Adieu to southern Thailand
It's been a sun-soaked, adventure-packed, super-chilled three weeks I've had here in southern Thailand: first in Ko Tao, and then in Ton Sai. But now, unfortunately, the time has come to say farewell. In just four days' time, I'll be flying home to Sydney; and as such, it's time that I made my way back up to Bangkok. This morning, I said adieu to Ton Sai beach, hopped on a long-tail boat around to Ao Nang, and then caught a sawng thaew (pickup slash shared-taxi) back to Krabi. From there, I was lucky enough to purchase the last ticket on a bus back to Bangkok (via Surat Thani) this evening (my last dodgy Thai "tourist bus"). And after only a few hours of waiting during the day, I was soon on my way, and the return to Bangkok was happening. When I woke up the next morning, familiar (and still overwhelming) Khao San Road was there to greet me.
The main reason that I've returned to Bangkok so early, is that I need some time to catch up on this blog before I fly home! Since Ko Tao and Ton Sai are both places where Internet is a ripoff, and where there are far more appealing things to do than to sit in front of a computer screen all day, I've fallen behind quite badly during my time there. I know that as soon as I'm back in Sydney, I'm going to have very little time available for finishing it off — and since I'm quite behind as it is, the more blogging I can get done now, the better it will be.
My other big reason for returning to Bangkok early (4 full days before I fly) is, of course, to go shopping! Nothing like that classic Aussie tradition of going to south-east Asia, and of stocking up on pirated movies, cheap clothes, and tacky fake souvenirs. Plus, this is the only time in my entire 12-month trip when I have absolutely no need to worry about how much junk I buy, and about how heavy it will be to carry it in my backpack: because for the first time in a year, my next stop is home. And let's face it: as far as "places to stock up before you head home" go, it doesn't get much better than Bangkok.