Paddling to Ko Khui Island

January 17, 2023

Thailand extends south about halfway down the Malay Penninsula. Phuket island is on the west side enclosing Phang Nga (pronounced "naah"), Bay. Kayaking trips are organized from No Yao Noi Island. Getting to the kayak launch from Phuket town involved riding in or on: a van, a speed boat, a pickup truck bed

with seats, the back of a motor scooter, and the cab of a pickup truck from the 1980s.  We drove past a seaside "floating" village on stilts. The island has 4,000 residents, and "no secrets" because everybody knows each other their whole lives, according to Aryuen (Run) my kayak guide, who is married to a local island woman.

We launched from An Pao pier, on the northwest of the island. I had two kayak options: a very stable boat that was a bit too small, or a tippier boat (1) that was a looser fit; I opted for the latter (2). We paddled north hugging the limestone cliffs rimming the Island. The constant sound of cicadas varied around the island from a gentle buzz to a sound like a metal grinding factory, as we watched hornbills, hawks and blue herons fly or soar by the cliffs. A short hike from the beach at a small cove called "big tree bay" brought us to the bay's namesake. 

The guide had been assessing my skill on his initial stretch. He deemed a support boat (3) unnecessary and was comfortable bringing me into open water. A current was running inbound (4) so we aimed high for the 3+ mile open water crossing to Ko Khui Island. At the south end of the island (in Phang Nga National Park), a stalagtite high on the cliff had the distinct shape of an elephant head and trunk. A small beach on the east side of the bay offered a pull-out for lunch, which had been made by Run's mother.

After poking into a lagoon with mangroves, we rounded the north end of the island. The return was 5+ miles of open water, a vigorous pull into the afternoon's southwest wind. We pulled out an An Pao beach which was accessible now because the tide had come in. The water here was green and turbid and was crazy warm (5). "It's coconut o'clock" Aryuen said, emerging from a nearby fruit stand with a coconut with a straw sticking out.

At dusk, I went looking for dinner in the small town. A woman on the sidewalk with a wok and a few tables offered a very tasty meal. While eating, a local boy kept running around the place. "Busy boy," I said to the parents who laughed before the whole family (dad, mom (clad in a full black dress and hijab) and two boys) rode off on their motor scooter. At dusk, the muezzin's call to prayer rang out from multiple mosques in the island (6).

(1) Kayak designers talk about "initial stability" when discussing tippiness.

(2) While sea kayaks are supposed to fit like a glove, I prefer the baggy pants feel. I soon discovered what many first time bike-riders also discover: the counterintuitive finding that going faster makes for a safer and more stable ride; the boat settled down nicely while underway, and I managed to avoid flipping the boat (a).

(a) Falling out at the beach doesn't count. No danger there, just wounded pride.

(3) Trips are normally accompanied by a wooden long-tail boat, a traditional Thai design, as an added measure of safety. When we first met, Run asked if I had kayaked before. Many people who sign up have never paddled;  "Pressure for me on those days," he said (b).

(b) I picked this particular kayak company because they have real sea kayaks, not sit on tops, which are slower, clunkier and hard to maneuver (i). However for a tour company, an advantage of the sit on tops is that they are more forgiving for newbies, being harder to tip and easier to get back on if capsized.

(i) The company website says they use "proper" sea kayaks, not "sluggish sit on tops."

(4) The U shaped bay funnels water into the bay yielding tides in the 2 meter range (about 6.5 feet) during the quarter moons (neap tides), while the bi-monthly spring tides (during the full and new moons) run closer to 3 meters (about 10 feet). Today being just past the last quarter, the tidal range was close to 2 meters.

(5) The water here is very shallow and responds quickly to the afternoon sun. I would have turned the hot water down in the tub's faucet if it were this warm. 

(6) While Buddhism is the official religion of Thailand, the constitution guarantees freedom of religion. While Muslins represent less than 5% of the whole Thai population, Ko Yai Noi's population is almost entirely so.

Ready to launch, An Pao floating dock

Iron-stained sandstone cliffs

Why it's called Big Tree Bay

Looking up at the elephant-trunk stalagtite, south end of Ko Khlui Island

Lunch stop

Passable at half tide

Getting petrol on the island is a two-for: you get exercise from the hand pump and fuel for your scooter. The hand pump extracts the fuel from the drums into a cylinder on top, from which gravity feeds it into your tank. While seemingly ad-hoc, it is more official than in Cambodia, where many road side stands sell petrol in old glass whiskey or gin bottles. How the gas gets into the liquor bottles, I do not know.

Tapping the rubber trees on Ko Yao Noi 

Cycling the temples of Siem Reap

January 16, 2023

A tuk-tuk came at 4:30 to ensure arrival at Angkor Wat for the sunrise. The temple is oriented in the cardinal directions, so the sun rises directly behind the central tower on the equinoxes, when large crowds of locals come to see. Being January, the sun appeared a few degrees south of the tower.

Construction of the Angkor Wat temples began in 1121 during the reign of Khmer King Suryavarman II, and was completed by 1150. The endeavor required 100,000 people and at least 8,000 elephants to move the stones from the distant quarry, set them in place and complete the temple. The complex measures 1.3 by 1.5 kms, and is surrounded by a wide moat. The central tower rises to 65 meters (more than 200 feet).

The first level of the central temple is surrounded by detailed bas-relief scenes. The east and west sides depict the glories of the Khmer army in battle. On the south are scenes of the fates awaiting both saints and sinners in the Hindu afterlife. On the upper level, those in heaven are depicted reclining at ease. Below are those in hell facing rivers of flame and various other punishments tailored to the sins committed. At about the same time thousands of miles away, Cathedrals in Europe were being built with similar admonishing messages (1).

A guide and I cycled a few miles north to the Bayon Temple, built in the reign of Jayavarman VII, who ascended the throne in 1181 at age 55 (well past life expectancy at the time) and ruled for 39 years. He converted the country to Buddhism, repurposing Angkor Wat from Hinduism to the new religion. While the land and moat surrounding Bayon are bigger, the temple itself is smaller than Angkor Wat. 

Due to war, drought and famine, the population of the Angkor region fell from about 1 million people (2) to about 100,000 inhabitants in the late 1400s. The temples surrounding Siem Reap (3) began to molder and crumble with neglect. The French colonial authorities (4) began archeological work on the temples in 1910. 

Bayon temple was constructed with smaller stones than Angkor Wat, making the stones more susceptible to toppling, especially by the roots of banyan trees, which grew on the walls of the temple. Restoration work funded by the Japanese government continues here today. Work crews were high up the scaffolding surrounding a Banyan tree in preparation for the tree's removal.

The third stop on the bike tour (I was the only guest today) (5) was Ta Phrom, restoration of which began in 1994, currently funded by the Indian government. Many Banyan trees rooted in temple structures remain here. Their shallow roots reach out horizontally along the ground, and cause havoc to the stone temples. 

The guide said something I did not quite undestand; I eventually realized he was saying "Angelina Jolie." Apparently, scenes from the movie Tomb Raider were filmed here. Peddling back to Angkor Wat completed the circuit of about 12 to 15 miles. I had time for a quick swim at the hotel pool before hopping into a tuk-tuk for a ride to the airport and a flight back to Thailand (6).

(1) I could not help but think of Voronets Monastery, one of the painted monasteries of southern Bukovina in Romania. While built later (in 1488), the bas-relief at Angkor Wat were reminiscent of the final judgement fresco at Voronets, with the Saints ascending to heaven, and the sinners cast into hell, with special punishments for different types of sinners.

(2) For comparison, Paris was considered the largest city in Europe in 1400. While difficult to know with certainty, Paris's population is estimated to have been about 275,000 inhabitants in 1400.

(3) The name means "Thailand defeated" in Khmer. Thailand was, until recently, also known as Siam.

(4) The French ruled the colony of Indochine, consisting of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos from 1853 to 1954, except during World War II.

(5) Tourism has been slow to recover here, mainly due to strict policies keeping many potential Chinese visitors at home.

(6) Changing planes after clearing immigration at Bangkok DMK, the security guard seemed utterly perplexed by my boarding pass with said my destination was HKT, the airport code for Phuket. There are over a dozen flights a day between the 2 airports.

Dawn at Angkor Wat

Bas relief of Battle Scenes

Endless torment, the fate of sinners around the world

Fight too much in life? In hell, your heads will be perpetually banged together

Christ crucified? No. The fate that awaits in hell for those who damage temples

Very steep steps leading to the top level of Angkor Wat. Getting to heaven is not easy either. 

The Buddha statues survived for almost a millennium before being destroyed to loot jewels during the brutal Khmer Rouge period in the 1970s

Ice delivery outside Angkor Wat

Entrance to Bayon Temple complex

Bayon Temple

Man climbs a tree to avoid a tiger

Tiger gets him two panels later, bas-relief at Bayon Temple

Monkey mom at Bayon complex

Entrance to Ta Prohm

At Ta Prohm

The shallow routes of the Banyan tree slowly prying the stones loose

Three dimensional jigsaw puzzle: pieces to restore Ta Prohm

Cycling through the temple area

Tiny kitten by hotel pool

Back to Thailand

The morning train to Cambodia

January 15, 2023

An early train heads east from Bangkok to the Cambodian border, covering the 255 kms in a little more than 5 hours, at a cost of 49 Thai Baht (only US $1.50). Never too crowded, the number of passengers varied, but generally decreased as we left the outskirts of Bangkok. The windows opened wide to let in the warm breeze and there was an oscillating, rotating fan on the ceiling (1).

Hawkers come on the train selling food and drinks, calling out their wares in sing-song voices (in Thai, but I can point). The steady procession of them getting on and off at various stations ensured warm food and cold drinks (2). The fried egg with rice and carrot bits was tasty and set me back 20 Thai Baht (about 60 US cents).

The train ran through the southeastern Thai plains, with rice fields obscured by the morning fog, which lifted as the sun rose. Further east, the rice fields yielded to groves of tall, spindly trees planted in neat rows. Many flocks of birds were flushed by the noisy train, taking to the sky.

The train arrived at the border station on time. Clearing outbound Thai immigration (very grouchy officer) and inbound Cambodian immigration (officer, indifferent) took about 45 minutes. Nothing in the border town of Poipet invites lingering, so I moved on, opting for an air-conditioned taxi (3), rather than a crowded bus to Siem Reap. 

At the hotel in Siem Reap, A local family, friends of the hotel owner came by banging a drum and jumped on the pool. Playing an informal pool basketball game, I was the ball retriever when it bounced out of the pool. As dusk, the mosquitos appeared (4), followed by the hotel proprietor with a mosquito coil, then the muezzin's sonorous call to prayer from a nearby minaret.

A later walk revealed the city to be noisy and loud, with a very honky-tonk feel. The girls working in the massage parlors were particularly aggressive, standing beside each other to try to block my passage down the sidewalk.

(1) A man sitting opposite asked (in mime) if the fan bothered me and showed me how to shut it off if I wished. I didn't.

(2) This is common practice in South Asia. On a Vietnamese train a few years ago, the vendors would said "hot" or "cold" and put the food or drink against my arm as proof.

(3) Bit of a disaster. Nearing Siem Reap, a Police officer pointed at the taxi driver to pull over for talking on his phone while driving (a). Instead, the driver dashed down a rutted dirt road to avoid the fine; the police, not wanting to endanger the undercarriage or suspension  did not follow. I was glad to get out at the hotel.

(a) While I rarely take taxis, I had a similar experience in Bucharest a few years ago. The taxi driver was clearly manipulating the meter and I called him on it. Coincidentally, a cop soon pulled him over for mobile phone use while driving. I simply got out of the cab and walked to the opera in the rain.

(4) Malaria is considered eradicated in Siem Reap, but not in the surrounding countryside. 

Hua Lamphong station (in daylight the afternoon before)

Pictures of the Royals at Hau Lamphong train station 

Easy to find the right train

The cowherd gave a nice smile and wave

Tidy railway station

Grove of spindly trees

The Royal Standard (in yellow) and the Thai national flags fluttering in the light west wind

Temple north of the tracks

Three clangs of the bell is the equivalent of "All aboard"