Adventure in Koh Phangan

So, now to the beautiful side of the island, or rather, what you can do here when it's not storming. Although I liked the island from the beginning, I had a bit of a struggle with the people in the hostel and didn't feel very comfortable. But as the days went by and my jet lag improved, I started feeling better. Connor, a New Zealander who was staying in the same room as me, had a big part in making me feel comfortable. I told Connor about my plans to get to know the island better and go hiking, and after a short time, I convinced him to come with me. Normally, I don't mind hiking and exploring on my own, but in this case, it was great that Connor came along! Why? Because on Koh Phangan, you can only get around from place to place by scooter. I initially thought it would be easy to just grab a scooter and ride from place to place. But I was mistaken... there are numerous scooter accidents on Koh Phangan because tourists can't ride them as well as they think and end up crashing. I've seen several accidents and resulting fractures myself and didn't feel like getting injured. I've never driven a scooter before and I've never driven on the left side of the road. So the combination of both was a bit too much for me, which is why I'm very grateful that Connor offered to be my driver and hiking companion. It was an amazing feeling to sit on the scooter and cruise around the island, pure freedom. While I navigated, Connor drove us to some beautiful spots on the island. My highlight was definitely the highest point of the island, which we had to hike for about 2 hours through the jungle to reach. A beautiful, unique hike. Because of the high humidity and the steep incline, it was one of the most challenging hikes I've ever experienced. But at the same time, it was one of the most amazing: wow, all those jungle plants, animals, sounds, rivers, I was deeply impressed and had never seen anything like it before. Hiking among palm trees - an absolute dream. Sometimes it was a bit spooky, as some animals made noises we had never heard before. And Connor has a fear of spiders, so he had to face his fear a lot on this trip, as we encountered huge spiders. It's great to have a therapist by your side during confrontation training ;). We also encountered butterflies (brown, black, colorful), worms, beetles, ... in all colors and shapes. I definitely need to come to the jungle more often! Of course, the hike was not comparable to hikes in Europe, as the signage was often missing and the trails were not well-maintained. So we got lost occasionally and were glad to meet other hikers (including Germans) who helped us find our way. On the other hand, we also helped other hikers: We encountered some who were on the brink of dehydration and shared our water with them. It's really crazy how much more thirsty you get in high humidity! After the hike, Connor and I explored some beaches on the island, beautiful. Each beach is different, not crowded with tourists, and has its own charm. The waves can be gentle or huge, the beach can be fine and white or rocky, and there are rocks and jungle everywhere around the beach. It's so beautiful when you just want to relax and live in an authentic way. I can only recommend retreating to a bungalow in Koh Phangan.

Because we liked the island so much, Connor and I were even willing to wake up at 6 am the next day (which is a huge sacrifice for me ;) ) to continue exploring the island (we only had the scooter until 11 am, as apparently there would be bad weather coming after that). We visited several waterfalls and small rivers, and I can only say: Woww! I think I found one of my new favorite places in nature. The waterfalls were beautiful, powerful yet calming and untouched. There were no other tourists, so we could enjoy the natural spectacle all by ourselves. We could swim between the waterfalls (which, by the way, was refreshing compared to the sea!). I've never swam in a more beautiful place, so incredibly beautiful among waterfalls, tropical plants, and crystal clear water. I also rarely had such a relaxed travel companion as Connor - a true New Zealand Kiwi. Totally open, friendly, and full of life, just as I imagine New Zealanders to be. I don't think the natural wonders impressed him as much as they did me, as there are probably similar beautiful spots in New Zealand. However, he did great with hiking and swimming. In the evening, he introduced me to some of his New Zealand friends who were also on Koh Phangan (for many New Zealanders, it's like Mallorca for us). I ate and drank with them and was completely impressed by their kindness. Therefore, I'm quite sure that in a few years, if I ever start making really good money ;), you will also be reading a travel blog from me about New Zealand =)!

But speaking of kindness: I finally met friendly Thais, apparently you just have to leave the tourist areas. While yesterday afternoon was not favorable for driving around the island on the scooter due to the weather forecast, all the others in the hostel stayed indoors because of the expected bad weather. I decided to take a walk through Koh Phangan. I thought, as long as the storm and rain haven't arrived yet, I should enjoy the time. What's the use of always worrying about the future when you can still enjoy life in the moment. And indeed, yesterday afternoon remained dry and I stumbled upon a Buddhist temple after a short walk. Despite my shorts, I was allowed to enter and met a very nice, open-minded monk there who spoke English. After he told me that my positive energy attracted him (very nice :D), he showed me around the temple. It was very interesting to learn a bit more about Buddhism and the life of Buddhist monks. Afterwards, he suddenly remembered that he had to do something for his karma and wanted to show me more of the island. So he actually got his scooter out and we zoomed around Koh Phangan, mostly to temples or pagodas. It turned out that the monk was not from Koh Phangan himself (a monk borrowed from Bangkok) and didn't know the island well. His driving style was also catastrophic, so I was sometimes afraid for my life ;). We got lost several times until he realized in the middle of the jungle that he was running out of fuel. It was quite thrilling, although thankfully we had Google Maps, it didn't help much because the gas stations we found were closed due to the impending bad weather. Luckily, we eventually found a small shop that sold us gasoline in a glass bottle in the middle of nowhere. It turned out that it was important to the monk to go to a supermarket with me. In the temple, they only have certain foods and he only has a minimal amount of pocket money, and it's his big wish to buy certain foods and eat them secretly. I ended up paying for those foods, and he enjoyed them like a little child. In retrospect, I'm not quite sure if he only took me around for his karma or if he regularly hopes for tourists to bring him things. Whatever the case may be, I had an exciting and enlightening afternoon because of him. In the evening, he dropped me off at the temple again and recommended that I try the steam bath. I actually had no desire to do it, as it was already hot on the island, and I had spent enough time with him after all the adventures. But in the end, I let myself be convinced and I didn't regret it at all. The Thai steam bath was infused with essential oils that were very beneficial for the lungs. It was a very pleasant steam that was good for all the senses and totally relaxed me. Walking through the jungle and temples during the sauna breaks (of course, everyone in the temple sauna is covered with towels) was also a very unique experience. My conclusion of the day: We should let life guide us more often, then the most exciting things happen.

However, after the sauna, it started raining heavily and it was dark, so the monk drove me home. He invited me to stay at the temple in case there was bad weather or if I ever needed a scooter driver. Very nice, but in this case, I would rather rely on Connor.

In the evening at the hostel, we were informed again that the weather forecast wasn't very favorable. It was fascinating how we dealt with it: it brought us all together, we had a good meal, drank, smoked cigarette after cigarette, played games, and had a lot of fun. The apocalypse can actually be beautiful ;). In this sense, we should remind ourselves more often that everything is finite...