Thailand (Part 7, Day 10 and 11)

Day 10 - Pattaya

My initial idea was to head up to Bangkok today with Dougie and set up my flight to Chiang Mai.  It was his last day, and the original plan was to spend one night in Pattaya, swing up to Bangkok, he would take off to Sweden, and I would be on my own for the remaining 7 days before heading back to Norway.  Just as with everything else we had done on this trip, the plans were altered and I decided that staying in Pattaya was going to be the right play for me.  I called Dougie, told him there had been a slight change in the itinerary and that I was going to battle through a few days here, then possibly go to another island for a few days before departing back home.  He had no problem with it, packed his stuff, jumped on a bus to Bangkok, and we were soon on our own. 

It was a bit strange though being on my own for the remaining portion of the trip.  Dougie was a great guy to travel with, very laid back, easy going, and generally we had the same sort of interests in the decision making processes that got us to this point.  So now, alone, it was easier to make a choice on what to do for the day but it was also a bit more difficult because there was not another option to choose from.  Sort of an interesting paradox but nonetheless, it was again a new experience for me to be in a foreign land... completely alone and on my own. 

The weather today was a bit less than ideal and the intermittent rain put a damper on any consistent outdoor activities to I found a local movie theater.  At this point in the trip, I was too tired to function properly so I basically spent 5 dollars for a comfortable reclining movie chair and a 2 hour nap.  Feeling much more refreshed after the movie, against my better judgement, I walked by the bar I was in the night before.  All of the same people were in there.  It was one of those situations where you just want to say, "Nah, I'm all set, just gonna shut er down for the night" but what you really say is, "Yeah, sure, I'll stop in for 1 or 2 which will end up being 15 and I will be drunk again for the 10th consecutive day."  The latter ended up being the case. 

After the 14th drink, a proposal with toilet paper seems like a good idea.

There is such a vast amount of diversity in the people here, hailing from all over the globe, each with their own explanation and story of how they ended up in this beautiful region.  Some are here for pleasure.  Some are here to get away.  Some are here out of curiosity.  As I people watch and attempt to determine which category people fall under, I again hear the blissful tune of western English.  As I turn to the sound, a man completely covered in tattoos, chains, and an aggressive V-neck has about 4 Thai women surrounding as he is proposing a toast, each with their shot of tequila in hand.  I asked the guy where he was from and he hands me a shot and says, "Vancouver, cheers."  Instantly, I knew where this night was going to take me. 

He was the guy that was trying to get away.

He gave me a quick rundown of the 10 million in assets that his wife was trying to take from him, the myriad of drugs he had forced into his body since he had been in SE Asia, and amongst all of that, actually some viable information on other destinations (Cambodia was his suggestion) around the area, given I had more time.  It was actually pretty entertaining and he was a good guy, a complete disaster, but a good guy.  I thanked him for one-too-many shots and was off to Walking Street for some late night discos and visual stimulation, haha.



Day 11 -  Pattaya


I stayed up way too late last night and I feel like poop.  Had a great time but it is like being in Vegas, party, laugh, drink, dance, drink and next think you know, it's 5am, the sun is peeking over the horizon, and you are asking yourself, "Why?" 

Unlike the first 9 days of this trip, the second portion was much more stagnant.  Not stagnant in the sense that it wasn't enjoyable, but in the sense that it was the same thing over and over again.  It seemed that every day I am in Pattaya, it goes as follows...  Wake up late, grab some noodles and soup, sit at a bar casually for 3 hours, grab something more to eat, walk around the beach, sit at another bar casually, grab yet some more street food, then put it into overdrive with the nightlife that is unmatched anywhere else in the world.  This is Pattaya.  Add the blistering sun, 100 degrees and humidity, and you have a recipe that can consume even Danny Bonaduce...

Or this guy...

For more of what I am talking about read this...
http://www.cracked.com/blog/the-6-most-aggressively-ridiculous-benders-in-modern-history/

Anyway, point being, it is easy to get lost in the mix and the chaos because it is right in front of you, screaming at you and scratching your retinas, all day. 

So, due to the episodes of last night, today was a personal reflection day, a day that I sit back, enjoy the scenery and ponder, "What is Bobby Goepfert doing right now?"  After a brief internet check, I find this...

http://twitpic.com/4yp5st

http://twitpic.com/4yknky

...and my mind is, once again, at ease.


The girls that i had met from the night before invited me to go eat as a group, and since I am alone, I jumped at the idea of a social endeavor.  We took a few motorbikes over to their friend's salon, bought 5 or 6 Styrofoam containers worth of street food and had ourselves a little indoor picnic.  I found later that this is not a occasional occurrence, but rather something that is embraced.  This excerpt should probably be better off saved until a later blog but it is something I had written down the day before I left and relates to the Thai traditions, as I saw them...

To be honest, I am very sad to be leaving this place.  It is not one of those situations where the sadness is caused by sorrow, but rather because I feel this is a place unlike any other; and despite doing so much here, it seems like I have only seen the tip of the iceberg.  I am extremely satisfied  with how I handled the scheduling aspect of this trip, only a flight here and a flight home, with no other reservations, no agenda.  The reason this worked for me is that if I enjoyed a certain part, I continued, if I didn't enjoy it, I moved on.  A downside to that is the time restrictions.  There are so many other things to experience in Thailand, but this being my first extended trip, I figured 17 days would suffice.  To do it again, I will give myself a 1 month minimum, no matter where I go.  I also came to a realization that, once again, the American mentality of materialism and status should never take the place of family and friends, yet it still does, and it may always be that way.  It seems that though people here only strive for a few things in order to be happy; a little bit of money, enough for clothes, shelter, and food on their plate, and family and friends who love and respect them.  The US may be similar to this in some ways but the love and respect factor seems to be initiated by the wrong reasons. 

So, after a community lunch, some deep thoughts, and a rehydration session, a quick nap ensued, and it was back to Walking Street where any rational thought process and soft emotional response was soon a thing of the past.

Thailand (Part 6, Day 9)

Day 9  Koh Chang / Pattaya


Our last day in Koh Chang started just as we had suspected with a vicious downpour that seemed like it would never cease.  Our morning was dedicated to nursing a hangover with some fried rice and a few 1.5 liter bottles of water as we knew our trip back up to Pattaya was going to be another couple hour van ride with at least 2 or 3 people over capacity.  Our ride was to pick us up around 3pm so the only thing that Dougie and I needed to take care of was returning the motorbikes, packing up, and checking out of the hotel.  Luckily around 2, the sun peered out from the clouds and we had just enough time to get organized before our departure time.  We took one of the many "baht buses" back to the pier to make our 1 hour boat ride to land.  In Thailand, these baht buses are everywhere and are essentially just a pickup truck that has been modified in the back with some rudimentary seating attempt and some steel bars to latch on to.  They follow the same course throughout the day, much like a standard bus line, and every time you get one, its 10 baht per person.  If you want them to take you off track, they usually stick it to you pretty good.  Nonetheless, it is probably the most convenient way to get around for cheap.  Around 4pm, it was time to say goodbye to my own personal paradise, Koh Chang, Thailand.

Once arriving back on the mainland, we did a quick hunt for our van that was to take us back to Pattaya and climbed on board.  Luckily, for the time being, we loaded up the bags and as many people as possible, which was a perfect number and everyone had their own seat, with comfort.  About 20 minutes in, however, our driver decided to make a little pit stop on the outskirts of Trat and force a few more passengers and a few more bags so instantly this pleasant and relaxing trip up north turned in to a nightmare.  In typical fashion, being from Minnesota, I opted to give up my wonderful arrangement of leg room and a reclining seat for the misery of being slammed in the rear of the van with my buddy on one side and an unnecessary sheet of particle board on the other; all of this in an area of about 2.5 feet across.  All that I wanted to do on this ride was to shut down for a few hours, to prepare for the night ahead of us, but such was impossible.  Another thing to note is that I have some sort of heating disorder which spikes the temperature in my body anytime that I am in a) an uncomfortable situation or b) touching someone in a confined space...  both of which were currently taking place.  After an hour of drowning in my own sweat and heavy breathing, the driver made our first refueling stop and I was finally removed from hell as I knew it.

I relaxed a bit with a bathroom break and a bottle of water but soon we were back on the road.  Once we were moving again, I overheard a guy in the van speaking English, not broken sputtered English, but real American, possibly midwest, English.  After his conversation with someone else, I felt obligated to ask where he was from, his dialect was way too familiar.  He declared he was from Colorado and that he has been working back and forth between the States and SE Asia for the last 15 or some odd years, 6 months here, 6 months there.  For the remainder of the trip to Pattaya, this man was going to be our source of humor and knowledge of an area of the world that he clearly knew way too much about.

For some reason, the van we were in made about five stops on the way up north which did not really make sense to me because the 3.5 hour drive all of a sudden took us 6 hours.  Sometimes, our stops were completely unwarranted, no refueling, no food, no water, just random stops at flea market type areas so our driver could feed his nicotine habit every 75 minutes or so.  We had planned to take some time to relax, nap, and rejuvenate before the long night ahead of us but we were soon realizing that there was going to be little chance for some R and R.

From my experiences, there are two types of people that reside in Colorado; the "redneck, field dress a 10 point buck with their eyes closed" type, and the "let's go to Red Rocks, smoke a blunt or two, listen to some O.A.R., and talk about world conspiracies" type.  This guy was certainly the latter.  Extremely opinionated, he gave us some insight on the "rules of the road" in SE Asia.  It was actually quite entertaining for the most part but he was so far fetched that we had to take his advice in stride, sifting through the bullshit and usable information.

Dougie and I knew that we were going to have to find a place to stay once we got to Pattaya but we also assumed that we would arrive in decent time, not 3 hours past our deadline.  Our new Colorado buddy had asked if we had a spot to stay for the night, we obviously did not, and said that he knows a spot where we can get single rooms for about 800 baht per night.  It did not take much convincing because we were terribly fatigued and did not want to deal with any of that hassle so we obliged.  Around 9:30 or 10pm, we finally got dropped off at our hotel.  The guy told us to be down in the lobby in 20 minutes and he would show us a good time in the area around our hotel.  It was no problem for us and soon we were again being attacked by the massage girls on Soi 7 and Soi 8.

Things kind of got weird though.

So there we were, walking up and down the main, busy area of Pattaya trying to find a money exchange place.  Once again, due to the time of the night, basically every one of these places was closed.  Dougie and I said we would stop in a bar for a drink and that our buddy could go wherever he needed to, whether it be an ATM or an actual bank, and we would wait up for him.  We grabbed some street meat and sat down at the first place we could find.  At the end of all of these little meat on a stick things, the vendors always put a pineapple and a pepper for the final tastes.  Stupidly, earlier in the trip, I said I would eat anything that was in front of me.  The problem is that I unknowingly ate what was probably the hottest pepper on the face of the planet and spent the next 30 minutes deciding whether I should cry, vomit, or soil myself because this was the most undesirable situation I think I have ever been in.  Then, out of nowhere, a beautiful Thai waitress asked us for our drink order and I instinctively composed myself to risk any further embarrassment for not being able to handle a street meat pepper the size of a baby Tootsie Roll.

45 minutes later our Colorado guy showed up at the bar, we walked about two hundred feet to yet another beer bar, and saddled up.  This is where the weird part began.

So we were casually sitting there, sipping on a cold Chang, when I felt it was necessary to buy the bartenders a 'lady drink.'  They were pumped and brought over the standard games of choice, Jenga and Jackpot.  Everything was going fine when all of a sudden, the girls we were with had to get up on the bar and start dancing.  We had walked by so many places and seen this so many times that it seemed to be par for the course and I didn't think anything of it.  Next thing you know, the guy we were with starts snapping.  Snapping on me, snapping on the bartenders, and calling for the manager.  I was dumbfounded.  I had no idea what could have caused this but this guy was a treat to begin with so I figured I'd wait to see what kinds of shenanigans he had up his sleeve this time.  The reason he was so angry was because the girls left our game to start dancing.  That was it.  He said it was an insult to me, and since I had bought them a drink, I essentially bought their time as well.  He went on about how everything in the Thai culture with men is about face.  How men react if they screw up, are insulted, or something of the sort.  I told him it really wasn't a big deal and he retorted saying that they will never respect me if I don't stand up for myself.  This was nowhere near the time or the place for a confrontation but he was adamant and felt if I wasn't going to say something, it was now his turn.  Next thing you know, he is swearing at the manager, demanding I am refunded, and is telling me to dump my drink out on the bar.  Dougie and I were secretly laughing inside because this was ridiculous.  Next thing you know, the manager gives me my money back and our buddy says we are leaving.  The last thing the girls saw from me that night was a shoulder shrug and a look telling them, "What the hell just happened.  I have no idea who this guy is."

On the way to the next street full of bars, the next sermon on our Colorado buddy's list was what it takes to be a Thai man and that we will never attain such a thing in our lives.  Then he started basically telling us how to pick up women and by that point, both Dougie and I knew that our time with this guy was coming to an abrupt halt, we just needed a scapegoat.  Sure enough, my prayers were answered as we rounded the corner for Soi 8 and my Thai angel lay in the shadows of The Good Time bar.  We told our buddy that were were going to grab a beer at this spot and if he needs us, to swing on back, otherwise we were just going to set up shop here for the night.  He agreed and went on his way, never to be seen again.

Thailand (Part 5, Day 8)

Day 8  Koh Chang

In typical fashion of Koh Chang at this time of the year, our morning greeted us with a downpour.  The nice part about it was that it took away from some of the heat and humidity but also forced us to change plans pretty frequently.  This was our last day in the Keeree ele hotel so we had to scramble to get out of there and find another place to stay.  Our original plan was to either head down south to the Phuket/Ko Samui area of the country or swing up north to Chiang Mai.  Thankfully we didn't book anything before arriving because the entire south of Thailand is under water with massive flooding to start the monsoon season.  As far as going up north, we took our German bar friend's advice and believed what he said about the length of time needed to fully enjoy the Chiang Mai/Chaing Rai region.

Upon checkout, I had a nice little 600 baht fine for the ruining the sheets of the bed with fresh tattoo ink but paying them was the least I could do given their hospitality and my destruction of property.  We did not want to lug our bags around all day so we went across the street, found a price that was reasonable and booked our room, although, when we got to the room, the stench was almost unbearable.  Nevertheless, we dropped off our bags and headed out for the day.

During lunch, there was an obvious elephant in the room but neither of us wanted to tell each other that the room was brutal and we needed to find a different place to stay.  The people that I went to see at the tattoo place had some street cred with the aforementioned hotel so we kind of did both parties a favor and checked in without taking a peek at our room.  When we finished lunch, my friend asked what I thought about the hotel room and it was then that I knew we had to get out of there.  We agreed upon telling the front desk that we just checked our emails at the internet cafe across the street and, due to an emergency, it was necessary for us to leave that day.  Lost in translation, they told us that there was not internet at the hotel.  With some broken English, I bluntly told them that we were leaving and we wanted our money back.

We walked down the street to a nicer place, liked a room but decided to wait it out and maybe check out one more spot.  Down the way a bit more seemed like a great spot and since we already knew the price of our potential hotel, there may have been some room to negotiate, as such is the essence of Thailand.  The receptionist said there were rooms available, so I went ahead and advised her that her 2400 baht a night price was too high for us and that we found a place that was cheaper.  She asked how much the other hotel was but I simply shrugged my shoulders and she quickly understood the game I was stubbornly going to play with her.  I am assuming that, since the high season for tourism was basically finished, her hotel was nowhere near capacity and any patrons would be more than helpful to foot the vacancy bill.  In a rather surprising turn of events, her price dropped by a quick 600 baht and we now had a place to stay for the next 2 nights.

All over the island, and Thailand in general, the motorbike is the choice method of transportation.  Neither I nor Dougie had driven a motorcycle in our lives and figured this would probably be the place to start.  We put down 200 baht apiece with an additional 400 down for insurance, grabbed our helmets, and away we went on the winding streets of Koh Chang.  It may have taken a little bit to feel comfortable on these death machines but soon I realized the excitement people get with motorcycles in general.  I suppose its quite a bit different on a Harley or a crotch rocket but the next best thing, I'm assuming, is the 120cc Honda Click scooter.

Since White Sand Beach is the most northern part of the island, we figured we would make the 20km journey south to the tip of Koh Chang.  The first leg was no problem for us and it was probably a godsend to give us our bearings on how to maneuver this thing because the second portion would have given a Rally Car driver a scare.  Once we got comfortable with people passing us on blind hairpin turns through the mountainous parts of Koh Chang, we felt like joining the mob and were soon doing the same.  On our way back we humored ourselves for a half hour watching a group of monkeys playing on parked motorbikes eating the scraps of food left by tourists earlier in the day.

After going to the south end of the island, we traveled back north, grabbed a bite to eat and used the remaining daylight to test the top speeds of our motorbikes.  Once we hit 99km/h, we called it a night, went down to our favorite local watering hole and made some last minute changes to our itinerary on our last day in beautiful Koh Chang.

Thailand (Part 4, Day 6 and 7)

 Day 6 Koh Chang

We woke up a little bit late this morning mainly due to the shenanigans from the night before and playing jenga until bar close.  We had it set in our minds that this portion of the trip was strictly going to be for a little R and R so the occasional 11AM wake up went without consequence.  Yesterday when I was picking up some shaving cream, I ran into a guy that clearly wasn't native to Thailand due to his skin color and asked him where a good place to get a good massage was.  As I mentioned earlier, on day 2 we went to get a traditional Thai massage and were terribly disappointed with the result.  I had heard so many good things about them so I wasn't going to let one bad experience ruin it for the rest of my life.  He told us there was a little place down the road called Cookies 2.  Judging by the name, I kind of had a good idea of what kind of massage he was talking about, but he assured us that it wasn't that.  We took note of his recommendation and, with the sun out, felt it was ideal to go spend some time in the water.

Three hours later, our pruned bodies convinced us that we had worn out our welcome as well as the storm clouds slowly approaching.  Right around 3 o'clock everyday there would be hurricane like rain for about an hour or two then it would clear up for the rest of the evening.  This would hold true every day in Koh Chang.  So, just before our daily downpour, we managed to find Cookies 2 and felt it would be a perfect time killer to get away from the ensuing weather.

Thankfully we listened to our new buddy about this massage place because it was amazing.  Just for a reference point, if you are going to get one of these massages, make sure you find the oldest, most grizzled woman there.  She has the uncanny ability to snap your body in half if she so pleases as well put her elbow into knots in your mid back that will make your heart skip a beat.  This is exactly what we were looking for though.  This is was all of the fuss was about.  Although a bit pricier than the last place we went to in Bangkok, it was well worth it, despite fighting back tears of pain or pleasure, I am not sure which.  Once we were done, the storm had cleared, we thanked our pain inducing massage therapists and went on our way, completely refreshed.

On our way back to the hotel, Dougie and I stopped at an internet cafe/motorbike rental/island activities office to plan out our next day.  The previous night, that German guy who talked to us about Chiang Mai gave us some ideas of what we could do while we were staying on the island.  I had mentioned that I would like to go deep sea fishing and snorkeling at the very least, anything else would be a bonus.  He had said there was a boat run called Thai Fun and it was well worth the 1250 baht ($42) per person price tag.  At the island office, this was one of the activities that was offered so we decided to book it.  As with everything else we have done on this trip, we took the advice of a stranger and went for it.  While looking at the brochure, it seemed to offer everything we wanted to do; see the surrounding islands, snorkel, fish, eat, and relax.  The only catch was the 7AM wake up time which ended up being a terrible struggle because after some standard street meat, it was off to the bar for some more games until about 2AM...

Late night snack

Day 7 Koh Chang



Once again, the decision to stay out late proved to be our achilles heel.  It wasn't even the fact that we may have had a beer or two, it's just that being out in the sun all day, walking around, trying to take everything in, and enjoying a nightlife has a tendency to take its toll.  Nevertheless, we were excited to get on a boat today for out 10 hour excursion around Koh Chang and the surrounding islands.  We were the first stop since White Sand Beach is in the northern part of the island.  We would find out later that Koh Chang is actually 20km long so it's actually a rather large tropical island destination if you compare it to similar places like Ko Samui, Ko Samet, or Ko Phi Phi.  The first order of business for me was to get some shut eye while we picked up the other passengers.  The calm rocking of the boat and the subtle breeze were enough to put me out within minutes.

In an instant, I was awakened by our guide for the day, Nok.  Since we had rounded up the rest of the troops and set sail on our journey, Nok gave us a little run down of what was to take place on our full day outing.  She said we would be weaving in and out of several of the 52 islands that we in the surrounding area, that we would have a lunch, a later snack, 3 spots to snorkel, a place to test our fishing skills, and finally a challenge to the patrons that anyone who could beat her in a game of Connect 4, would have their choice of any alcoholic beverage on board the ship.  Under normal circumstances, my ears would have perked up immediately, but on this occasion, I needed at least another hour of sleep before gambling for booze was going to be an option.  She said that we had 3 hours until we reached our first destination and to just relax and enjoy the beauty that surrounded us.

After a quick cat nap, we were sized up with our snorkeling apparel and Nok gave us a run down of some history about the area.  She let us know about the different hotels on surrounding islands, the different bungalows, and obviously some outrageous prices for some of these places.  In the picture above, these were the standard bungalows and usually started around 500-800 baht ($19-27) per night.  They are ideal because they are cheap and are right on the water.  A few major downsides is that they may not have running water, they certainly don't have air conditioning, and if you are afraid of bugs and spiders, you will definitely be facing those fears come nightfall.  On the flip side of the coin, we also passed some of the resorts which are upwards of 50,000 baht ($1,600) per night.  Apparently you have 2 people on call 24 hours a day, rooms around 1500 square feet, and pretty much anything and everything you could ask for.  These are a bit out of my price range so I didn't even want to take a picture of them in fear of getting charged for that too.

Our first stop was a small island (I have no idea what it was called) and we were told we had 45 minutes to either snorkel or just to hang out on the beach.  We were also told that out of the 3 spots where were could get in the water, this was probably the least favorable as far as the sights.  Dougie and I were pumped to snorkel so we opted to get in the crystal clear water.

Now, it has probably been 3 years since I snorkeled and needlesstosay, I am not fond of deep open waters so there was potential that I was going to slip into panic mode relatively quickly after getting into the water.  Sure enough, it happened.  I tried as best as I could to keep my composure but hyperventilating seemed like the only option.  For a minimum of 15 minutes as I was swimming towards shore, I probably looked like a cat in water with a breathing apparatus flailing above and beneath the surface of the Gulf of Thailand.  For whatever reason, I was not comfortable and if anyone was watching me, I probably would have been emergency rescued and advised to wear water wings for the rest of the trip.  Fortunately, after what seemed like an eternity of struggle, i found my bearings and floated peacefully over the rock, coral, and clown fish in the depths below.

The horn from our boat was engaged and we knew it was time to get back on deck to continue on to our next destination.  An hour later we were anchored just outside of another island and boats brought people on shore for some sightseeing and relaxing.  Dougie and I decided to stay on the boat as most of the others went in and we were told that we were in deep enough waters if we wanted to jump off the top deck.  Fact: in addition to large, deep, open bodies of water, my second crutch is heights.  With devastating thoughts running through my head, the scream of a man jumping 30 feet off the top of the boat into the water almost forced me to soil myself.  I had to do it though.  I had already shown myself that I could handle the snorkeling aspect so there was no way I was going to stop there, plus, I was in Thailand.  I did the best I could to pump myself up, scaled the ladder to the roof, and climbed over the railing onto a metal plank.  It was at this moment where I asked myself what the hell I was doing.  Again, with plenty of hesitation and the encouragement of my friend, I blindly hurled myself into the unknown.  Though, as I hit the water this time, there was no panic, no fear, only exhilaration, satisfaction.  It may seem trivial to most, but I had conquered two of my biggest fears in a single act of stupidity.  Hungry for more, I made sure I took this leap of faith as many times as possible to prove to myself that the first time wasn't a fluke.  Feeling confident, I managed to drag a middle aged Swedish woman into my insanity as well, and surprisingly she couldn't thank me enough for it.

On our way to our final stop, we passed an island the Nok felt was worth mentioning.  It was simply named Volcano Island, for obvious reasons.  On the shore of the island lay 4 or 5 enormous volcanic rocks, a contrast of black amidst the beautiful white sands and teal water.  The reason this particular place was deemed significant is because there are no volcanoes within around 1000 miles of this place.

Finally we got to our last snorkeling spot and it was breathtaking.  Bread was thrown into the waters surrounding us to attract an array of brightly colored fish and we took the next hour swimming amidst this beauty.  Nok found it necessary to throw bread at people from the top deck so while you were swimming peacefully, an all out feeding frenzy was taking place around your unprotected ears.  Of course she was in stitches laughing as others swam in terror below.

Nok was definitely right when she said that this would be the best place for us to snorkel.  The waters we a little bit choppy at this time so it was amazing to see the calmness and serenity below.  When we got back on the boat, Nok thanked us for being careful as we swam around the corals because apparently it takes 10 years for the coral to grow 1 cm and 1000 years for it to grow 1 meter not to mention it is very delicate and fragile so a stray flipper could potentially be devastating.

On the way back our guide humored us for 3 hours with card tricks, slight of hand tricks, riddles, and brain teasers.  We had a great time and soon, this entire group of strangers was now laughing and working together to try to solve some of the riddles and puzzles that Nok had challenged us to.  And just like that, our day with the Thai Fun crew had come to an end.  Something I would definitely recommend to people going down to this area.

It was about 6pm by this point and I had scheduled to have some ink done by the people that saved us from the first day down pour so I went to that and, in the meantime, Dougie went to grab something to eat and then down to the bar.  I have been drawn towards tattoos since I was legal to get one so I figured it would be a memorable experience to have some work done in Thailand.  Initially, I was just going to have 2 of my tattoos finished but midway through, I thought it would be a special experience to have a traditional bamboo tattoo inked in so I went for it.  Everything these guys did turned out great and was completed at a price that could not be beat.  After laying in a chair having pain driven into my body from 6pm until 130am, it was time to go home and get ready for the next day.

Thailand (Part 3, Day 4 and 5)

Day 4 Pattaya

Since we kept it rather casual last night, we were able to get up and be somewhat productive today in Pattaya.  For the most part, during the day, Pattaya's main attractions seemed to be the clothing vendors.  There are still bars that open up around 10AM but they are relatively quiet as people are still trying to figure out what happened to their lives the previous night.  For us, it was a chance to observe Thailand's Sin City during its sleeping hours.  We did the typical negotiating with merchants, trying to get t-shirts down from 300 baht apiece to 150.  We did the street food vendors as often as we could, trying various types of fried rice, fried noodles, spicy soups, and grilled pork, beef, and chicken.  We made sure we walked down the beach, although, in this particular part of Thailand, is definitely not something picturesque.  The beach is rather thin and the water is not that clear but the temp of the water is about what you would put in your bathtub, which is a nice change to the 65 degree waters of the Atlantic.

Due to this place being a high traffic tourist area though, there are plenty of boats and water sports at all hours of the day.

We traveled down to Walking Street again and it was almost scary how quiet it was compared to the night before.  Steel grates pulled down over what were enormous beer bars the night before, no one trying to convince you to enter a go-go bar for 55 baht Singha Beer night, and vehicle traffic running back and forth on a street I was certain held true to its name.  Had I been deceived in my semi-drunken state the night before?

While we were on our way out, we decided that in this dire heat, it would probably be best to stop in the next place for a drink.  Out of the corner of our eyes, we couldn't help but notice the glimmering white of an ice rink and realized that Asia Sport was showing regular season NHL hockey games from the night before.  If i remember correctly it was Dallas and LA and both with working their way into better play off positions so it was apparently a big game, especially to the guy who was 6 beers deep across the bar from us.  We sat there and talked with him, found out he was from Arizona and were curious what he could possibly be doing in Thailand just before the rainy season.  He mentioned he was here for dental work.  Now, once again, being from the US, I was having a tough time understanding why someone from the States would fly over to Thailand of all places to get some work done but I wanted to hear him out.  He had said the he did not have dental insurance and for the procedure that he needed to be done, it was actually cheaper for him to fly to Thailand, stay there for 3 weeks, get his dental work done and fly home, than it was for him to get it done on home soil.  It was hard for me to imagine but when he broke down the semantics of it, he was actually right.  After he started calling guys by their nicknames and fist pumping after a redirected Matt Green goal, we knew it was time to move on.

Our next order of business was getting a minibus down to Koh Chang so we had to swing over to our sweetheart at the tourist travel place and she helped us set everything up.  The minibus, which holds 7 people comfortably was booked by 9 people and cost about 850 baht ($28).  We would be the first to be picked up and were told to be ready at about 7:30AM.  We were fine with that, we just had to make sure we behaved tonight and there would be no issue with making that departure time...

Afterward, it was time to grab a bite to eat, stop by a few shops, and head out for the night.  While we were walking from our hotel, the closest streets to us were, again, filled with bars and massage places.  the reason I mention these massage places is because it is impossible to walk by one of them without 10 gorgeous Thai women all screaming "Massaaaaage" at the same time.  Us being two relatively young and fit guys basically got assaulted every time but we found it to be hilarious after a while and we would play along and act interested.  You'll know what I am talking about if you ever go there.

We grabbed a few kebabs (the main part of my diet in Europe) and went down to the beach.  There are not only people that have shops set up that sell things but also kids and adults alike that walk around trying to sell their goods as well.  In this particular instance, a woman tried selling me a wood frog, I kindly said no, she persisted, I gave her 20 baht to go away, she got mad at me, we took a picture, and off she went.  She was a sweetheart but I figured giving her free money was enough.

Finally, it was time to go have a few casuals.  We stopped at a beer bar only to have 40 women yell welcome at us and decided to set up shop at the first bar.  Right away, 2 girls came over to Dougie and I, took our drink orders and engaged in typical conversation with us.  The only thing that was different is that they seemed genuinely interested and could hold a conversation better than any other bartender I knew.  So, we sat there, enjoyed our time with them and held Jackpot dice tournaments for drinks.  The only thing was, they never bought drinks so it was a suckers game for us, even so, it was a great time.

After a great night sitting around playing games and enjoying a few Changs, it was soon 12:30 and we needed to book a hotel (www.agoda.com) for the upcoming excursion to Koh Chang as well as get some sleep for another long day of travel ahead of us.  Walking Street was just starting to pick up steam and we knew if we didn't get out now, it would consume us to daylight.




Day 5  Pattaya/Koh Chang




6:45 came around way too early but we felt we had plenty of time to shower, pack up and grab a bite to eat before our 4 hour trek to Koh Chang.  Unfortunately, the driver had other ideas and we were forced to check out and finish our breakfast around 7:15AM.  We stopped at maybe 3 other hotels and once again, were packed in as tight as possible with Dougie riding shotgun.  I humored myself with Angry Birds, Fruit Ninja, and Tiny Wings for the majority of the drive down despite stopping 4 times to refill our natural gas fueled Eurostar van.

Once we got to the city of Trat, we had about 45 minutes to wait before a few more vans came and picked everyone up to bring us to our 1 hour ferry ride to the island.  What was amazing to me, as we were driving to the dock, was the houses that lined the streets along the way.  This was the same as when we got to the island as well.  We were on one of the most beautiful islands in the world with great hotels and beaches and deep within the forests were these broken down torn up villages with clotheslines and garbage and filth everywhere.  Were these the dwellings of the workers on and around the islands?  Were they forced to live in slums after working in 4 and 5 star hotels all day?  I really have no idea but I felt it was such a stark contrast that it was worth mentioning.  Anyway, we boarded the boat and set sail to paradise.  On the way there, a Buddhist monk had boarded late and without hesitation, 5 or 6 people immediately offered him their seat, which happened to be right in front of mine.  I had to jump on the opportunity.

Finally we arrived on the island of Koh Chang so we all were asked where we were going, we had mentioned White Sand Beach, paid 50 baht and away we went.  The same held true for what I had mentioned before with the poorly built shacks and houses before we got to the other side of the island, which was our destination.  We figured that if we were just dropped off on that part of the beach that it would just be a 3-5 minute walk to our hotel so we jumped out at the north end of the beach.  Unfortunately, our hotel was past the south end of the beach so, with 35 pound bags on our backs, in 95 degree weather with 100 percent humidity, we muscled our way to the south end only to get to the hotel about 30 minutes later.  We stayed at the Keeree ele hotel for $56 a night.

The only way I could describe Koh Chang is that it is basically identical to the island on Lost.  Beautiful beaches and water on the outskirts and terror and peaks on the interior.  There are not even roads that go inside, the only road on the island is basically a circle that goes along the entire coastline.  We checked in, unpacked out bags, and decided we were going to die unless we had proper nourishment in the likes of street meat.  As we were on our way down to eat, a massive downpour started and lasted for at least an hour and a half.  (My first clue probably should have been the cumulo nimbus beasts in the back of this picture).  We were stuck under an awning for about 20 minutes when a lone motorbike wheeled in next to us.  Off jumped a guy with a mohawk and a girl soaked to the bone from the torrential rains.  We had been standing in front of their tattoo shop for the last little while and once they arrived, they invited us in for a beer or 2.  I assume they knew this probably wouldn't let up for a while.  We talked tattoos, drank some Changs and after an hour or so with them, clear skies crept through the clouds.

We ate quickly because our main purpose for this leg of the trip was beach and sunshine.  We grabbed a few beach chairs, threw our stuff down and went for a swim in the 80 degree water that was more clear than a bottle of Aquafina.  This was it.  This was my paradise.

After a few hours, then sun went down, and we figured it was probably time to see what the nightlife was all about in this area. While we were sipping on a cold one, we saw some guys with face paint and wearing the equivalent to a kilt.  I figured something awesome was about to take place so we stuck around.  For about 15 minutes these 4 guys lined up on the beach and were doing fire dances, spitting fire, eating fire, basically anything you can do with fire without being injured.

  We cleaned up and approached the only thing we knew at that time, the beer bars.  I actually felt terribly bad right around this point.  Like I had mentioned before, when you approach these spots, these girls are trying to do anything to bait you in, sometimes standing on chairs, yelling at you, grabbing you by the arm and pulling you in against your will.  Well in this case, it was a girl standing on a chair.  I'm not sure if she was on unstable ground or if her 5 inch heels gave out on her but her 3 foot fall directly onto her elbow on solid concrete could not have felt anything remotely close to pleasurable.  We felt it was best to spare her the embarrassment and politely moved on to the next bar.

The next establishment we stopped at had a great group of girls working there, very fun, very open, so we figured this would be our spot for the next few nights.  Things started off the same as the last beer bar we were at with causal conversation which turned in to playing that dice game again, which turned in to playing connect 4, and finally a huge game of jenga.  For some, this doesn't sound too appealing but it was amazing what a nice change of pace it was from the places we are used to back home.  Much more relaxed and fun when everyone is involved.

While we were there, we talked to a German guy and were kind of telling him about what we had planned for our trip.  We said we hoped to be in Koh Chang for 3 days, get to Bangkok and fly to Chiang Mai for 3 days, then Dougie had to leave and I would be on my own for the remaining 7 days.  He said that if we were only going to be in Chiang Mai for 3 days then it was not even worth going.  He said that we needed at least 5-7 days up there.  We trusted his judgment and felt that our Koh Chang trip could definitely be extended by another 2 days and then we would make out way back to Pattaya for 2 days, Dougie would leave, and I would wing the rest of my trip after.  Sounded like a good game plan and we stuck to it...  for the most part.

Thailand (Part 2, Day 2 and 3)

Bangkok

After waking up and trying to locate my friend, Dougie, from the night before, we decided it would be a good idea to get a world renowned Thai massage.  Yesterday, at the second bar we stopped at, we ran into a German/American guy who had frequented SE Asia and recommended that this is something that we had to do.  He told us about a place about 15 minutes away that has a 2 hour massage for 300 baht ($10).  My friend and I grabbed some street food, jumped in a cab and off we went.

Traffic at this time of the day was less that favorable so it ended up taking about 40 minutes to get there but it didn't really matter to us, we were excited to have a nice relaxing day after a long exhausting day and night yesterday.  After 2 hours of gentle rubbing, we left the massage place less than impressed.  Granted it was only 10 dollars for 2 hours, it was the most mediocre massage therapy session I have ever encountered.  (Luckily, I didn't let that affect my idea of a Thai massage as later on in the trip I tried it again and it was amazing.) 

On our way back, Dougie and I were trying to figure out what we were going to do for the rest of the day and into the night.  It was around 4PM at this time, we were hungry, quite tired from the night before, and, like the entirety of our trip, had no plans to do anything.  Before I left for Thailand, I downloaded the Lonely Planet guide to Thailand.  Anywhere you go for the first time, get this book, for all of your locations.  It will tell you anything you need to know about the country from accommodations, where to eat, what to see, how to maintain a budget, history, culture, popular sayings, everything.  So as I was reading before I left, there was mention of a few Muay Thai arenas around Bangkok, Lumpinee Stadium, in particular.

For whatever reason, as i was thinking about things to do, I noticed a bunch of signs for Muay Thai fighting, then a bunch of people in the street, then a bunch of street vendors, then this remarkable stadium amongst it all.  I told Dougie that is what we were doing.  We told the cabbie to pull over and he dropped us off.  Once again, we didn't know how this whole operation worked out so we just went up to the windows to try to find out how we could get a seat.  The windows were closed and there was a man with credentials who noticed a few white guys that obviously did not fit in.  He said that he could get us ring side tickets for less than what they are selling at the ticket box office so our ears perked up.  He brought us past a few security guards to the interior of the arena and gave us a break down of what each section of seats would cost us.  Outside rows - 1500 baht ($50); Inside rows - 1800 baht ($60); Ring side - 2300 baht ($76).  Dougie and I were trying to figure out what the best thing to do was and the guy with the credentials said that basically all tourists get the ring side seats.  So, after some gentle bargaining we got our ring side seats for 1750 baht apiece. 

The fights were unreal.  The way that it breaks down is five 3 minute rounds per fight.  The first round is usually meant for a few kicks, a few punches, but nothing too serious, more of the guys getting a feeling for the fight and their opponent.  The second and third rounds get the intensity ramped up and the fourth is when each fighter goes in to kill mode.  If the ref feels there is not enough action going on, he makes sure to let the fighters know and the fans are not shy about letting the fighters know also.  When I was reading about this before, I was surprised to find out that punching with your fists is considered the weakest attack against your opponent so the use of knees, elbows, and kicks are heavily favored in the bouts. 

Up in the crowd, people are betting, screaming, chanting, and the thought of sitting down before, during, and after a fight never occurs to them.  About half way through the evening, we were given a list of the fighters and their weight class.  I figured that the lightest guys would probably be around 150 and the main event would be around 180.  I based this instinctively on how badly these guys would beat the shit out of me and was terribly humbled upon knowing their actual weights.

Finally, it was time for the main event, roughly 3 hours into the night.  The champ came out wearing some kind of head band type thing with a cobra on it so you kind of knew he was all business.  Now, before the fights, these guys go through about a 4 minute routine (below) as part warm up, part showing respect to their opponent, Buddha, the fans, and to the sport.  I found it a little bizarre but I found basically everything bizarre in this fascinating country, so I embraced it.

During the main event, in about the 3rd round, each fighter was doing very well but no one had really taken control over the fight.  Sure, there were an array of head kicks, knees to the ribs, and jabs, but nothing over the top.  That was until with about a minute left in the round, the challenger hammered the champ with an elbow in the forehead and split him open for what I would say was about 10 stitches.  The crowd erupted and it looked like there was going to be an upset if he could keep his pace for the next 2 rounds.

In the end, after a late flurry by the champ, the challenger maintained his poise and was crowned the winner.

After the match, there were hoards of people going to some area behind us so we thought it would be a good time to be followers.  Everyone was going back into the locker room area, which was not a locker room area at all, but a lobby where the fighters prepared.  There was no special room for them, no curtains, no nothing, they were right in the middle of a high traffic area for attendees.  Yet another thing that was very different to me.  Most high profile athletes always have their own areas and rooms for preparation or post fight but not in this culture. 

 

 

New champ

So, our night at the Muay Thai fight had come to and end and it was time to figure out the rest of the evening.  We started to walk back to our hotel not knowing how far away we were when a Tuk-Tuk started honking his horn at us.  A Tuk-Tuk is basically a high powered tricycle that bobs in an out of traffic and are notorious for over charging.  We bargained from 250 to 100 baht ($3) to get us home and after a few near death experiences, we were back at the Ambassador.  We got ready for the night, went down to the White Bar again to meet our new Thai friends and they said it would be a better idea to head away from the city to enjoy the night.  We stopped to play pool for a bit then took off on a 45 minute journey to God knows where, cracked open a few more bottles and called it a night.  This was our last night in Bangkok.  Tomorrow to Pattaya.



Day 3 - Bangkok/Pattaya


We got up around 11AM to give us enough time to check out of our hotel, grab something to eat, and jump on a but to Pattaya.  Once again, everything that we decided to do on our trip was hearsay and taking advice from people we did not know, yet this country had been very welcoming to us so we had no reason to not listen.  Our bus to Pattaya was about 120 baht ($4) for a 2.5 hour trek south east.  There were 2 stops along the way so the bus filled up pretty quick and what was once a potentially comfortable journey with a whole row to myself, was now a long sleepless ride with intermittent air conditioning.  I did my best to shut down for a few minutes but was overwhelmed with this new part of the country we we driving through.  With broken down homes, rice fields, and a bit more diverse landscape, I found myself, once again, intrigued.  Sleep did not seem like an option anymore, taking this place in did.

We arrived in Pattaya with no place to stay so we were dropped off at a bus station right next to tourist travel information center.  We were greeted and helped finding a hotel for 2 nights.  While we were there, we made sure to think ahead and decide where our next destination would be.  We knew that Pattaya was going to strictly be a place to party so we wanted our next stop to be a beach to relax with crystal clear waters and snorkeling.  We decided on Koh Chang but told our help that we would get a hold of her later when we wanted to book our bus down there.  Until then, we wanted to stay in Pattaya for 2 nights then let the winds take us elsewhere.  We booked at the Balitaya Hotel which was a bit off the beaten path but nothing too major.  It ended up costing about 1550 baht ($51) per night for a double so we said that would work out.  Some of the other places that were suggested were a bit higher and we wanted to somewhat stay on a budget.  Once we got checked in to our hotel, we again thought it was necessary to take a few hour nap to prepare for the evening.

The Beach Road in Pattaya is full of vendors, both food and clothing.  Also mixed in are beer bars which are basically 7 bars in a row with girls trying to get you to go in and have a drink with them.  If you can resist the urge of these beautiful Thai women begging you to come in and enjoy a night with them, you will soon find yourself on Walking Street.

It wasn't until very late that we got to Walking Street when we were approached by a guy asking if we wanted to see a show at a go-go bar.  Against my will (haha) I was dragged into a world I had only heard legends about.  For 400 baht ($13) we got to see women do things with their parts that I never thought imaginable.  Blowing out candles, popping balloons with dart guns, opening coke bottles, smoking cigarettes, and pulling out razor blades were just a few of the sights.  During this time, I felt like I had fallen in love with one of the girls that worked at this place but I would soon notice that falling in love in Thailand seems to be an epidemic amongst most, nonetheless, it was inevitable.

We decided that we had seen more than enough for the night, were tired from traveling, and it seemed like a good time to pack it in for day 3 in Thailand

Thailand (Part 1 Day 1)

I don't even know where to begin.  This was, without a doubt, the most exciting, informative, exhilarating, and amazing trips that I have ever been on in my life.  It was something that was so different and unexpected; a complete eye opener to another society and culture.  Initially, I thought the best thing for me to do was to bring my computer and produce daily records of my travels but after reading "how to pack for Thailand" message boards, bringing a computer would not have been a great idea.  Instead, I just jotted down notes to hopefully be able to relive this amazing trip when I returned home.

As far as what I packed (I had a 95L Bergans backpack)

- 6 t-shirts
- 2 pairs of shorts
- 6 pairs of socks (which was relatively pointless because I wore sandals the whole time)
- 6 pairs of boxers (probably about right)
- Sunglasses
- Hoodie (basically for being in Oslo)
- Sweatpants (same)
- Towel
- Small Digital Camera
- Small First Aid kit
- Running Shoes
- Ipod/Cellphone/Headphones
- Sunscreen (you can buy it there for cheaper than in Norway)
- Malaria pills (did not use)
- Toothbrush/toothpaste
- Immodium
- I bought a swim suit there so it's your choice
- Pen and notebook (many uses)
- Ziplock bags (large and small)
- Toilet paper


First off, the best thing I did with this trip was have no agenda.  The only reservations that I had were a flight to Bangkok, a flight from Bangkok, and a hotel for 2 nights.  That's it.  I had never done anything like this before, never went into something blind.  I always try to follow a schedule.  After this trip, I realized that the way that I had been traveling was completely wrong.  Any advice I would give for a trip of this magnitude is to just wing it.  You'll understand why as you read on.


Day 1

I was lucky enough to find a nonstop ticket to Bangkok from Oslo for relatively cheap (just under $1000 on www.skyscanner.com) and decided to jump all over it.  In reality, all a nonstop flight does it hopefully secure that the chances of losing your bags are minimized.  If you have a layover and get to your destination 2 hours later, it really doesn't matter when you think about it, and if you save a few hundred dollars, you might as well.

So I arrived in Bangkok around 5:30AM and met up with my friend at the airport who had just arrived as well.  After a quick walk through at customs, it was time to get into the city and start our adventure.  My friend had met a guy, Bobby, who was also a Swede traveling out of Copenhagen and was able to get some insight on what to do, where to go, and how to get around.  We lucked out here cause we honestly had no idea what to do.  Also working in our favor is that the guy we were now with, was going to the same area of Bangkok that we were going to, Sukhumvit Soi 11 area.  We jumped on the train and headed to our new home.

Since it was now 6:30 or 7AM, the train started to fill up pretty quickly and were squished in like sardines with luggage by the time we reached our destination.  Also, we couldn't check into the hotel yet so it was time to figure out a game plan.  For some reason or another, our new Swedish buddy had the novel idea of going and grabbing a few beers.  We obliged and followed him to Soi 7.  This is the local area for bars, and at this time in the morning, where all of the left overs were sobering up from the night before. 

After cracking our first beer around 8:30AM, none of the bars were open yet so we enjoyed it on the street with our new buddies and a few bar girls.  I had told my friend that during the entire trip, I was not going to eat one meal that was Thai.  So no Mcdonalds, no pizza, no pasta dishes, strictly Thai.  This is where I got a little skeptical because our only meal in view came from this...

Being an American, this little food stand is not something that I would walk around hoping to find anywhere, and if I did find it, there would not be a chance in hell that I would even consider making it a part of my diet...  but a promise is a promise and it was my first chance to engage in my new found culture.  As it turns out, these little places were the staple out our meals for the rest of our trip...  and all of them were some of the best food I have ever had in my life.

After a few more street beers, 10AM rolled around and the bars started to get fired up.  The one closest to us was littered with pool tables so it was enticing enough for us to make a pit stop.  Me, being the pool shark that I'm not, did not fair too well so I decided my new beer of choice was going to be Chang, and that ended up being the case for 17 days.  Eventually we went across the street to a different, more relaxed atmosphere, enjoyed a few more cold ones and soon it was time to check in to our hotel.

We stayed at the Ambassador on Soi 11 strictly based on internet reviews, price, and proximity to our desired area.  It ended up being $49 dollars a night for a double, which is unheard of where I'm from, so we booked for 2 nights, in anticipation of where our trip would take us next.  Bobby told us to get a hold of him later on and he would show us a good time.

Since we had barely slept and were already half in the bag, we decided to check in and shut her down for a few hours before going out for the rest of night.

That few hours ended up being 7 hours but at least we were refreshed and ready to go.  We decided to head out, grab some more street meat and then give Bobby a call to see what he had in store for us.  Walking around, there here hundreds of little shops with people selling everything from shirts, shoes, purses, watches, viagra, and cialis.  If you needed it or wanted it, chances are you would only walk about 100 feet in either direction and find it.  Finally we found something that looked edible and ordered.  I noticed in the stand next to me that there seemed to be some kind of squid or other sea animal so I tried asking the vendor but his limited English told me that there were babies inside of it.  Babies?  I did not need to hear anymore when I turned back to what I had initially ordered.  But, there was a girl that overheard me and asked if I had any questions about what she had just ordered.  She explained that is was squid with eggs in it.  After almost vomiting on the spot, I remembered my vow and she offered me a piece.  With the anticipation of a gag reflex, I reluctantly put a piece in my mouth and chewed.  Once again, amazing.  This now gave me the confidence to try anything we saw on the street without worry of a tape worm or Yersinia.

The girl that force fed me mentioned that she worked at a bar down the street and we should come in for a drink.  She said it was called the White Bar and it was under the bridge.  We said that sounded great and followed her to her "bar" although this was not what I have been brought up describing a bar.  Instead, it was simply a large table and a cooler surrounded by IKEA chairs and was literally under the bridge.  Dumbfounded, as much as this place seemed like an illegal street operation, we sat down and enjoyed, and so did other people, then more people.  Throughout the course of our trip, we found that there were many places like this.  It's not like in the U.S. where there are liquor licenses and codes that need to be followed, basically anyone can get a bunch of booze, a few tables and chairs, and establish their own bar.  And this is still day 1.

After a bit, we called Bobby but he said he had taken off to a magical place called Pattaya, so he sent his other buddy from Sweden to fetch us up and take us out.  We stopped for a beer at what seemed to resemble Mickey's Diner in St.Paul, Minnesota.  A few of his Thai friends met us.  Amidst the broken English conversations, I was starting to hear what seemed like the techno beats of a Paul Oakenfold number and noticed that this cute little diner was actually the entrance to Insomnia, a club that I vaguely remember due to the 30 dollars for a bottle of whiskey.