Day 8

Woke up and walked down the street to try and find a payphone and breakfast. I couldnt get the phone to work so I picked up some baked goodies at a store and headed back to camp. Training started about 7 and went for a few hours. I did Muay Thai and did decent but feel a little out of it still. The training is very one on one with the trainers wrapping your hands and holding pads for you. A few trainers ask if I want to fight.

After training the office is open but their internet is down and I find out the phone is not international. I rented a motorbike and hit the streets. I bought a phone card but realized by this time its the middle of the night back home. I headed into Patong, which is a beach area on the other side of the island. Driving is a little crazy here but its a great way to see the island. You have to cross some hills that are in the middle of the island, but when you hit the top there are some spectacular views. I ate some grilled chicken from a street vendor and walked on the beach for a little while. I stopped at another little sidewalk café and had some chicken in green curry. Patong is very touristy and there are people walking around from all over. All of the vendors know English and there are shops selling everything. I saw posters everywhere advertising two upcoming nights of Muay Thai fights and recognized trainers and guests at Tiger Muay Thai on each poster.

I headed back and stopped at this mall Central Festival on the way back. This mall is Galleria sized and quite westernized. I also stopped at a Tesco which is a huge grocery store and picked up groceries. I got back to camp and trained again, this time MMA. We warmed up and then learned and drilled some guard passes before grappling. I was almost able to pull off the guard pass we learned during sparring but slipped. The cage floor was really slippery by the end as we were all dripping sweat as if we were in a sauna.

After class it rained a bit and cooled everything down. This is the low season which lasts until about October and means it rains more than the peak season. I knew this before coming here but have no problem with it. I cleaned up and wanted to see Patong again at night so I headed back. Very different at night. Lots of westerners out shopping, clubs and bars. All of the suit stores have guys that shake your hand while you walk by and don't let go and ask where you're from and try to get you to come in. The massage parlor girls all try to get you to come in too. Some of the bars you walk by have nothing but Thai girls dressed up and if you get too close sometimes they try to grab you. They aren't all hookers actually there are a lot of regular girls that just want a westerner boyfriend. Anyway I finally found a phone booth and was able to call home.

A freaking monsoon hit while I was walking around so I ducked into this bar with a live band to wait it out. The lead singer was Aussie and they were playing stuff like The Clash and Jet so it was a pretty good time. I thought the rain was letting up so I started heading back to my hog but then it hit again and I ended up in an Irish Bar. They were playing New Zealand vs. Australia rugby live so it actually worked out pretty good. Had a pint of Kilkenny and watched the game with John, who owned a hotel in New Zealand, and Craig, who lived in Australia and owned a cruise line. They had traveled quite extensively so we talked world markets and rugby and then the rain let up so I headed home. Actually it was still drizzling and pretty chilly on the road since I was still soaked from getting caught in the rain. I wasn't too big a fan of the rain at this point in time. Also I was almost out of gas but all the stations were closed so the whole way back (maybe 20 minutes or so) I was just praying I didn't run out of gas. I made it home though and slept like a champion.