just lounge bare foot on big cushions and chill. Now minus several important items of clothing (there weren't many in the first place!) Swede the Younger moved towards them, crawled up onto the platform, pulled her mini dress up round her posterior and sat cross legged infront of the Husband, which didn't impress his Wife very much as it was impossible not to see the 'golden triangle'! It is easy to see the funny side on such occasions unless you are subject of the unwanted attention and Husband was valiant in his attempts to ignore Swede the Younger until she moved too close for comfort and there was about to be trouble. Swede the Older was now perched precariously on a seat the other side from where I was sitting and could not raise a smile let alone herself off the chair to help her Sis. She was very hot and to everyone's horror she pulled up her all too short skirt and wiped her face! It was all getting a bit too much for everyone, this was NOT a pretty sight. Okay we needed a hero. Enter Ya Ya he got behind The Younger, put his arms under hers and in one movment lifter her off the platform and promply dumped her on the bench next to me! Thanks very much!! There then took place a one sided conversation of which I didn't understand a word apart from 'dance', I declined and she was off again. Sadly the couple got up and left, which meant that there were not that many more targets for The Younger to aim for. She just about made it back to the table but fortunately was so completely gone that I just got on with my evening and was only mildly aware of the one remaining, half working, eye still looking in my genreral direction!
At a point when I felt it prudent to leave I walked back towards my guest house only to notice another bar called the Jam Bar, it rang a bell with me and took me until the following evening to realise why. I didn't go in on the first night because it was clearly occupied by three LadyBoys, not tonight - pleeeaaase!
The following evening was better, only one LadyBoy (good odds!) called Sara - I was expecting Poo or Pong something like that, but Sara, well, International appeal I guess! I entered and started chatting with Sara who informed me that 'she' (benefit of the doubt!) had worked in Pat Pong Road and hated it, she had then moved around until finally settling down in Krabi. She was actualy very pleasant to talk with, affected, as most of them are, and a little too touchy feely, but very intelligent and articualte. I left to have something to eat promising that I'd be back, you see we had been discussing the name ' Jam Bar', it turns out that the owner has a like named bar in Chiang Mai and that is where I had seen the name as it was located just down the road from where I had stayed. So I was going back to see the owner - honestly.
I returned later to find that Sara had left for the night because a big hairy German man (their description not mine) had come in and caused a scene, so Sara had left. Perhaps he mistook poor Sara for a boy! Poor thing. Never mind I struck up conversation with the owner who actually originates from Chiang Mai and we had a good chat about this and that. Unfortunately he likes Scotch Whiskey, I'll say no more!!
It was now time to leave Thailand for the last time, I have very mixed emotions about this as I have shared some very special times with some very special people whilst I have been here. Hopefuly I have conveyed some of these feelings too you but I have to say that since Novemeber 2008 I have had the most wonderful time and the Thai people have been simply wonderful to me. They have helped me when I've been ill, played along with thing I've done when I been healthy, partied when I've partied, joined in with things they otherwise would not have done, Christmas for example, and generally been very kind to me. Thailand is simply one of those places which gets better and better the more times you visit, I hope to return again in the not too distant future but in the meantime to all of you who I've met in Thailand and who I know read these entries, "Thank You and take care until the next time we meet."
Next stop Bali,
See you soon,
Chris
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