Category Archives: Epic Journey 2

If in doubt, eat a coconut

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Many people in Thailand die by falling coconuts each year. A true story. Nonetheless coconuts are god send. Delicious, refreshing, filling and extremely nutritious. In fact you can sustain yourself on a coconut diet alone. One coconut is a good substitute for a light breakfast. Combined with a fruit salad, it becomes a full-fledged breakfast. Another discovery is a fruit salad with minced coconut meat on top. They had it as a light dinner in Wat Kow Tahm. Combined with nuts and seeds, it passed entirely as a full dinner and was in fact the best meal of the day for me. Coconuts, nuts, seeds and fruits – what’s this nonsense about a light dinner?

You can get young coconuts only in tropical countries – coconuts intended for export are old ones. The older coconut is the more coconut meat it accumulates and the harder meat becomes. Juice of old coconuts also loses some of its flavour. Eating a very mature coconut is a labour-intensive task. I, for one, cannot finish a mature coconut in one go, as my jaws literally become tired. Fortunately the coconut nutrition makes up for all the energy you spend chewing. Very young coconuts produce only juice and very little meat. The best ones are semi-mature coconuts, they have enough meat to get your stomach filled and the meat is also very tender. Coconut water is also a sterile solution until opened, making it a suitable liquid for intravenous therapy. A super-food indeed.

Another discovery is that you do not necessarily have to buy coconuts, as they grow everywhere. Getting a coconut from a tall palm is still a problem I still have no solution for, but fortunately gravity does the job for older coconuts. Opening a coconut is a hard task, unless you are equipped with a machete. First you have two to remove the soft thick husk to expose the hard shell. Can be done with a knife, but when I attempted it, I got one broken blade as a result. Once the hard shell is exposed you have to crack it, preferably not spilling the juice. Again doable with a knife, if you know a weak spot of the shell (about 1/3 length from the spot where coconut is attached to the palm). Or as an easier solution is just to smash it against a hard surface, as observed during Thaipusam festival. All the hard work is worth the contents, though. Yummie!

Progress of my journey (Part 3)

See Part 1 and Part 2

Bangkok (bus, ferry, 18€) ⇒ Ko Phangan (ferry, bus, train, 38€) ⇒ Penang, Malaysia (minivan, 12€) ⇒ Tanah Rata, Cameron Highlands (minivan, boat, 21€) ⇒ Taman Negara National Park (local bus, 2€) ⇒ Jeruntut (train, 8€) -> Singapore (bus, 16€) ⇒ Penang (minivan, tuk-tuk, 17€) ⇒ Krabi (bus, 3.5€) ⇒ Surat Thani (bus, ferry, 6€) ⇒ Ko Phangan (ferry, 10€) ⇒ Koh Tao (via Chumphon, ferry, bus 24€) ⇒ Bangkok

Total: 175.5€

Krabi – Koh Phangan route was particularly interesting. I decided to save some money and do each step of the route on my own, instead of booking a package. The main motivation was to see if I can save some money, to gain some experiences (doing it a hard way) and to avoid tourist agencies. The result was saved 60 baht (one meal) and only minor additional hassle. Not really sure if it was worth it, but this is one way to do it.

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I left out local transportation out of the equation, which can be expensive in places in Ko Phangan. Some examples. A boat ride from Had Rin to Had Yuan (2-3kms) is usually 200 baht and 300 baht if the boat driver is in a greedy mood. That’s 10-15€ there and back just to buy some groceries or book a ticket. Now that is a lot even by Finnish standards. There is no way to beat the system, apart from walking an overgrown jungle path, provided that you do not carry any bags with you. With bags the only way is to bite the bullet and pay whatever the boat drivers asks. Cartels are bad, mmmkay. Another example is that it cost me 300 baht (7.5€) to go by taxi from Had Rin to Thongsala, when I was leaving to Koh Tao. There were no other people to share the taxi in sight (damn party fiends sleeping till late) and I sort of had to catch a ferry. In comparison the ferry to Koh Tao was only 100 baht more expensive. Sometime local prices do not make any sense whatsoever.

The Turtle Island

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Koh Tao is very nice. I expected a tourist nightmare a’la Ao Nang in Krabi, but Tao is not like that all. Despite the (over-)development, the island has its chilled atmosphere and charm. The main local attraction is naturally diving, as Koh Tao is the second biggest diving spot in the world after all. Dive shops are everywhere offering all kind of courses ranging from no-certificate diving to free diving. Snorkeling is another option and for that you do not even need to go further the nearest beach, as spectacular marine world with its corals and funky fish begins only 10 meters from the shore line. Hopefully further development won’t destroy the corals, as it happened in other parts of Thailand (eg. Railay beach in Krabi). Partying is another attraction here. Something goes on every night and globetrotting DJs visit the island on a regular basis. Cagedbaby played while I was here, but it was rather nothing special. Just a house producer spinning tunes. Unlike in Had Rin Koh Tao party scene has no messy touch, but is rather tidy and chilled.

Scandinavians dominate the island. Swedes take the top spot, you hear Swedish and see blonde people literally everywhere. Many Norwegians and Finnish too. I went to a dinner with Jussi and Mirka to Intouch (the restaurant popular among Finns) and a Thai (!) waiter after hearing us speaking Finnish asked me where I was from, as I was obviously was not Finnish judging by my accent. Amazing.

I spent a total of 9 days on Koh Tao completely losing track of time. In fact I realized that it had been 9 days only during the check-out. I did not see or do much. Stayed the entire time on Sairee Beach. Did a PADI Open Water diving course, some snorkeling and a swim to Nang Yuan island (saved 100 ba for the island entry fee too!). That’s how far my achievements go. I did not meet many people too, apart from old friends and youngsters from the diving course. It was nice for a change to hang out with people 10 years younger than myself. A different perspective and all that.

If current plans are to believe, Koh Tao seems to end the beach phase. Next stop is Bangkok, Venice of East.

I walk

I walk a lot. I walk in the cold. I walk in the blazing heat. I walk in the rain. I walk in the daytime. I walk in the nighttime. I walk uphill. I walk downhill. I walk to start walking. I walk alone. I walk with other people. I walk fast. I walk slow. I walk in cities. I walk in the jungle. I walk in the desert. I walk on the beach. I walk in the mountains. I walk in the forest. I walk to admire the landscape. I walk to get familiar with a city. I walk barefoot. I walk in shoes. I walk lightweight. I walk with my backpack on. I walk to save money. I walk to spend money. I walk to save time. I walk to make time pass away. I walk to meditate. I walk daydreaming. I walk just for the sake of it. I walk because I can. I walk.

I like walking.