Living like a Local- 4 day Weekend in Koh Chang

@laurenemiilyy

I HELD A BALL OF FIRE

♬ 2GOOD4U - Marluxiam

   One of the benefits of living in a country longer term, like CIEE’s 6-month English teaching program, is that you have time to travel where most tourists and vacationers don’t go. Off the Gulf of Thailand, in the province of Trat, sits the island of Koh Chang, known for its serene beaches and otherworldly sunsets. The school I teach at, Maryvit Bowin in Chonburi, had a long weekend for Thai Father’s Day, so my fellow American teachers and I decided to check out the island. Our school kindly rented us one of their buses, so a 4-hour drive and a 30-minute ferry later, we’d arrived in paradise.

   If you watched H2O growing up, Koh Chang looked exactly like that show. If a mermaid came out of the water and waved at us, I wouldn’t have been surprised; it is that magical. The island isn’t very big; it takes an hour tuk-tuk ride to drive around its circumference. Yet, it is filled with waterfalls, beaches, hiking trails, and much more.

   We had two full days to explore that we packed in with activities. On our first day, we went to Klong Plu waterfall. It was gorgeous and spilled into a small oasis filled with fish that nipped our legs as we jumped in the water. A short tuk-tuk drive later, we arrived at Kai Bae viewpoint, where we could see the ocean and the four smaller islands in the distance. After that, we went to the mangroves.

   The Mangroves were unlike anything I’ve seen before. You walk along a red bridge through the marshy trees despite the signage warning of broken planks. The bridge was sketchy, but the green and blue scenery contrasted so beautifully against the redwood that it was worth the risk of falling into the water below.

   Luckily, we made it out dry and spent the rest of the evening walking along the beach by our hostel, Pajamas (I highly recommend staying here if you’re ever in Koh Chang). We were sitting at a bar when, out of nowhere, fire dancers lit their batons and began performing on the sand in front of us. I watched in amazement as they artfully swung and threw flaming balls of fire around expertly, yet narrowly, avoiding touching the flames. One of the dancers was holding two ends of a rope with fire spinning in the middle as he approached our seats and handed me one end! I was holding a ball of fire! I was so scared but excited that he chose me to participate. A night I will never forget!

   As if our time in Koh Chang couldn’t get any better, the following day was nothing short of magical. We went to Lonely Beach, which was supposedly a popular tourist spot, yet it lived up to its name, “lonely,” as there were very few tourists. At the beach, we rented kayaks to the smaller islands in the distance. We spent a rough total of 2 hours kayaking, and I was stuck in the back seat. My arms were so sore and sunburnt, but it was completely worth it. We brought snorkels, stopped at two little islands, and swam with schools of zebrafish and rainbow fish in the coral reefs. As an Oklahoman, seeing coral reefs is something I never thought possible, but this experience taught me that no dream is too big to dream.
Our last evening in Koh Chang was the best of all. We caught a party tuk-tuk decked out with flashing lights and blaring speakers to Pearl Beach. For the first time, the clouds had parted enough for us to see the glowing orange of the sunset. The radiant light contrasted with the clear blue water, warm like a bath. Spinning around, you saw the junction of the earth’s various ecosystems- the ocean, the sky, the jungle, the mountains. I’d never felt so close to God.

   Woah, I got a little poetic there, but poetry’s the only way to express that magical moment. Teaching English abroad is hard. Living away from my family and friends is hard. However, my experience in Koh Chang reminded me of why I started this journey- to embrace a new culture, see the world, and seize the day. 

Have a lovely holiday season!

TTYL,

Lauren