Ken and Katie's Voyages Aboard Sand Dollar: Goodbye Southeast Asia

Sand Dollar's berth at Krabi River Marina became her home base for the months of February and March. Krabi Town's conveniences were a real treat, with incredible local food, a fresh produce market, and a variety of small shops, all within walking distance. Ken bought a folding bicycle, and each afternoon one of us would pedal off to buy ice cubes for our sun-downers, so that we could enjoy cocktail hour in a civilized fashion.

View of the little marina (SD upper left)

We'd often stroll down the riverfront promenade to the evening market at the jetty for a dinner of spicy green papaya salad, perfectly seasoned pad Thai, whole roasted tilapia, or the best grilled chicken we've ever eaten. The shady riverside park was a popular local picnic spot, and one afternoon we passed a group of 12-year-old boys having a Huck Finn afternoon. They had a small pile of good-sized prawns which they were roasting on sticks over a tiny fire that they'd built out of twigs. When we smiled and called a greeting in Thai, they were delighted, and insisted that we sample their lunch; they even had a spicy dipping sauce. The shrimp were wicked good, better than any restaurant offering! On our way home later, the whole posse were happily splashing in the river like a litter of puppies. Looked like a great way to grow up.

Boys roasting shrimp "cowboy" style

Riverfront park and promenade

The marina iteself offered the (for us) decadent amenities of clean showers, good wifi, and a little restaurant pavilion with great food and cold drinks. Mr. Wet, the Chinese owner and resident “color guy”, was always good for amusing local anecdotes, often at his own expense. His sister, Na, the manager, is an astute business-woman, but generous and funny; Ken teased her at every opportunity. The employee roster consists of just a few restaurant staffers and a couple of marina workers, and as we were often the only yacht in the marina, we soon became part of the family.

Na (on left) and staff

Our first night at the marina was celebrated with a Thai wedding reception. Several hundred people attended and the happy bride and groom posed for us:

Bride and Groom

But as Sand Dollar is a sailboat, we cast off the dock-lines at intervals for some adventures at sea. Our first adventure at sea was to haul her onto dry land. This we did at the relatively new Krabi Boat Lagoon marina and boatyard, a nice 13-mile sail from the marina, where we had her hauled out to clean and paint her bottom. Once the efficient staff had her lifted, pressure-washed, and perched securely on her jack stands, we went to work sanding and painting, and we were out of there in five days. We both agreed that this was our best haul-out ever.

SD gets cleaned up!

SD in the sling

Back at the marina we stocked up on essential provisions like ice and rum and sailed off again to anchor at nearby at Chicken Head Island. The island got its name because of an odd rock formation that resembles guess what? We snorkeled over the island's reef, where a bunch of big scallop-lipped clams are burrowed ass-down in the coral. Their “mouths”, brilliant green or turquoise, snapped shut as we waved our hands close to them. A sand bar exposed at low tide connects Chicken Head to her closest little island neighbor, and we took a stroll across the bar with the people from the numerous tour boats. In the late afternoon we relaxed in the cockpit and fortified ourselves with the aforementioned provisions, enjoying the nearby entertainment. With surprising frequency, one or another of the big tour boats would run aground at low tide. This resulted in much revving of engines, and in one instance, about two dozen passengers hopped off to push, shouting in unison with each push, like a prison work gang. Once the thundering herds had gone for the day, the evening show began, as thousands of bats took to the sky at dusk, winging northeastward from Chicken Head's mountain-top for parts unknown.

A different excursion a few weeks later saw us headed for Ao Chalong, about 40 miles from Krabi. We had a lovely downwind run, sailing wing and wing, with the main out on the port side, and the headsail poled out to starboard. When the breeze faded a little, Ken raised our pretty spinnaker to keep SD moving in the light air. We were taking one of our headsails in to Chalong town for repair, as some sun-rotted stitching needed to be re-sewn. In the Ao Chalong anchorage, we picked up a mooring next to friends Jack and Chrissi on their trimaran “Naga”, and took advantage of Chrissi's expert canvas skills to commission a new windlass cover and get some small repairs made to other canvas.

After a week in Ao Chalong, we started back toward Krabi, stopping for the night in little Railey Bay. Our plans to go ashore to the cute little tourist village were shelved when the bay kicked up a stiff chop. By nightfall we were pitching very uncomfortably and the wind had risen to add to the motion. Although the bay was quiet in the morning, the breeze was freshening, and we agreed that since last night was no fun at all, we weren't going to stick around and chance a repeat. Friends Barry and Gerrie Bateman on “New World” sailed into the bay in the late morning, so we went ashore together for lunch before weighing anchor and sailing for “home”.

We made one land trip during our time in Krabi, and although the mission was a success, the journey was a nightmare. With less than a year left on his passport, Ken needed a new book, and I was running short of pages in mine. The US Embassy in Bangkok gave us an appointment, and we decided to take the seemingly popular sleeper train for the overnight trip to the big city. Bloggers reported that although reservations could be made through most local tour offices, these involved a service charge, while purchasing the tickets at the station itself would be no problem. We are nothing if not thrifty (a.k.a. “cheap”), so we opted to avoid an agent's fee and get our tickets at the station.

We caught a noon bus out of Krabi for the three-hour trip to Surat Thani, where a 30-minute tuk-tuk ride brought us to the train station at 5:30 pm. The area was run down, the signs were in Thai, the station was dirty, and the sleeper seats were sold out for every train that evening. The only options were third-class non-air-con seats (no thanks!) or second class air-con seats on the 8:40 pm train. We bought the second-class tickets and wandered off to find a cold beer. Luck was with us as we stumbled across a coffee shop in a small hotel a few blocks away. A great cheap dinner, clean dining room with A/C , wi-fi, and American movies on TV helped us pass the time until our train was due to depart.

Locating our train in the station was a challenge, as there was no signage and a big language barrier, but we made it aboard and rolled off into the night in cramped uncomfortable seats in a rail car whose best days were long gone. About eleven very tiresome hours later we disembarked in a station that was every bit as crowded and dirty as the one where we'd boarded. We'd booked a room in a hotel not far from the Embassy, and grabbed a cab to get the heck away from the Bangkok Rail system.

Half an hour later we were at the charming Wendy House hotel, where the smiling young receptionist told us we were welcome to check in to our room, despite the fact that it was now only 7:30 am. Up we went to find heaven on earth – clean sheets, cool A/C, cable TV, and a great shower. We relaxed that day, walked a bit, and visited the DHL office to sort out some Customs red tape on a new EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon) that Ken had ordered from Australia after finding a super deal. The following morning after a delicious complimentary breakfast (fresh fruit, eggs cooked to order!) at our hotel, we took the Metro down to the Embassy. As US citizens, we went right in, by-passing the long queue of hopefuls applying for visas. “Dink and dink”, as Ken's friend Mike says – we were handled quickly and expertly and were out in no time. Kudos to the US State Department for their excellent passport website and to the US Embassy for their efficiency!

We went straight from the Embassy to the rail station (the newer main station, this time!) to try and book those elusive sleeper seats back to Krabi. No joy; all sold out for the whole day. Whoever said there's no trouble booking at the station hasn't tried lately! The information staffer suggested a non-stop bus, as it would take us right to Krabi, and the trip was about four hours shorter. Fine, says us, so we killed some time in a little cafe until boarding time. At the appointed time, we waited obediently for our bus, which had looked pretty clean and comfy in the photo we'd been shown. Yeah, well....

Once on the bus, we began to suspect that this was not a good example of truth in advertising, but more like “bait and switch”. The bus was packed, the seating was cramped, we had to sit apart, and some Swedish girls on holiday actually lay on the floor or sprawled with their legs stretched across the aisles. The bathroom was reminiscent of a public toilet facility in Calcutta. After a couple of rest periods in the pitch-dark night at seedy little hawker-style stops, we were finally back in Krabi, where a small connecting shuttle van dropped us off practically in front of the marina., Thank goodness that the trip from hell was over!

We celebrated our wedding anniversary the following week, and decided to treat ourselves to a glass of wine at the Marina restaurant. Na was there to take our order, and we mentioned our special date. She returned a few minutes later, not with our two glasses of wine, but with an entire bottle of wine in a bucket of ice, a plate of roasted cashews, and a little vase of fresh marigolds, saying that it was her gift to us! Not only that, but the wine was our favorite California label, Charles Shaw (or “Two-Buck Chuck” for you Trader Joe's shoppers) which Mr. Wet had brought back from the States.

Our 7th

Good ol' 2-buck chuck

During our time in Krabi town, we'd been discussing our cruising future – where to go and how to get there. After weighing multiple options and considering the continued threat of piracy in the Indian Ocean, we finally decided that the best move for us would be to ship our girl to the Mediterranean on a big ship. SevenStar Yacht Transport had been very helpful in working with us to make the necessary arrangements, so we surrendered quite a few of our very favorite American dollars, and we'll be loading the boat in mid-April for her three-week ride to Marmaris, Turkey. Ken will cool his heels in Thailand after she goes, flying to Turkey to meet her when she arrives, and Katie will fly to America for a few weeks, rendezvous-ing with Ken and SD in Turkey in May.

SE Asia has been a terrific experience, but now we say goodbye to coconuts, endless summers, tasty Pad Thai, roaring longtail fishing boats, and some very special friends, and say hello to four seasons, Turkish coffee, fresh yogurt, and a whole new world of cruising on our big blue planet. Next stop: the Mediterranean!