Ko Lanta. Tiny tropical island, homie hostel haven, curry lover’s Christmas, our shipping-container-home for 5 nights. Call it what you want, we called it “paradise.” Along the way we got eaten alive by fire ants, itched constantly, had elderly, but youthfully aggressive Thai women trying to give us Thai massages, and kept the freshly-made coconut drinks flowin’.
By now I’m sure you’ve noticed a reocurring theme in our blogs: long travel days. This one, from Langkawi to Ko Lanta was no different (though, it’s not nearly as bad as the lovely 12 hour bus ride we’re sitting on now, as I’m writing this). Ferry – to bus – to waiting – to mini van – to another ferry – to minivan – to hostel – to 7/11 to buy beer. Character-building, indeed.
Our hostel, SabaiDee Lanta, was an incredible, open-air shipping container concept that felt modern and very communal. Our room, (air-conditioned, thank god – they turn the AC off at 10am and boy does it get toasty quick) even featured a bunk bed! Usually, due to structural integrity reasons and my “large load capacity,” I’d take the bottom bunk and Emily would take the top – but this bed was legit, made out of a rigid welded steel frame that wasn’t going anywhere, no matter how many times I belly flopped my way to a comfortable sleeping position. The local couple running the hostel were the definition of homies. They quickly caught on that Emily and I really enjoyed eating at the food spots only the locals go to; the less tourists, the better. So time after time, they recommended incredible food spots and wrote down, in Thai, the things we should order. We were exposed to some of the most delicious, flavor-complex and spicy soups and curries that we’ve eaten so far. We’re completely blown away by Thai cuisine.
Thai cuisine, as explained to us during a cooking class Emily and I took at Time for Lime, a local cooking school, is all about flavor balance.
A flavor-rich combination made of chili peppers, various gingers, lime-kaffir leaves and an emphasis on slow-cooked broth and quick-cooked everything else in high heat, flavor-seasoned woks. The cuisine doesn’t rely on heavy things such as butter or cream, so everything feels light and everyone looks healthy (Thai food has been really good for keeping my waistline in check. Consensus: not bad but could be better). The cooking class was a blast, led by a seriously funny Thai chef – he took us through the essentials theories of Thai cusine, taught us how to grind our own curry paste, and whip up 4 delicious meals. The couples in the class were split up, which meant that Emily had to cook spring rolls and shrimp while I made Thai-chili margaritas and watched the sunset.
We swapped roles and I (pretty tipsy at this point) was given a large butcher knife (hello health insurance!) to chop veggies for a stir-fry and make a fried fish. I’m really hoping we remember the things we learned so that we both won’t have to read, re-read, and re-re-read Blue Apron instructions (and eventually fustratingly settle for mac & cheese) in the future.
Armed with a stacked itinerary and a questionably-wobbly rented scooter, we began exploring the wonders of the small tropical island. First up: a dog & cat sanctuary. I’m not going to sugercoat it, dogs and cats here have a very different relationship with people here than in Western countries. Some dogs and cats are beaten, purposefully hit by cars, have hot oil thrown on them, are stabbed and slashed, etc. Throughout Thailand, there are hundreds and hundreds of stray animals roaming the streets. Disgusted by the situation, a lady from Norway set up a huge refuge for these animals 15 years ago. After facing difficulties in securing funding and support from the Thai government, she started the Time for Lime Cooking School (the one we went to) with 80% of profits being used to help the animals. The clinic provides vaccinations and any medical care the animals might need, before housing them with other pups and cats, before getting adopted. Word has gotten out, and this place is extremely popular.
Emily and I showed up twice with the hopes of taking dogs for walks and were turned down both times because the dogs are too tired from being walked and petted… so we “settled” for petting cats in “kitty-city”.
We scootered around, all over the 25km long island, dodging monkeys along the way and stopping at a small private beach daily.
The beach almost always had nobody there, incredible waves for body slamming (new hobby), beautiful sunsets, and perfect spots to sit and read Tina Fey/drink beer.
What else.. hm, what else? Oh! And we even managed to take care of our health a little bit. We took a sweaty and difficult 1.5 hour morning yoga class (next time you see me, ask me to do the squatting goddess pose – I’m pretty good) and felt the wrath of Thai women (who seemed to have years of built up frustration at something, probably their husbands) in our first ever Thai massages. Maybe Emily knew what was coming… but let me just go on record by saying that I had no idea what was in store. Pain. For an hour. My masseuse and I developed a joking relationship when she kept asking me if I was okay and I kept making striking-elbow-to-spinal-cord gestures. For those that don’t know (and you shouldn’t… that would be weird), I’m ridiculously ticklelish on my sides. Emily knows this and uses it to her advantage daily. Somehow, in the goodness of her heart, my Thai masseuse managed to avoid all side-contact. And for that, I’m forever thankful. And so we ached, we cringed, we survived… and were treated to a private view of the ocean while sipping on tea and snacking on fresh cut fruit.
NO SIDES WERE TOUCHED. NOT BAD.
KO LANTA > KHAO SOK