krabi

we left koh tao under gray skies, bouncing arhythmically over nine foot swells for the first couple of hours. the inside of the boat had all the ingredients necessary for full-participation seasickness: the sweet, dizzying smell of diesel fuel from the engine; the seat-sliding heave and ho of riding swells; and the stomach-turning sights and sounds of passengers putting their clear plastic vomit bags to full and good use - fill 'em up, tie 'em off, and set them on the swaying floor so they can slide and slosh around. the stable boat dock was a welcome sight for our whole green boatload.
for the next two legs of our boat journey to krabi we sat cramped but happy on the outside deck with as many as could find space.
krabi was a city surprisingly short on farang (foreigners), but full to brimming of locals living at their normal, easy pace. one highlight of this area was an emerald colored, fresh water pool about seventy kilometers south of krabi, amidst remote farms and villages. we motorbiked there and hiked about three kilometers through the forest to the source of this crystal pool.
the forest was dense and tropical, with heavy air and a thick, green canopy high above the floor. the spring at the end of the trail was like something from the legend of zelda. in the middle of the brown, sludgy pool was a circle of turquoise water with white sand at the bottom about twenty feet in diameter and eight to ten feet deep. in the very center of the turquoise part the white sand bubbled up steadily, allowing the fresh water to flow into the pond from the spring beneath. it felt like a portal into another world. it brought to mind psalm 36:9, "for with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light." God's Spirit is a living spring, bringing energy and life to what would otherwise be stagnant and bitter; supplying a dead pool with a fresh flowing source; filling us to overflowing with life-giving, life-promoting substance. the Spirit of God is the well-spring of life. we marvelled at the wonder of this place, and at the spiritual reality of which this spring was a persuasive metaphor. we worshipped God, the God of wonders.
another of our preferred krabi features was the loud, bustling night markets, where we experimentally dined at every variety of cart, stall, and bucket available - every colored curry, fish, sprouts, noodles, suspicious meats on skewers, in bags, in leaves...spicy sauce with that? chai. a roy mahk! krabi kept us habby for a good few days.