Traveling back to Bangkok and then to Seattle

I woke up this morning to the sound of my cell phone alarm going off. It was the only battery operated clock that could provide such a service as there were no other electrical options, and why should there be? I wedged myself between the toilet and sink and took time to enjoy my morning shower with the cold stream of water from the hose. This was my last day, it was time to make the long multi-day journey back to the states, although I have no idea why. Why would I sit day after day mashing out line after line of computer code when there is a whole world out here for us to experience and enjoy? Never the less I packed up my backpack and headed for the dock.

The ferry from Phi Phi Don to Phuket is by an old wooden boat that time forgot, tickets are sold by a number of shops without regard to the number of sales or price of ticket. Lucky for me that I got their early. They first loaded the ship’s hull, not just the seats but people packed in tight, sitting on the floor, or standing, bags and all. Then people on the roof, feet hanging over the side, standing side by side, just hoping they actually have a spot as they started turning people away. Before we left the dock people were fighting over life jackets, and those who had secured one had also secured it around their body, wearing it and tying it on tight. At the time and for 80% of the trip I did not understand this, thus did not make much of an effort to acquire a life jacket.

With Phuket in sight we hit a wave and landed with a loud crack, the kind of crack you may hear in the woods as a tree just begins to fall and then falling. Next thing I know the engines stop and two Thai guy are running down to the hull with a hose that is hooked up to a pump, screaming all kinds of things in Thai. Apparently we sprung a leak and all of a sudden those few people in the life jackets made sense. My only thought again was, well I think I can swim on my back with my one hand holding my camera up above the water. We were actually lucky as the pump was able to continue to get the water out as we made the slow crawl in to Phuket. But we made it and most of us made it dry. At this point I was running late and made a mad dash for a cab to take me to the Phuket airport. Good thing few obey traffic laws as we raced to the airport with enough time for me to clean security in order to gain access to the airport, check in, and then clear security in to my gate for my flight in to Bangkok.

I made it and just a short hour, meal included, and I was back in Bangkok. Before I borded the flight I used the free internet offered by Bangkok Air to look up a few hotels near the airport as I again had an early flight out the following day. Once in Bangkok I jumped in to a cab, and as it turned out, with a driver that knew zero English, including the ability to read or write it. I did my best to explain that I wanted to go to the hotel, however I got my Thai mixed up and was telling him to go to Novotel as the web site listed it as Novotel Bangna, and the other hotels did not have Novotel in it, thus I thought it was part of the name and not just "Hotel". I caught a quick glimpse of the map with the hotel and airport along with some images of the hotel from the outside. It looked pretty close to the airport so I began to worry when it was taking more then 10 and soon more than 20 minutes to get there. I was bummed, I made it all this way with no major problems until now, it seemed we were way off course and I tried very hard to communicate this to him with no progress. After some circling and “taking the scenic route” I spotted it off in the distance. Just enough time for me to check in, grab one last nice Thai diner, some rest, and then get up early again for my flight to Taipei.

Same crappy movies on demand, a flight change to go to Seattle, which was interesting in that it was only 9 hours verses the 13 it took to get there. I guess different flight patterns and the whole rotation of the Earth thing. I again took some time to walk around the plane in the free slippers they gave us and ate the traditional Chinese meals they served. And then it was over, I was dropping $50 for a cabbie with a bad attitude to drive to me my house. I found myself standing outside my house almost hoping I would forget the code to open my garage so I would have to go back, but somethings you never forget…