It doesn't take long to get dry in this 40 degree weather but I keep getting wet as fast as I dry off. No surprise though, Thai New Year (Songkran) involves the biggest water fight ever. The fight is happening outside as I speak but I ducked into this Internet cafe to catch my breath. For a seemingly poor country, all of a sudden hundreds of pickup trucks materialize out of nowhere packed full of kids and a barrel of water. It is them versus street mobs huddled around their own hose-filling barrel. Passer bys like me are pretty much fare game cause we're too cheap to buy water guns or water bowls. My retaliation strategy has been to dodge my way to the barrel source and grab a scoop from the barrel to fight my way from the inside. The thought that anyone would own anything valuable (like electronics) is irrelevant. I see many angry farangs who have been unwillingly soaked while taking pictures. I have everything ziplocked though so I am good to go.
I have been in Krabi area for a couple days now. I am really not supposed to be having this much fun and relaxation but the cheap flight that I got made me fly 3 days earlier than I had planned. I wasn't going to just sit in Bangkok before going to Cambodia was I? In my defense I headed to somewhere familiar. That way I wouldn't be tempted to run around sight seeing. Good thing too – I am just relaxing and walking around between fruit shakes and panang curry stops. I really should eat something different but I can't.
On my way to Krabi they wouldn't stop playing stupid movies on our foreigner bus. I tried to sleep but kept getting woken up. One time I woke up while they were playing jackass 2 which is really a waste of time movie. But there was this one part where they are boxing in convenience stores and one guy has to get stitches for a head gash because he got bonked too hard. Stupidest thing ever. I went back to sleep. Ironically, not even 2 hours after I was off the bus, I was reading a map and walking down the sidewalk when I ran right into a low hanging tree branch. I almost fell over and died from the shock! And when I came to, I had the exact same stupid jackass 2 gash in my head! But I am in no place to get stitches. I just spent all morning dabbing blood away hoping it'd heal by itself.
-steve-
