Day #132 - Fire & Friends

Another day, another beautiful morning. We slept well again which was great and of course, started the day with a morning dip. We seem to be the only ones who are in the pool as it opens! 

After breakfast, we wandered back into town since we had a few errands to attend to and thought that the morning heat would be more bearable. We needed to book a boat to take us to our next hotel in a few days, book a day trip to explore the islands, get hair cut and print out a few documents. 

Town was busy already with ferry loads of holidaymakers arriving for their few days on this paradise island.  We quickly achieved the bookings which proved to be less complicated than we anticipated. We didn't find a barbers that looked like it would serve us well unfortunately and the mid morning sun was causing the temperature to rise - time for a cool drink.

We found a lovely bar that overlooked the beach, giving us a classic Thailand image for us to enjoy while we enjoyed our fruit juice blends and shakes. 

We couldn't hang around town for long since we had booked another massage in for early afternoon. This time we had chosen an aroma massage and once again the talented ladies eased us off into a blissful state as we overlooked the serene waters in the bay.  

After lunch, I retired to the room to write up yesterday's blog while James headed to his happy place - the pool. 

Our bamboo bungalow is right beside the pool and so it wasn't a surprise to me when I heard James' laughter; he was enjoying making some new friends, which is great. 

He came to fetch me after a while to introduce me to his new acquaintances - two American couples from Charlotte in North Carolina, USA. Our Norwegian friends were there too making it four couples heading into cocktail hour! What's not to like!😂

Greg & Nina, Pål & Elin, Hannah & Andrew

We enjoyed a good time in the pool which then transitioned into a lovely evening meal altogether. It was great to chat to everyone and bond over a shared love of travel and adventure. 

Elin and Pål (the Norwegians) suggested that after dinner we head along the beach to the party bars and see the fire shows. So we did!

I wasn't the kind of young adult to ever do a Club 18 - 30 holiday, but what I imagined them to be is what we came across on the beach! Lots of young people enjoying themselves with drinks (and other stuff) in groups trying to impress other groups of the opposite sex, all accompanied by the loud, body thumping beats we have been hearing when we try to sleep. There were several bars along the beach all offering a similar experience but the one we headed for is known for its fire show. 

This comprised of young local lads, with more bravado than common sense (and little health and safety awareness between them) continuously performing various stunts with fire sticks, balls and batons, often involving members of the crowd.

As spectacular as it was (and we had front row seats) the middle aged boring me was constantly thinking of "What if...." especially since they quite frequently dropped or let go of their flaming instruments! 

Nevertheless, we emerged unscathed and after eyeing up the Bucking Bronco but ultimately deciding dignity was more valuable, we headed back along the beach to our hotel. 

We did wonder before we set out if the tide would have come back in. We could quite see if it has because it was so dark. The answer became apparent the closer we got to our destination and before long it was a case of "shoes off" and wading waist deep in the warm waters to get to our hotel! 

All in all, a great night with fun people and more wonderful memories to add to the collection.