Liveaboards & Birthdays

Hello all,

So i've returned from my liveaboard. It was fun. Great group of people. The diving was OK. One day was superb and I had a top 10 dive (out of the 390 dives i have now). That dive was amazing. Big schools of trevally, rainbow runners, mackerel swopping down to eat even larger schools of glass fish. The glass fish (couple of inches long and relfective silvery/glass colour) swim close together in bands about 1 metre wide and 10/15 metres long. It looks like a wave shifting and shimmering in the water. Totally mesmerising.

The corals aren't nearly as good as Flores. Even pre-tsunami they won't be have been that hot.

I didn't (think) I had any expectations about Khao Lak but it was definitly worse than I expected. The main town part is stretched along the highway. More than half the shops are shut and there are few tourists walking around. Most are going on liveaboards. I walked down by the beach and was blown away by what I saw. I appreciated that all the wooden/bamboo bungalows would have gone but not the devastation to large brick resorts and fancy hotels. The whole area between the beach and the highway looks like a building site except with a difference.
I took a photo of one building because it summed it all up for me. The bottom floor had been trashed - all the windows/doors washed out, huge chunks taken out of supporting pillars. The next floor showed some wall damage etc. For some reason this buidling was a little higher than the others so the 3rd floor was untouched. The plastic chairs were still on the balconys and the french windows ajar with curtains blowing through them. You'd expect a tourist to come out at any moment and throw his towel over the railing. Just the sheer contrast.
They've clearly used bulldozers to remove most of the debris because it must have been a mess. Even now there is still rubbish, people's belongings and debris all over the place. The odd stranded and decimated car. It is unbelievably sad.

In the shops, there are photos of people who are still missing with big rewards for information. You know the reward is not going to be paid. There are still 5,000 people missing and presumed dead. I met an American woman who was on the beach trying to find out info. about someone who run the guesthouse where they stayed for ages. Clearly difficult for her, there was a number to ring, but the person is probably dead. Most of the staff who worked on the beach died. She burst into tears whilst talking to me. Nothing was left of the guesthouse apart from one of the seats from a restaurant. It had been carved out of the tree trunk and the roots stopped it from being carried off.

Some of the businesses have stayed open to push through this time. I respect and admire them. It must be hard. Many Thai people left the area and one thai girl was telling me how many are afraid that another wave is coming.
The people who worked on my liveaboard have all been affected. Whilst working and showing a brave face, you can tell them that they still haven't really dealt with it yet. Some were on land, some were at sea.

On a happier note, the guests were all great. There were about 10 people of similar age to me from canada, England, Denmark and Germany. One of the couples (from England) I had met before - in a spa in a hostel in Queenstown! We'd only talked for a couple of hours but I remembered them because they were a mixed race couple from Leeds. We got on extremely well and they came to Phuket with me to celebrate my birthday.
There was also a English girl called Laura who at 31 is living the life I would have led if I'd stayed in business (we are quite similar people). That was uncanny, especially as she thought of doing something more like what I am doing now, but didn't. Facing alternate realities!!! I have no regrets.

Inbetween diving, we could go to the beach to snorkel or walk around or sunbathe. Or you could just hang out on the boat. They had a plank you could "walk" or jump off : ) The food was great. I ate far too much!! They also had bacon for breakfast, which I could just not get enough of!! (Muslims....) However, now feel like I've eaten too much meat and am trying to avoid it. V. difficult in Thailand though. Vegetables often seem like an after-thought! At least, there are a couple of good vegetarian places around Khao san road.

After the liveaboard, spent one more night in Khao Lak and then came to Phuket with the enlgish couple and Laura for my birthday. Chilled out day, went out for dinner and a few drinks in the evening. Wandered around the Wat where a festival was going on - something for Budda's birthday??! Not really sure. I put something in the budda bday collection jar for thursdays just in case! Apart from various things you could buy/do to obtain merit, they had lots of stalls for food/drink/shopping and a kiddies area. I particularly like the kiddies area. Opposite the bouncy castle they had 3 thai ladies in wet t-shirt stalls (where you have to knock them in the water). Around the corner they had a plane ride for small children and across from that there was a big screen showing a horror movie!!! Only in Thailand : )

I posted all my dive gear home which was difficult. Hard to be parted. Went diving again yesterday cause really wanted to see more Leopard sharks (saw one on the similans trip and they are beautiful). Supposed to have them around here a lot but surprise, surprise didn't see any (getting the truth out of dive shops is impossible). The diving here is pants but had a good day. Mostly cause I buddied up with an ex-navy diver and we pretty much did our own thing.

Tonight I'm off to Bangkok on overnight coach. What joy!

Just a reminder that you can see my emails at blogger - I think the bigger ones are definitly easier to read there, than in an email as a big block of text!

So am I worried about being 30? Funnily enough no. The way I look at it is, if approximately you live to 80, then the first 20 years of your life are spring, the next 20 are summer, aumtumn, winter etc. So I'm only half way through summer! Bring it on : )

I'm sure there were some other things i wanted to mention. I'll probably remember them as I walk out of the internet cafe. Oh well.

Hope all is good and well in your lives and that the coldest winter for ages isn't getting to you!! (for those of you in europe that is). I'm feeling rather warm after sunbathing on the beach this morning ; )

lots of love
kx