Loki and the art of the true joker

There is nothing like a trip half way around the world to shed a little light back into the world you just came from. Don't worry, I'm not about to digress back into an introspective rant. I could though...

Instead I will try and answer the questions proposed by you, the reader. Lets start with the five senses shall we?

Smells: Being that it is the most nostalgic sense I have to admit that the nights here remind me of the time I have spent in the mid-west. Because it has been unseasonably damp over the last few days everything smells humid. Mix that in with dirt, the occasional piles of trash (Some of these are smoldering attempts to burn away what is flammable), the rich spices used in Thai cooking, raw sewage suntan lotion, cigarettes, and when your by the beach, the smell of the sea food section in City Market. Of course there are a couple other smells mixed in there but these are to subtle to truly describe.

Taste: As always the food is a bled of complex spices, steamed rice, vegetables cooked to the perfect consistency. The best dish by far is a coconut green curry with chicken and pineapple. Naturally the dish is best accompanied with steamed rice and a Chang (Thai beer).While 60-70% of the meals I have eaten here have been traditional Thai dishes, I have taken a risk and ordered the Thai version of several foods that I love to eat at home. By far the best American, or what I associate with being American, food has been the BBQ chicken. Let me say I have had some excellent grilled chicken but the Thai twist would give it a good run for its money. The other meals have always fallen short. Spaghetti consists of traditional Italian noodles with ketchup. The tuna sandwiches have left me feeling a little ill. Omelets are tolerable but pale in comparison to the monstrous things I made while back in college. As a side note I'm not complaining. If I wanted American food I never would have left the states.

Sounds:Unlike Phuket, Tonsai keeps a natural sound track rolling all the time. Right now I hear several crickets and other insects calling out. I hear the steady bass line of a rasta song. On the rare occasion you will hear the sounds of a motor bike putt putting by. In the morning you hear people drifting through conversations not really concerned about who is over hearing them. The diversity of language here is amazing. Yesterday our waiter spouted out how to say "hello" in at least a dozen languages. If you lived here for very long it would only be a matter of time before your foreign language abilities would sky rocket.

Sights: If you have never been to a rain forest then watching the palm leaves sway in the evening breeze is a sight worth experiencing. Everything away from the white sandy beaches are a hue of green or brown. We have seen birds of paradise, a monitor lizard that would consider a chiuaua nothing but a snack, and a black snake that was either a python or the deadly cobra. At night you look down the dirt path that acts as the local highway an will see the bright lights of a bar beckoning to those passing by. Because it is a beach resort there is a lot of flesh. Men go shirtless most of the day and night. Women follow suit but only while basking in the sun on the beach.

Feel: Because we are climbing I have intimate knowledge with the texture of the local rocks. In one climb there was the slick(almost like soap stone), the jagged razor like, and the in between. The last makes for the best climbing. Scattered through out many of the climbs are deep pockets. Some are large enough to fit your entire arm into, while others are nothing more than a half-pad mono. Beyond the climbing aspect, sand finds it's way into everything. One night I went to bed in a clean bed and in the morning I woke up on a sand bar. Needless to say taking a shower after every adventure is not only advisable but necessary to keep your bungalow in some semblance of cleanliness. On top of the natural textures and physical sensations of Tonsai I could talk about the metaphorical "feel". That however is still developing, and I feel that if I tried to describe it now I would only be jumping the gun. I think it would be best to let that develope into something that will hold more weight.

For now I hope that helps with the questions and curiosity you are feeling where ever you are. Look for more pictures soon.

The pictures as promissed

 Terry killing it on the line.

 Preston spinning the staff.

 Terry repelling off an 11d.

This guy Christian, I didn't have my camera out when he did a back flip.

Some crazy foreigners free soloing and jumping.

Preston peeling off the rock.

He was probably 35' up...

The way up to the high jumps.

Preston coming down again.

Jacy working a tricky overhanging jungle gym.

Stray cats and "pud" thai

Our time on Tonsai beach has been a blast. In short the beach is mildly rocky and full of shells. The restaurants and bars are lined up one after another and keep the music going until two in the morning, if your willing to party that long. We however have not. For the last week or so we have shrugged off our ability to sleep in for six o'clock starts. In short we have been fairly diligent with our climbing. So far we have been all around Tonsai, over to Raighley, and to Pah Nang. The trip hasn't been all climbing however, the Thailand two step has caught us all so far. The stomach bug however doesn't seem to last longer than a day and then you are up and running again.Overall on the health front we have stayed fit. Preston has a couple flappers, I ended up with some blisters on my feet, and Terry and Jacy have avoided everything that could have befallen them.

The grade of climbing here is all fairly strong, although some routs seem to be sandbagged a bit. Don't get me wrong there are climbs here that we would have to train a year for to get up. None the less we hover around the 10 to low 12 range. (Terry and Jacy seem to have the 11's around here dialed, while Preston and I keep to the hard 10's)

Today we just negotiated our next week of accommodations. For now we are staying on a little hill side resort and are paying 700 Boht a night. Even with our rooms it is fairly easy to live here for under 1000 Boht a day which roughly translates over to 33 dollars a day. Some times we go over due to a late night session at one of the many beach side bars but for the most part we have kept our livers stress free.

I will have pictures for you all soon. I've waited so long to put some up because I wanted to put up some of the best one's once we took them. I can say now that we have some keepers. On the bad side of picture taking Terry's camera took a 30 foot fall and is now in the shape of a hard taco shell.

Today, because it is cloudy and might rain, we took a trip to a lagoon that is on top of a mountain, curiously though we hear its level changes with the tides. When we were there is was at about half tide and was full of mud. On our way in we saw two Spanish girls covered head to toe in mud, their smiles were the only thing even close to being clean.Seeing the two smiles brings up another point, people smile here. They smile constantly! Even the waiters, who have been working a 12 hour shift still have smiles when they come around to ask your order. When I read about Thailand I herd it called the land of smiles but it was only after I have been here that I can see it. It is incredibly refreshing to see after walking down the city streets in America where everyone clears their face of any kind of emotion lest they draw attention. Here any kind of cultural misunderstanding is usually swept away with a grin and the words, say that "one more time?".

In the Soup

Thailand. I'm here and I'm living it. Our arrival in Phuket signified the end of a long trek across the world, but like most things walking off the plane and into the humid climate did not allow for the cathartic moment we look for in a story. If anything else it was the end of a chapter. "Taxi, Taxi. Phuket? 900 boht." That was our greeting after we strolled through customs. The four of us has our huge bags on our shoulders, bags under our eyes, and if anything the baggage was starting to get annoying. We had sucker written on our foreheads. Or at least that is the way I imagine native Thai's to see us. "Their tired, hungry, they just walked into a wall of heat a humidity that will surely melt their brains". It did, but we didn't flinch. Between Preston and Terry's bartering skills we found a taxi for the rate we should look for. 500 boht.

The taxi ride was quick. At one point we were clicking along at 140 kilometers an hour on the shoulder of the road. We passed trucks with at least 12 people in the back. Scooters with 3 or 4 people sitting side saddle. Blinkers accompanied with the honk of the horn act more like a command for people to get out of your way than an indication that you are changing lanes. With out a doubt it is thrilling and left might right foot searching for the brake pedal that wasn't on my side. In just a couple minutes were at out hotel, a wonderful little slice of serenity a block off a main road humming with scooters. The two nights we spent in Phuket were allowed us a gentle transition from our western culture to the Thai way of life. I could tell you how things move here but I would rather challenge you to come over here and experience it for yourself. I can already say it has been worth the effort.

For now we are hanging out at Tonsai beach. The climbing looks as epic as everyone has told us. The lime stone stretches up out of the sea challenging us, and from where I am sitting monkeys and climbers are perched a hundred meters off the sand looking out over the ocean. For the time being I think it is time to log off and join them.

On Jealously

Well, like other blogs this one will start with a trip and the encouragement of other people looking to vicariously live through me... It is not a bad thing. I'm not above saying that I don't mind seeing a little jealousy on other people's faces when I tell them "I'll be in Thailand for six weeks so leave a message after the beep".
Before you deny being jealous yourself let me give you the details (just to make sure you fall in line with the others). Detail one: six weeks on, or near, white sandy beaches. Two: rock climbing. Three: Three damn fine traveling partners. (Is it working?)

Other details could include the cost of airfare, but I won't talk about that because you only have to look and see where my left arm and right leg once were. (I'm pretty sure that is how Southwest gets away without charging for bags, they sell your limbs) Things like "Where exactly will I be?" or, "What have you done to prepare for the trip?" are relatively unimportant at this point. The key is that I'm out-o-here.

So if you are still reading at this point the jealousy thing must have worked and now you are hooked. You want more. You may have fallen madly in love with me, even though we are complete strangers. But even if that last one seems like a stretch you are still here, and I want to invite you to come on this trip with me and my friends as we wildly throw our non-fiscally responsible selves into the world. Because I don't exactly know what to expect in Thailand look for big dumps of pictures along with little updates. If nothing else send your will wishes, advice, hate mail, and most importantly recommendations for how to stay out of Thai prison.