Sleeping on water

It’s funny how things work out sometimes.  I was having an absolute s#%$ day.  I was emotional, hormonal, exhausted and stressed about money.  We woke up at 4:30 am to walk half an hour with our luggage to catch a ferry, on which I spent over an hour willing myself not to be seasick again while half the people on board were vomiting into red plastic bags and keeping the crew busy with cleanup.

Then we had to catch a bus, then switch to another bus, only to find out the bus we had already paid for didn’t go to our intended destination, so we had to pay extra to get a minibus, which deposited us at Ratchaprapha Lake in Khao Sok park, where we discovered accommodation prices were twice our budget plus national park fees.

I’m not complaining.  I am fully aware that I have things great right now.  But everyone has off days, and this was one of mine.

What was opportune was that we shared the minibus with two German guys, Nico and Chris, who were traveling with Nico’s Thai girlfriend Aom.  Together, the six of us were able to negotiate better rates for accommodation and water taxi, which made the situation much more manageable, if not fully within budget.

We stayed in floating bungalows, made of bamboo, which literally just sat on the surface of the lake. They swayed slightly when people walked by, and were very basic- one room with a thin mattress and no toilet or electricity.

But they were so cool.  We could exit our room, take two steps, and be swimming in a massive, unpolluted, warm lake.  Being around others, and staying in such a serene place helped pull me out of my funk.

 

The following day, we woke to the cries of gibbons penetrating the surrounding jungle.  After a delicious breakfast, the six of us hired a guide to take us to Nam Thalu Cave.  The cave is reached via a boat ride, then a 3km walk through the jungle.  Inside the cave, we needed headlamps to navigate the thin passageways and rocky terrain.

We saw thousands of bats hanging from the ceiling, and tons of jumping spiders.  The cave was formed by water running through a mountain, and as such, there is a river flowing through the length of it.  At times we were shoulder deep in the cool, clear water.  It was a pretty incredible cave.  When we exited the other side an hour later, we were greeted once again by the whooping calls of gibbons.

 

Since our bungalows were an hour boat ride from town, our boatman had stayed the night in the same place.  In the early afternoon, he drove us back, stopping briefly  for photos and to let Paul retrieve the hat that had blown off his head.

 

Paul and I almost bailed when we arrived at the lake and found out that it was twice our budget.  But in the end, we figured we were already there, so we should go for it, and we’re glad we did, as it was a pretty unique experience.  Plus, we got to hang out with some fun people, with whom we shared adventures in the following days.

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Beer wasn’t in the budget for this stop