Ko Phayam - our Thai Island Paradise

The small island of Ko Phayam (150 sq km) is located on the Andaman Coast – the western side of the Thai peninsula. There are no roads, as such, or cars, only a few concrete “paths” for the many motor bikes that are the main form of transport.  It is just south of the Myanmar border, a 2 hour “nor mal boat” ferry ride from Ranong. Our 8 day stop here is our rest from all our travels. We are in the land of “vacation”, which will help keep this post short – not much to write about relaxing.

This is the “classic” island getaway. Our beach, Aow Yai, or Long Beach is 3km long and we have walked its smooth expanse of sand many times. Palm trees, jungle, fresh fruit, and great food in open air restaurants right on the beach that is moderately lined with little “bungalows”. Sometimes there is a bit of surf, and Bar has tried these cool little sit-upon kayaks that people use to surf the waves. All manner of beach “chairs” invite reclining, as do numerous platforms with mats, and the ubiquitous triangular Thai cushions. Just down the way, one of these platforms hangs from the trees. Looks like a comfy, lounging, raft swing. We have a small bungalow: large bed with mosquito net (no screens on windows), porch with hammock, open air bathroom (which might explain the cute tree frog that turns up at night in odd places like underneath the toilet seat or on the towel rack), and a cold water shower. Not much really, but at 20$ (peak season price too) we are happy. I’ve totally claimed the hammock, but other than that who spends time in a bungalow when there is a beach at their doorstep? Plus our host, Yod, is lovely. We have great chats about health and running his business. He just prepared a special final meal for Bar and I based on how we had ordered during our time here – fresh, vegetarian spring rolls (different from Vietnamese ones) and a dry curry with egg and good spice.

We do as others do. Walk, swim, read, yoga, and eat. We really have taken it easy. We’ve had two fabulous 3 hour yoga classes on the other side of the island for 10$ per person, with an excellent teacher trained in India. I’m not sure where she is from, but she also runs a very successful restaurant with her husband (Thai I assume). Our morning routine of late has been to walk a few kilometres after breakfast, stop for espresso or coffee and fresh pineapple or mango shakes, then keep walking until we find a place for lunch. Our loop is about 10km and no matter how early we set out, quickly has my body and clothing reduced to a damp and soggy mess. I guess that is why the ocean is here. On a few occasions we have rented a cute, hot-pink motor bike (helps us get to early yoga) which also lets us explore the far reaches of the island and other beaches. This has the added benefit of making us very happy with our choice to stay here (thanks to coaching from Les and Jer). Bar has become quite adept maneuvering our little bike over even the roughest sections of “road”.  We’ve been honoring the concept of afternoon siesta, and Bar has been tossing the disc with the 5pm Frisbee crowd. Snorkeling, in contrast to most of the other Thai islands, is relatively poor here and what coral does exist must be accessed by boat I think, so we have not had this experience.

There is, however, an interesting crab population here. Lots of industrious crabs live in the intertidal sand. As the tide recedes the crabs start to dig up and out (in search of food I guess). As they excavate, they deposit tiny balls of sand (maybe with crab spit? – who knows?) in interesting and intricate patterns – small starburst fireworks, or geometric labyrinths radiating out from their exit holes (3-4mm in diameter). There are so many, the beach is covered in their work. The entire surface of sand carpeted by their ephemeral depositing, until the tide starts to roll in again, smoothing, erasing, and covering their holes. These redundant processes are occurring twice daily…..  it is a HUGE event, happening on a very grand scale – the actual volume of sand moved, I’d bet, is quite staggering. Sorry to report that we did not get a photo of this natural phenomenon. I put this activity off until morning, only to discover that my timing was off – tide on its way out. The little crustaceans will just be getting to work.

To our surprise, and thanks to some info Jeremy Shute sent us, we have discovered a little music spot. We walk down the beach about 15 minutes, and depending on the tides, forge the river or wade a small stream and head inland a little to the Irie Bar run by Tomo, from Japan. He rents guitars and hosts jam nights. He is a great guitar player and plays a French/Belgium (I think) music called manoosh (spelling?). We’ve been over for a couple of nights and had some good times playing.

But there is a sad reality here too. The tourist industry is growing, quickly. On our walks, we pass numerous new ventures: people (both Thai and foreigner) starting up small eateries or shops (for cheap clothing or some basic groceries). Some locals we’ve asked say, “more people, more problems”. I am plagued by the amount of plastic garbage that washes up on the beach, and in some spots thickly lines the zone where sand meets trees (even more relevant after our time at the Monterey Bay Aquarium and its art/education display on plastic pollution in the ocean). Garbage is burned in a deep whole dug in the sand (including plastics to the best of my knowledge), which will later be covered with the excavated sand. Our host is able to collect aluminum and plastic water bottles (and there are a lot of these, which totally motivates me to keep using our UV sterilizing device) and sell to a man in the village who then takes to sell on the mainland. Glass – no one will buy (which explains why Yod does not sell the cheaper, bigger, glass bottles of beer!). Grey water from our sink and shower, drain out directly into the sand, but I do not think our soap is biodegradable. This makes me think of the very interesting German mechanical engineering consultant that we met in the Lantang Valley, Nepal (Sylvia I think – mostly consulting about plumbing) talking about findings that show that the control of waste flow has a greater impact on community health than dealing with water or food. Local products here include rubber (we walk through rubber tree plantations and did watch some workers rolling out fair sized blocks of latex yesterday) and cashews (if not directly on the island still from Thailand. Shops sell delicious roasted, salted, fresh cashews) but otherwise all vegetables, fruits, meat, fuel, toilets, bedding, even ice makes its way here on the same boat we take. There is a growing party scene; many young travelers and full-moon parties are making their presence known and possibly changing the reputation for quiet, and family friendly, this island has earned over the years (actually there is a party on this island almost every night if one wants that kind of thing). We luxuriate in the respite, the tropical beauty, and enjoy our fellow travelers, but we also wonder about the eco-pressure this tourist enclave creates. We question, yet we join the party happily. Such is a travelers’ dilemma.

WE leave tomorrow to begin our journey north to Chiang Mai, which will require a bus to Bangkok and then 15 hour train ride north. At this point we have loose plans and predict we will be in Luang Prabang, Laos for Christmas, but time will tell. Other than thinking of family, and the actual date, Christmas is far from our minds.