The memory of a Geisha by Tianshu Liu

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Old Way in New Day

The name Itsukushima literally means ‘island of worship’ and from ancient times the island itself was worshipped as a god. The mystical Itsukushima Shrine built on the water was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1996.

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People in Japan believe that the koi fish symbolizes wealth, prosperity, love, successful career and good fortune

Tea Ceremony in Kyoto in Japan.

Traditional Japanese Theater and Festival Masks

References

• Itsukushima Shrine
• Shibuya

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After five long years, I finally had my very first vacation back in Krabi. Many people might ask why would you wait that long but trust me ‘Thing doesn’t always go as plans’. 

It was Friday morning. I didn’t sleep at all because the excitement kept me up all night. Without any preparation, I just put a few clothes and a laptop in my backpack, then I waited. Until I felt like it was the right time, I called a taxi heading to Don Muang airport. The traffic wasn’t bad since I was a bit early before the rush hours.

When I arrived at the airport, my friend was already there like 20 mins before me. Like I’ve told you earlier, things didn’t go as we’d planned. My friend told me that we missed the flight. Well according to the email we’ve received from the airline, it said that our flight would be postponed from 6 o’clock to 11 o’clock. Unfortunately, there might be some kind of miscommunication at that point.

So…either buying new flight tickets which will cost us around 6,900 baht, which was not part of our plan, or give up the trip but that wasn’t the choice.

NO! That was not my plan. I need a vacation and I need it this weekend. I gave up the trip to Phuket last year but I was not gonna do it again. Therefore, we looked up the internet and searched for an alternative way to Krabi. At the end of that morning, we decided to take a tourist bus. We purchased the tickets online and went back home because the bus would leave the station at 5:30 pm and we didn’t want to sit there from 12 o’clock until then.

Well, I went back home and tried to finish the work as much as I could before going to the bus station. I was gonna do it in Krabi in the evening but since 

The first glance after arriving at the bus station, I realised that I’d never ever travelled by the tourist bus before in my life. When I was young, I usually travelled with my mother and she’s the driver. By the way, Before we got on the bus, I dropped by 7/11 for some snacks, light food, and a bottle of water since I was a bit concerned that there might not be food provided and we had to be on the bus for more than 12 hours. 

A long journey is not new for me but spending the next 12 hours on the bus could be painful.

The seat on the bus, I must say, was very comfortable. I spent the first four hours of sleep before I was woken by a deep snoring noise from the front seat. The toilet on the bus was horrifying. I was okay for peep peep but not for umm… It could be a bit bumpy for ladies. However, it wasn’t as bad as I thought. Oh, wait! I forgot to talk about my friend. Well, he slept most of the time when he was on the bus. I didn’t know how he did that.

 Later, around 10 or 11 o’clock, I was surprised that the bus stopped at a restaurant and they had food provided for us. It was actually complimentary. Everyone could eat as much as they wanted like a buffet. We had mush with Chinese-pork salami, pickled lettuce salad, stir-fried cucumbers with eggs, pickled lettuce soup with pork ribs, and something I didn’t know exactly what it was. Some people just ate at the restaurant outside. After we finished our late dinner, I wandered around the supermarket for a while before I got on the bus and rested. With that full stomach, I was asleep until 5 or maybe 6 in the morning.

The moment I opened my eyes, I saw the sea and the mountains on both sides of the road. I started to feel relief from the inside while physically suffering on the bus. Eventually, we arrived at the Krabi transportation route around 7:45 am.

We took a motor taxi to the hostel, Glur. From the station to the hostel, it cost us only 100 baht for each of us which was not so bad at all since the ride was almost 20 mins.

The hostel is located in Ao Nang beach surrounded by restaurants, street-food vendors, coffee shops, and etc. From outside, the hostel seems so small that I thought there might not be many tourists or visitors. When we walked inside, it was another story. It is incredibly cosy and well decorated. After we checked in, we made a quick observation and we were so thankful that we didn’t book for a hotel. There are 8 different room types. Our room has a bunk bed and a private bathroom which is very accomodating.

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After 20 minutes of our arrival, we had to get change real quick and be ready for the van. Yes, It was our second day and we booked a boat to PP island according to the plan. We made it to the beach just in time. The smell of the salty water from the sea just blew my mind. I couldn’t stop smiling. It was such a high. We had to travel with a tour group, most of them seemed nice. We jumped into a speedboat headed to our first destination the Bamboo island.

As far as the eyes could see, the beach on the island was covered by pure white sand. Upon the hill stood a bunch of trees. I was a bit dizzy since it was my first time after a very long while travelling on a boat. An old lady sitting in front of me threw up. Apparently, everyone knew what she had for breakfast.

The first second I stepped on the island. I let the warmth from the sand run through my feet. A non-stop blowing wind could take away my soul. It was amazing and yet the view was breathtaking. I wish We walked around the beach, took some photos, and grab some food. I was a bit disappointed that people here were still using the single-use plastic bag. Anyways, we explore around the beach more before we get back on the boat. I wish I could spend more time here but unfortunately, we had to the other destinations.

The second destinations were the Blue Lagoon, Maya beach, and Monkey Bay for sightseeing. These areas were under protection and conservation at the moment due to the corals’ destruction from the tourist and snorkeler. I enjoyed the views so much that I forgot to take photos. However, I’d asked my friend Dàlton M. Redwood.

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Later we passed a Viking cave, which well known as wall paintings & site for harvesting bird nests for a traditional Chinese soup. Again! At this point, I didn’t take any photos. it seemed like I was a kind of person who remembers and sees things through the eyes rather through the lens.

After the sightseeing, we went to Ao Tonsai pier for lunch which included in the trip. We walked a bit to the restaurant. There, the food was self-serve and it was a buffet. We could actually eat as much as we want. My friend and I were starved since I didn’t have a chance to get any breakfast earlier. Everything looked so good and delicious; stirred-fried chicken with bell paper, spaghetti, chicken soup with spice, fried chicken basil, and some fruits. We were disappointed with the test of the food a bit. It seemed like Thai food with an international taste (tasteless). I understood that they try to please the foreigners from different countries and cultures but this was umm…Okay! I had to stop criticising the food and focused on the trip. Yes, I was looking The Pizza Huts, as mentioned by the tour guide earlier, right after we finished the food from that restaurant.

When we finish our lunch, we were wandering around the pier for an hour. It was such a good time and I would never forget this feeling.

We were informed to be back to the boat before 2:30 p.m. and we would have snorkelling for a couple of hours. Sadly, two of the Thai tourists came back to the boat at 2:45 p.m. and we all were sitting on the boat like idiots. At this point, I started to ask my friend if he would be interested to come back again in the future and rent a private boat. There were two spots for snorkelling and we only had 30 mins for each spot. Thanks to those.

We headed back to the shore right after the snorkelling. My friend passed out and I was totally drained. When we got back to our hostel, my friend went out to rent a motorbike. Surprisingly cheap and easy to drive (I don’t drive). We took a short nap and rode to Krabi downtown, Walking Street.

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Walking Street is more like food and fair festival. There, the food is incredibly delicious. All are fresh and well cooked. There’s also a live concert (local singers) which is very entertaining. Many tourists come for dinner and drink there. Yet the price is reasonable, especially for seafood. We were completely stuffed and felt sleepy. Both of us went back to the hostel and rest.

It was such a crazy productive day. We did enjoy all the activities, planned and unplanned. The rest of the trip is to continue in April issue.

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