Hidden in an alcove between the famous Ao Nang and Railay
beaches rests the tiny community of Ton Sai. This small stretch of white sand overlooking
emerald waters and massive limestone islets floating on the horizon is
sandwiched between two mountains whose opposite sides rest on overpopulated resorts.
Thousands of tourists spend a week plus not knowing they lounge a kayak’s ride
away from a bohemian paradise.
I headed to the Thai islands planning to spend my time on
Railay. The only way to get there is to find six other travelers headed that
way and to commission a long-tail boat together.
A group of five of us were
looking for our sixth person when we happened upon a backpacker who said he was
headed to Ton Sai. None of us had heard of it, but he assured us it was on the way.
After about ten minutes on the boat we pulled around the tip of a mountain to see
rings of fire dancing in the distance. As we neared the sand we saw people
bouldering up massive rocks, banging on drums, hula hooping, slacklining,
smoking ganja…a debaucherous circus.
Our fellow traveler jumped out of the boat and into the
ocean knee-deep. With his backpack held high over his head he dragged his legs
through the current towards the island. “Bye friends!” he shouted. We continued
on.
I spent a day on my intended destination of Railay. It was
beautiful, but it was expensive and the people were unfriendly. Screw this. I
chartered another long-tail boat to take me around the corner and by afternoon
time I was drinking a cold beer in a reggae bar of hammocks.
The next few days I hung out with people so wild I felt I’d
stepped into a movie. I got talking to a German who biked to Asia through the Middle
East. I befriended a Turk who hitchhiked through Siberia. One day, while
hanging out on the sand an Irish couple with long amber dreadlocks emerged from
the ocean. They left all their belongings on the mainland and swam, because
they didn’t want to pay the ten dollars to take a boat.
Most of these people come to Ton Sai to deep-water solo
(rock climb without a harness in caves over the ocean so when your arms get
tired you can just drop down into the water).
Rock climbers from all over the
world have heard about this island through the grapevine. They get up at the
crack of dawn to get their exercise in and then laze the rest of the day away
on the sand with their perfectly sculpted bodies.
Other people are attracted to
Ton Sai, just because of its free-spiritedness. Regardless, everyone I met
while there was welcoming, sincere and at least a little quirky.
One of the reasons it has remained off the radar may be
because of how undeveloped it is. The only places to stay are shacks which
consist of little more than four walls and a roof. The electricity isn’t
activated until the sun comes down at which one slow moving, dusty fan will
start to rotate on the ceiling. The bathrooms are sandy and the showers are
cold.
I stayed in one of the nicest rooms on the island for thirty
dollars a day and when I closed the door my first night a huge panel fell through
the roof leaving a gaping hole looking up at the sky.
While Ton Sai surely isn’t the most luxurious beach getaway,
if you’re willing to sacrifice your creature comforts for a few days it’s an
inspiring place to visit. It’s full of people who left their homes to find
paradise and believe in their hearts that they have. It’s peaceful, it’s safe,
it’s cheap and the experiences you’ll have will most certainly be surreal.
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