Old Town Phuket and Surat Thani

Soon after checkout on the day of my move to Phuket old town, I hailed a ride to my hostel through the local app. I was lucky enough to split it with a new friend who had a flight to the airport later that day, and would be headed in more or less the same direction. I checked in and left my luggage, then went out for a quick walk, exploring with my friend before she had to go. The hostel street was lined with beautiful buildings in various pastel colors, supposedly in the Sino-Japanese style. Almost immediately outside of our hostel, we stumbled upon a bustling night market, even including occasional musical acts about every block. The acts would change with time, and over the course of the evening I saw an older couple singing together, a DJ, break-dancers, and an impressive rock group made up of 3 very young looking girls. Even after visiting a few night markets in Thailand already, this market impressed me with a number of delicious new foods. I tried a local noodle dish with tofu and a little pork skin, small crispy pancakes with coconut milk and preserved egg, a delicious dish of rice paper with some meaty filling and delicious sauce, and even colorful candies made around soybeans. Towards the end of the market, there were street shops selling art clothes and other wares, a few more food stalls, and finally, a massive golden dragon statue, illuminated at night and sitting in the center of a sizable fountain. Though my friend had to leave a little ways in, I was able to stay for several hours sampling small and medium dishes and looking down side streets. By the time I returned to the hostel, it was quite late and I was happy to find the cozy entrance hall waiting for me. Well accustomed to sleeping in hostels at this point, and finding this one relatively private and well air-conditioned, I happily settled into sleep.

The next morning I awoke still unsure of what exactly my next move would be over the coming days. I knew I wanted to travel broadly North, with Bangkok as the obvious next big city up the peninsula. I had heard good things from other travelers in particular about the “Koh” or Islands all around the coast in this part of Thailand. There are many of these islands and most of them are accessible only by boat, making it a difficult and somewhat daunting decision. Not wanting to rush, and having enjoyed my previous evening in Old Town, I decided to try to extend my hostel stay by another day. Unfortunately it was already booked full, so I had to make a quick search for local hostels with vacancies. Luckily I was able to find one not far away, down the same street that just hours ago had been filled to the brim with talented vendors and a clamoring public. When I got to the hostel, I couldn’t check in for a while and didn’t have somewhere obvious to stow bags. I took the time to try to get more writing in but mostly ended up chatting with people coming and going from the hostel lounging area. Luckily this did help me find a resolution for my plans for the next day- the two people I ended up chatting with for the longest time were both fairly recently certified scuba divers, having done it at various stages of their own world travels. They both spoke extremely highly of it, with one even heading in the direction of the primary port for the islands, Surat Thani, later that day. I had been considering learning to dive while out on this trip, but hadn’t really put anything concrete into practice at that point. Acting with their support and advice, I booked a bus the next day to Surat Thani, planning to meet there. I also looked into the best places to dive in Thailand and was met with a fairly consistent answer in the tiny island of Koh Tao, too small to see on a map of all of Thailand. Intent on completing my planning before I lost steam, I booked a night ferry from Surat Thani to Koh Tao the day after my night there. Finally, I found the most affordable scuba shop I could with consistently high reviews on the island, and reached out to them hoping that they could accommodate me on such short notice. Their online form said that I would receive a response within 24 hours, so I booked a hostel on the island near them and some other scuba sites and finished my planning for the day, and finally got the opportunity to check into the hostel and go walk around. Happy with myself but still unsure if they would have space for me, I walked around and got a delicious soup lunch with one of my new friends. We talked excitedly about diving and our general experiences traveling in Southeast Asia through lunch, and after some time writing back at the hostel, we headed out for a fairly late dinner. One of the few nearby restaurants still open was a fairly fancy one, but we decided to splurge a little and get some food at a refined establishment. Still trying to stick to local flavors, we settled on shrimp paste rice (with lots of toppings!) and a delicious braised pork stew, both to share. Both were delicious and contained flavors totally new to me, and of course sizable pieces of beautifully cooked meat. The soup came with a massive stick of cinnamon and tasted unlike anything I think I’ve had before, almost sour but at the same time extremely rich and aromatic. Of course, the whole time we were doted on by talented waiters, barely letting us take a drink or use a napkin before sneaking in to refill and replace. It was an extremely fun change, and with drinks came out to just over $10 each, which felt pretty reasonable for the area and the quality. After this nice evening, I enjoyed some sleep before waking leisurely to pack my things and walk over to the bus depot. I arrived at the depot after a nice walk and with time to spare. Luckily I showed my ticket at check-in and was told exactly where to sit, a section with only 6 or so seats. With no bus waiting I felt comfortable taking a quick walk around to find some breakfast. I found myself drawn to a small shop nearby with only 3 tables, all filled. When I wandered close, a woman hurried out from the back and started offering me different items. I eventually squeezed in a yes when she mentioned some stir fried wide noodles, and then confirmed when she asked if I wanted chicken. A man then left his table and the woman ushered me to replace him, then brought me a jug of water and a cup full of ice. Happy to have a cold drink as the usual heat of the day came back into full swing, I sat and waited within eyeshot of my bus terminal. Ultimately she served me some delicious noodles with what I think was kale and a number of other veggies, alongside chicken and egg. I added a little chili vinegar to add some heat, and had some of the best noodles I’ve had so far in Thailand! When I finished, I made my way back to the bus station and waited a little longer before our bus arrived and the driver waved at us all to board.

The bus ride was mostly uneventful, I chatted with an English couple, the only other English speakers on the bus, and had my first run in with one of the classic squat and pour Thai countryside toilets. Ultimately I managed to get a little sleep and cultural exchange in before arriving in Surat Thani, and then parting ways to our hostels. Even on my short walk to my hostel by the local port, I passed multiple beautifully ornate temples, many burning incense or tended by monks. After checking in for the night, I relaxed for a little bit and reconnected with my friend from the previous day. Together, we went with a new friend of hers to investigate the local night markets. Once again, the local markets met or raised the standard. Notably cheaper now that we were away from the prime tourist area, we found another incredible selection of street food options. I got to try some fried sesame balls filled with sweet paste (bean, sesame, custard), a favorite back home. I together we enjoyed some spring rolls with delicious dipping sauces, including one with a fruit-wasabi mix that was tasty and totally new to me. The bridge and a number of temples lit up as night fell, and for a dessert treat we elected to try one of the busiest stands. It had all sorts of colorful treats in bowls, from colorful jellies, preserved fruits, and even corn/potatoes. The base seemed to always be coconut milk, alongside some simple syrup, with some of these other treats added, and sometimes ice over the top. I ordered something that seemed popular, mostly based on color, and ended up with a blue tapioca like substance, jackfruit, and some other jellied fruit I couldn’t discern. This was delicious but a little too sweet for me, though I was still thrilled to have tried something new. After a wonderful night in Surat Thani, I retired to the hostel and slept for the night.

The next day was wonderful as well, mostly spent wandering around Surat Thani with my friend from Phuket. I was lucky enough to wake up to an email from the scuba school, inquiring as to whether I was still interested in starting my class the next day. I responded yes, and inquired about timing and some hotel bundles they had advertised on their website, to which they responded by saying they were looking forward to having me, but not acknowledging my other questions. Content with at least some response and availability, I moved on with my day. In the city, we tried delicious soup at a breakfast place my friend had found the previous day, and walked into a couple small temples around the town. The middle of the day, as usual, got quite hot, and prompted a retreat to the hostel and waiting cold air, but I did manage to convince my travel companion to come and get a dive in from Koh Tao, before she traveled on to Bangkok and eventually home. As soon as the sun set we were back on the streets, with our boat leaving in only a few hours. I had an alright pad thai and maybe my best-ever mango, alongside a few mangosteen (also maybe best ever, though its a short list) before boarding our boat with a few steamed buns for snacks. Packing our way into the boat with dozens of other travelers, I found a nice bed in the corner and good AC. Excited for the tropical island where I would soon awake, I curled up as much as possible in my little bed and slept.