Slow Boat To Paradise

Krabi Province, Thailand

So, I flew to Krabi, about an hour flight from Bangkok. My idea was to get away to a quiet retreat, an empty beach, lapping of the ocean the only sound-- a welcome departure from the inevitable noise in Bangkok. And my swansong since I depart Southeast Asia in a few days after two months of traveling, teaching, and generally experiencing as much as I could absorb of my temporary home.

I was going to an archipelago that I had heard about, read about, and fantasized about for months. To get there, I had to find transportation from the airport to the pier in Krabi to pick up the ferry. All I knew was that it was a two hour ferry boat ride, and that Pei, the manager of the little hotel where I was staying, would have someone to meet me. I had agreed to call him when the ferry left so that no one would have to wait for me, especially since he said it was another 45 minutes south to the little hotel, Phra Nana Lanta.Pei had urged me, his English perfect, to do private transportation. " It's the best way," he advised.

The Krabi airport was like alot of resort towns: not too big, not too organized, and full of hawkers. So, I had to decide how to get to my little paradise. There were taxis, of course, who wanted about $60 to take me by land and sea. And then there was the ferry boat, and the bus that would take me to the ferry boat. It cost a total of $15.

It was an easy decision. And I figured it would be a nice chance to see the Andaman Sea, and enjoy a boat ride. I'd been on many, many ferries in my long and checkered lifetime in places like New York, the Greek Isles, the Med, the BVIs. How bad could it be for two hours?

The bus to the port ( or so they said we were going ) was packed. It was a 1950s variety, maybe 40 seats, all filled. The luggage didn't go below. No, the luggage went in a horizontal space between the driver and the front row of seats. It was piled high, and from time to time on the fifteen minute trip several pieces teetered menacingly. But, amazingly, there was not one casualty.

All but 10 got off at Krabi Town. And five minutes later, at which time I was expecting the pier and a ferry boat, we were at a dive shop and tour operator glorified hut. There, we bought our ferry ticket. They conveniently also had food and Singha beer, the local Thai favorite.

I asked when we would go to the boat since it was 10:30 and the boat was to depart at 11am. Peng, the main man at this spot, smiled and told me not to worry, that we would not miss the boat. I had no idea who spoke English other than Peng, but I WAS worried. Somehow the topic of my reason for being in Thailand came up ( they seemed a bit troubled by me traveling alone. I wasn't sure if it was that I looked at least ten years older than the other "passengers" or if that is a Thai thing.) But when Peng found out that I had been teaching Buddhist monks English, it was like hitting a home run! I was something else, something special in his eyes.

At probably 11:20, a pickup backed into the road next to the hut. Peng motioned everyone to get aboard. I grabbed my water, a Singha ( I'll admit it...I was on vacation ) and was ready to get in. Not exactly a tsongtau, though. This meant riding on the bottom of the truck bed. Suddenly, Peng came out. " You ride with driver, yes?" , he said. And I didn't need to be asked twice!

The pier was close. Where's the boat, I kept asking. And then I saw it. Basically, it was a PT boat without a hinged exit. There were exactly two seats that I saw on the deck which had been taken by some early comers. So, we piled on and found a place to sit on the deck, using the maybe three foot metal railing as a backrest. My red duffel was stowed below where there were more seats but no air, and certainly no air conditioning. It was topside or seasickness. By then, it was easily 90 degrees outside.

I prepared myself as best I could: sun hat, shirt, two sarongs to cover myself, and I slathered on sun screen like crazy.

Across from me were a couple who looked like they belonged together--like out of a movie set. We started chatting. Yes, dear readers, it's one of those coincidences. She, Danielle, pictured above, along with her new boyfriend, Joel, were New Yorkers. But it gets better. Joel was born in Rogers Park, an area near the Loop in Chicago. Danielle is a girl from Allentown, Pa. Turns out they met in New York a bit ago. Danielle is a model for the likes of Elle. And Joel is in advertising trying to keep going in this economy. Danielle had taken a gig in Bangkok, missed Joel, and... well, he came 10,000 miles to see her.

Is that a great story-- and true-- or not?

The two hour trip was grueling. The boat speed was something around ten miles an hour. And we would stop in the middle of the ocean to pick up more passengers and deliver goods like Singha beer, a bushel of cabbage, and sundry other things to the various islands that we passed along the way.

No wonder it took two hours!

Joel, Danielle, and I got pretty well acquainted. We shared water, New York stories, anything to make the time pass more swiftly. We all decided that on the way back to Krabi, we would have to find another option. Danielle put on her Ipod complete w/ Bose speakers. She played Dylan for me. We talked about the Grateful Dead. We talked about our families.

On the second hour, Danielle looked at me and said: " I'll remember this for the rest of my life. Someday I'll be somewhere, and this memory will come back. And I'll remember you."

On shore finally, we hugged and went out separate ways. They had only three days on the island before Danielle had to return to her photoshoots, and Joel had to return to the U.S.

Yesterday, they emailed to say goodbye, and let me know that they were NOT taking the public ferry back to Krabi airport.

Two very interesting people just beginning their lives, maybe together, maybe not.But for now, it was fun to watch them play together. Somehow, its lovely to watch a holiday unfold as a mere spectator.

We agreed to remember our war story even before the ferry finally landed in New York sometime soon.

So, Joel and Danielle, if you're reading this, tell me where and when? I'll be there.

M.C.

MC