Life's a Trip: Chapter Four - Christmas Eve, Patong Style
December 24, 2006
The day before Christmas begins as a lazy day on the beach. The weather is beautiful and I have no where else to be. Utter relaxation.
Katie and Dave join me for a few hours of sunbathing before heading back to their hotel for Christmas Eve dinner.
After dinner Katie and I get together for coffee at Starbucks. We seem to both agree that it's surreal to be sipping coffee on a beach in Thailand while random Christmas decorations, act as the sole reminder that it is in fact Christmas Eve. It's completely different from every other holiday season that I've ever experienced.
Katie and I wander the beach for a while after our coffees have depleted and then she returns to her hotel. However, the night is still young for me.
I make my way towards Bangla Road for a drink or two...or three. I had read about Bangla Road while I was trying to figure out what to do on New Year's Eve. However, my travel dates changed and I was no longer going to be in Phuket for New Year's, so I figured that Christmas Eve would be a good substitute night for a visit.
Imagine this. You're walking down a lively street on the beachfront in Phuket. Each restaurant, shop or bar is playing it's own music, so there is an overall ambiance of energetic nightlife. But somewhere off in the distance, you can sense something quite different. It's the combination of music and general chaos. It's presence is dulled by distance but it still somehow intermingles with the sounds of the beachfront. It makes you aware of its presence and it calls you towards it. It's mirage suggests a party of such intensity and magnitude that it promises to be something unlike anything you've seen before. You're attracted to it by the same force that prevents you from averting your eyes when confronted with a horrific car accident.
At first contact your sense are comprehensively assaulted. Music is blaring from each bar that lines the street, yet incredibly you can still discern which song is playing. Neon lights flicker and flash, forming an epileptic gauntlet. The smell of ocean air, perfumes and alcohol mingle to curiously tickle the olfactory and gustatory modes of the palate. Your body is subjected to various forms of stimulation ranging from the bone-shaking bass of dance tunes to the constant ebb and flow of people passing by. It's intensity in it's purest form. You've now entered the world famous Bangla Road area.
The place consists of over 100 bars, ranging from 10 x 10 squares to massive nightclubs. I wander through the area, stopping here and there for a beer. At one of the bars, I'm paying for my drink and my waitress is arguing with me because I've declined to buy her a drink. Just then, a clearly inebriated Australian guy, Andy, steps up to my table, tosses some money down and says, “get yourself a drink and leave him alone.” The waitress happily scoops up the money and skips off to the bar.
Andy then turns to me and says, “I'm going for broke tonight” and laughs before slugging back half a beer. We chat for a bit and I'm informed that he and a few other guys in the area are members of the Australian military. They're on vacation after being on a four month tour of duty in the jungles of Malaysia. Interesting...
After we get through the “whos” and “whys” there is a break in conversation as we both swig at our beers and survey the scene. Suddenly, my new acquaintance sparks to life. He point's to the bar across from us. “Do you see that guy over there?” “Yeah.” “That's my buddy Rayce. He's been hitting on this girl all night, but the funny thing is...she's not a girl. Watch this.”
Before I have a chance to react or reply, he hops up from his seat and walks over to the next bar. He sends Rayce to the bar to get some drinks and then hands the “girl” some cash in his absence. Rayce comes back with the drinks and I watch in disbelief as his escort swiftly pulls him into the night by the collar of his shirt. Andy returns and laughs as he says, “he's gonna be soo pissed when he finds out.” No kidding.
The rest of the evening was spent cruising up and down the sois of Bangla Road drinking, dancing and chatting with people from all over the world. At 5:00 am hunger set in, so I deserted the party grabbed some Pad Thai and made my way back to my hotel. Thus ended my first Christmas Eve on my own...what a trip.
End of the night...
The day before Christmas begins as a lazy day on the beach. The weather is beautiful and I have no where else to be. Utter relaxation.
Katie and Dave join me for a few hours of sunbathing before heading back to their hotel for Christmas Eve dinner.
After dinner Katie and I get together for coffee at Starbucks. We seem to both agree that it's surreal to be sipping coffee on a beach in Thailand while random Christmas decorations, act as the sole reminder that it is in fact Christmas Eve. It's completely different from every other holiday season that I've ever experienced.
Katie and I wander the beach for a while after our coffees have depleted and then she returns to her hotel. However, the night is still young for me.
I make my way towards Bangla Road for a drink or two...or three. I had read about Bangla Road while I was trying to figure out what to do on New Year's Eve. However, my travel dates changed and I was no longer going to be in Phuket for New Year's, so I figured that Christmas Eve would be a good substitute night for a visit.
Imagine this. You're walking down a lively street on the beachfront in Phuket. Each restaurant, shop or bar is playing it's own music, so there is an overall ambiance of energetic nightlife. But somewhere off in the distance, you can sense something quite different. It's the combination of music and general chaos. It's presence is dulled by distance but it still somehow intermingles with the sounds of the beachfront. It makes you aware of its presence and it calls you towards it. It's mirage suggests a party of such intensity and magnitude that it promises to be something unlike anything you've seen before. You're attracted to it by the same force that prevents you from averting your eyes when confronted with a horrific car accident.
At first contact your sense are comprehensively assaulted. Music is blaring from each bar that lines the street, yet incredibly you can still discern which song is playing. Neon lights flicker and flash, forming an epileptic gauntlet. The smell of ocean air, perfumes and alcohol mingle to curiously tickle the olfactory and gustatory modes of the palate. Your body is subjected to various forms of stimulation ranging from the bone-shaking bass of dance tunes to the constant ebb and flow of people passing by. It's intensity in it's purest form. You've now entered the world famous Bangla Road area.
The place consists of over 100 bars, ranging from 10 x 10 squares to massive nightclubs. I wander through the area, stopping here and there for a beer. At one of the bars, I'm paying for my drink and my waitress is arguing with me because I've declined to buy her a drink. Just then, a clearly inebriated Australian guy, Andy, steps up to my table, tosses some money down and says, “get yourself a drink and leave him alone.” The waitress happily scoops up the money and skips off to the bar.
Andy then turns to me and says, “I'm going for broke tonight” and laughs before slugging back half a beer. We chat for a bit and I'm informed that he and a few other guys in the area are members of the Australian military. They're on vacation after being on a four month tour of duty in the jungles of Malaysia. Interesting...
After we get through the “whos” and “whys” there is a break in conversation as we both swig at our beers and survey the scene. Suddenly, my new acquaintance sparks to life. He point's to the bar across from us. “Do you see that guy over there?” “Yeah.” “That's my buddy Rayce. He's been hitting on this girl all night, but the funny thing is...she's not a girl. Watch this.”
Before I have a chance to react or reply, he hops up from his seat and walks over to the next bar. He sends Rayce to the bar to get some drinks and then hands the “girl” some cash in his absence. Rayce comes back with the drinks and I watch in disbelief as his escort swiftly pulls him into the night by the collar of his shirt. Andy returns and laughs as he says, “he's gonna be soo pissed when he finds out.” No kidding.
The rest of the evening was spent cruising up and down the sois of Bangla Road drinking, dancing and chatting with people from all over the world. At 5:00 am hunger set in, so I deserted the party grabbed some Pad Thai and made my way back to my hotel. Thus ended my first Christmas Eve on my own...what a trip.
End of the night...
posted by Christopher Janca at 12:48 a.m.
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