edgework 1

Walking along the main small drag here
I turned off down a small street of rubble
and called into the makeshift store that
some opportunistic thai has opened.

The first thing i picked up was a full month
supply of the contraceptive pill. Yeah, thats
right folks the pill in a convenience store. liberated
or what? then a few more isles full of medicine that
would kill an elephant and i had my water and was out
next door to the aptly named Satan cafe. It is the only
store I have ever seen named after the dark lord. Apparently
they do a devilish chocolate cake but the chef was off feeding
his chickens.

The nearby pharmacy was almost as fun. I asked the
smiling chap behind the counter for some herbal sleeping pills
as I am bad sleeper especially in the heat. Before his breath
had been drawn he wacked two blister packs of valium on the
counter and offered my chemical oblivion. I smiled said i
might have look around and waltzed off seeking less pungent
magic.

Running on the beach has to be one of the most remarkable
and free inspirational things to do when in paradise. The way
the sand slips and the foot finds purchase effortlessly.
After a while I stopped and walked back to the bike thinking
that life couldn't get any better. Then a hidden tree root
clobbered my foot and like a buffoon i leapt forward.
my toe had become a blubbery and the pain was excruciating.
The yin had been added to my yang.

escape

Escape!

when not dodging bad scooter riders I take the time and the chance
to go off the main drag and explore the small tracks that run off into
the jungle. After a few minutes the road vanishes and you are really
testing the scooter over rocks and bumps on loose dirt. Patience and
tolerance of a sore ass can be off assistance.

After winding deep into the jungle the road opens out and there
is a small area saying parking where a few older scooters are
beached. I leave the bike and hike over the hill following
an old sign saying cafe. Five mins later and I see the jungle part
and the long wooden floor of another paradylic hideaway awash
with hippies and solace seekers sitting in hammocks and drinking tea.
sometimes payment is in those that seek and sometimes not.

i feel charmed….!

the island

this island is small
and the development that has occurred is
fast and immense. As you fly along on the bike you see that
in the corridor development that has come to the west coast.
Everything from elephants to curry condoms can be
bought in the huge selection of primary coloured
stores that address the road and offer gifts to the
white faring,(foreigner,) that walks up and down hiding from the sun!

Away from the more mellow backpacker areas the package folk have come
here and the outrageous growth is fuelled in the most part by there
spending and investment. Thailand has attracted the faring from afar
in search of cheap paradise and the chance to invest smaller amounts
of $ for a return that is small yet comfortable. You can see raging development
along the beach front and this island is just about to reach the critical point where
it becomes another samui or one of the very famous regular islands here!

The sad sight is to see so many rather fat white english and western
tourists walking along with paid girlfriends. it is hard and unfair to judge
but there is a rather large trade here in the western inadequate semi
relatively wealthy male toad coming here and paying the local girls
for sex and companionship. We cannot label all like that but here are
far too many for it to be multicultural mating. Its a sad fact that over the
years we have brought so much to thailand and that includes abuse both
mentally and physically as we see the thai's struggle for the perceived wealth
in our spiritually devoid western lands.

hmmm

more soon

hope u are all smiling!!!
Let me know!!

here and now

as i sit near the ocean
listening to the white noise hum of the
small waves crashing near me
and the infinity pool behind me
trickle into the overflow I feel very fortunate
to be here now. As many of you know
I have little materially but I have so much
in many other ways! Being here is what i have
and in many ways it is what we all have. Being
here in the now and being present is the way
or so many of us to manage the pain or the
harsh situation we find ourselves in.

Materially now i can say that life is
much easier than being in the cold north
and the reality around me is what folk think
is the answer but talking to an unhappy wealthy
englishman i met last night whilst watching some football
i realised that we bring the weather with us and
paradise is not a place but a state of being
which can exist where ever we are and whatever we
are doing in our lives. In some ways that seems
easy for me to say as I am here by the pool
but I like many have had my fair share of pain and
have grown through that……

huge spider

sammy the spider spooky!

more beach other direction

bachie boy

beach table and arch!

sunset 2

my toe makes a fine compliment here!

sunset

sunset from the hammock!

pics and mix

self portrait

paradise lost and found!

picture the scene.
the ancient forest lost in its own
natural rhythm. Insects beating out the ambient
drill of the sweaty tropics. Suddenly you hear the
mosquito drone of a small scooter and fuckwhit hillman
resplendent in piss pot helmet comes cutting through the
bush on his way south to charter new beaches and find
solitude from the heat and backpacker trail that surrounds the coast.
Yes folks after just half an hour of buzzing through small villages and
trying to miss idiotic tourists who have never ridden a motorbike before
and think that creative weaving is an artistic form of transport for the
winde back motored, I find myself at some semi hidden beach that
contains a dozen rum shacks, a couple of massage bungalows and bars
for the thirsty. It looks like and ad for chocolate or some perfume but thankfully
the greedheads haven't spoilt it all yet.
A quick walk over the wonky bridge and I am greeted by a tea shack where
the first order of the day is black tea and some vibes from buddha bar.
As you can see from the pics…. it is rather charming!

pics above......!

Koh chang

Koh chang is a great example of what the backpackers
can create over time. not more than a decade ago the island
was relatively undisturbed by tourists until the backpackers
asked the fisherman to take them out.  Devoid of power and 
simple amenities the hardcore came here looking for escape and 
the untrodden way.  The thia's are incredibly quick people nod 
within a few years tourist bungalows started to appear offering 
a few of the comforts of home!
Within five years of that the place had power and internet and then the 
large resorts began moving in and the race is now on to populate the island 
with more upmarket abodes for the cloud people who don't want to get there
toes warm or cold or wet or dry or whatever the locals are doing!
Rich thais and farang(foreigners) are buying the place up and laying down
everything at a blindingly fast rate.  It's remarkable to see the 
'western creep' in action here.  It has taken me some 
time to see it as it is.  It is easy to pine for the 
past but this is were we are and its also part of the reason i can communicate 
this small insight from across the globe to you!


the double edge sword of our ever reaching and ever destructive globalised
world is so evident out here and it seems unlikely that the 
beast can be re-contained now that so many folk depend 
and expect so much from the local resources and environment.  time will tell …..!


more soon……….

bus

Once out of BKK the double decker bus flew us along the glass roads to
the south.  We were like privileged angels pampered along to the ferry with
two tea stops,(and clean toilets t'boot!)


The ferry was rather smooth and nice and the 45 mins were luxurious compared
to some from yesteryear.  then a quick wrangle to get on a pick up
with two young canadian travellers(new to travel) and myself and remarkable
travel friend romana sped off to a  small beach some 45 mins south in the island.
shower, bungalow and then food before an attempt to adapt to the warm air and the 
humidity which i can imagine that most of you in the cold north are dreaming of and it was food time and listen to the insects as the palm trees creaked in the tropical
night way way above.


hmmmmm

change

after so many years of travelling i realise that i have gone through a period
of wishing for the good lode days when things were pure and the road was 
empty!  This lasted some ten years and now as I have passed through I
am aware that the road is somewhat more travelled and has its benefits.


leaving from bkk to koh chang i researched the route:
walk to the local bus
when it comes? then goto the sky train in downtown kb
then its a walk to the bus station
bus to the town of tart
take a tuk tuk to city
then another tuk Tuk to the pier
take the ferry over and then get a small 
pick up with seats in rows to the beach of choice!
all this seemed like the way to go as anyone who has travelled knows
that local is way cheaper than the tours.  
This is the first time for me to say I have been completely wrong!
The bus leaving from almost outside the hotel was going all the way
including the ferry and with much more luxury and less hassle than 
the olde fashion way and for 33% less.  Yeah times they are a changing and
thailand has to the ideal intro for all you folk who want to come and chill!
and experience the essence of travel while maintaining your budgets.

flashpacker

Times they are a changing on the backpacker scene.
The backpacks are getting bigger and although hideous on
wheels they are practical.  That slowly points to backpackers
taking more shite and going to more accessible places.

This new new movement demands so much more
than ye olde days and in some ways things are better.
But yesterday I saw the worst side of it all and humanity.

In a moment of weakness some friends and i walked back
to the hotel through the legendary koh san road
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khaosan_Road).  this mad fuckfest
of revellery belongs more to the spanish coast where the
debt ridden beer heads have ridden shotgun over
lovely areas.  here you can see every apsect of human
idiocy.  blackpool or vegas take your pic, the escapism
and hedonistic indulgence are ubiquitous throughout
'developed' nations hideouts........

you may want to come and see
but then again you could leave it to a fuckwhit like me to
share the joys of observing and experiencing life
on the extremes.

much more soon........!

BKK

Bangkok is a sweatbox full of wonder

and wander for the traveller.

When you arrive at the very new

airport the first thing that hits you is

the efficiency as you goto collect your bags,

then the heat. the heat, even at 7pm is very

obvious and hits you like a wave as you leave the airport!

The taxis are clean and on time,

the people are somewhat reserved although

in the capitals the best folk can be somewhat dog eat dog!

The thais seem to goto bed early as in bangkok the

city is much quieter than the other capitals I have been to,

but that didn't last.

The koh san road area of Bangkok is probably the most famous

place for the backpacker in south east asia.  This place has been

won out by the flash, flush westerner seeking the cheap and the

easy in life.  Strange that just a century ago it was rare to see another

westerner on the streets of bk.  other than the odd sailor who walked the

streets on leave good old Bkk was a more reserved buddhist capital. 

It has never been a democracy as the king rules it all, yet the folk here

worship the king and compared to many countries destroyed

by the american war it has boomed with its mad brand of

capitalism and monarchic rule.

Now bangkok is a bunch of neon and westernised speed.  the place is so fast

in so many ways that the land of yesteryear, represented quite commonly

around the city in the form of temples, seems like oasis after oasis away

from what has been brought by the 'developed' world.

Time to sweat and adapt, observe and see what will be.

more soon…….

bangcock not cockbang

slowly here
lots to write when i can get used to the heat
slow me but i will 
do much more soon
and inform you that this place has changed so much 
yet the standards remain pretty good!


namaste


back soon 

dubai airport

when you float into Dubai on the worlds largest airplane
you get a smooth view of the barbwire like electric lights that
rings the city demonstrating power, money, actually debt, and
an area of intense hedonism. its a bit like the old ideas of
lunar basses on the moon where folk would go and get away
from it all by eating opulent dishes and drinking till sick.

Dubai airport is like any north american shopping mall except in this mall
my friend and i had to spend 9 hours trying to find some rest and sleep.
the nest time you goto the mall try and find a place to sleep
and eat food that doesn't contain sugar and salt enough to feed the local zoo.
Dubai airport is an oasis of lost fools walking around in some
displaced time zone seeking out consumer oddities and a place to park
there tanned asses and find something last minute for the family.
It broke my ass and also made me aware of the excesses of the human
mind spending so much time on shite and energy.

Zurich Dubai high in the sky

years ago when i wrote my first book that
never really saw the light of day i wrote that
flight like life is a miracle. I should now
go onto say not all flights are created equal!
the flight from zurich to dubai can only be
described as ridiculous opulence for a bum like me!
For a man who is more used to 40 hr train
rides on open indian trains, six hours of emirates
air bus, the largest in the world, can only be described
as a floating palace even for the beggars in economy.
so many things to do and so much room compared to the
gypsy charter planes i have tacked across the atlantic in yesteryear!
the weird entertainment system had everything anyone could
possibly as for an more. thousands of channels and
every new movie and audio track playing at the moment.
It's volume was admirable but demonstrated how
rediculous we have all become as the excess promoted paralysis.
I bit like all u can eat for the mind which invariably means
no real time to think. perhaps thats the idea as you are shuttled
in relative splendour across the gulf states and the deserts that have little
but sand and black opulence for the arabian owners.

The mood changed for me as when i looked on one
of the channels that had the route in 3 d, (or else u could see
out of the plane from one of 4 cameras forward and aft!) we were flying over
baghdad. This saddened me greatly and made me aware of the absolute carnage that had been initiated below me by the so called coalition of fools.
a nation rent in two caused by the foolish ness of greed and folly of power.
I said a few mantras as I paased far over head and we blasted towards what can only be called the shopping mall of the desert!

from the sky to dubai

yes 
i am in the desert 
where they have snow slopes and 
rediculous things like mink coats
its basically a shopping mall
with over expensive clothes and fuckwhits 
walking round with labotomies 
wishing they had more credit.
the first thing u see off the plane is a giant waterfall
rediculous

anyhow more when i have power

namaste

p