Koh Phangan

Fishing boats at the Baan Tai harbor, so pretty!

Koh Phagnan is growing on me.  Not that I didn't like it before, but I was put off by the way the entire island revolves around the full moon party and the hordes of tourists who come for it.  (Of course that's why I'm here too... but I'll admit I'm a bit of a hypocrite) The prices of everything skyrocket in the days surrounding the party and finding accommodations is close to impossible.  Of course it makes sense, but it's still frustrating.  I think it's an event geared more for the tourist on a two week vacation, unaware or uncaring of the business of the full moon party.

USS Stark County, decommissioned and given to the Thai
Navy, now being prepped to become a museum

When I first arrived in Koh Phagnan I was tired and knowing that finding a place to stay by the party would be hard to come by I opted to spend my first night in the town by the main pier.  Even there the room I rented was incredibly expensive compared to the places I stayed up North.  It was nice though, a single room with a fridge and a TV and my own bathroom with hot water.  And it was right above a diner with decent food and a helpful owner who gave me a couple maps and pointed me to the good beaches.  I had a nice, pricey, lunch and then took a walk on the road toward Haad Rin to look for a place to stay.

One of the many rivers that form on the
beach after a rainstorm

I started getting discouraged after checking with over a dozen hostels and guest houses and being told that they were either fully booked, or being quoted prices that seemed absolutely crazy; 800 baht for a dorm bed with cold water?!  This isn't NYC!  I only made it to Baan Tai, the next town over, before I gave up and settled on a small and pretty much vacant hotel.  I called several places around the island too but was given the same responses.  So, my room is $12 a night, which is a lot by Thai standards, and has a second bed which I don't need, but it has hot water and the woman who runs the place is nice, and I didn't really have any other options.

They have a couple of these fake 7-Eleven's arou

Fishing boats on the sandbar and Koh Samui (I think)
in the background

I've spent the last couple days sleeping in and then working my way down the beach towards Haad Rin, it's a nice walk, although there are a few parts where I have to scurry over rocks or sneak through a resort.  And I know when I've left too late in the afternoon because the tide starts to rise and my path disappears.  Sunrise beach where the party takes place has nice sand and lovely warm water.  It's gotten a bit crowded, but still far better than anything in Jersey.  I normally stay for dinner and then find my way back, either in an overpriced songthaew, or on the back of a some kind person's motorbike.  My stubbornness has not diminished since I've been here. And even though I read the songthaews double their rates in the evenings, I still can't stand the thought of paying 100 baht for a ride that isn't worth anything near that.  Walking wouldn't be bad except that the roads here are winding and not very well lit, and people drive far too fast.  I tried walking on the beach one night but ran out of beach because the tide was so high, by the time I got to the road I was on a series of hills where no songthaew could stop.  Fortunately a nice Burmese guy picked me up and took me back.