As Seen by TV

Chaos.  Mayhem.  Craziness.

I’m slightly at a loss of words to describe the scenes of the full moon party on Haad Rin beach on the island of Koh Phangan.  I will attempt to tell me story as short as possible, because I could easily write volumes.

First of all, we were staying on the north-east side of the island (“A” on the map below), and we, rather adventurously, decided to drive the +60min trip with a 125cc motorbike (!) to the south-west beach where the full moon party was being held (“B” on the map).  I consider myself a pretty decent driver, even on 2 wheels… and this proved to be quite the test.  There is only one “road” from the village we were spending our nights, to the southern, more inhabited area of the island.  25% of the road is not paved… mix that with up to 15% slopes, some rain earlier in the day and the fact that you are in the middle of the jungle… so it’s kinda dark.   Then add in the fact that these motorbikes aren’t quite in the best shape (the headlight decided for itself when it wanted to work, while the back one didn’t work at all), also rather obviously is that because this island is so remote, there are no gas stations, so you have to fill up with fuel that is sold via plastic soda bottles and glass liquor bottles, which is surely watered down (so you’re not getting full power).

Did I also mention that in Thailand they drive on the left?

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What actually proved more difficult were the roads that led up and down (up and down, up and down!) into Haad Rin, although all paved, these carried slopes of over 30%!!!  The 125cc motorbike coudln’t even handle some of them full-throttle, just to give you an idea of how steep they were.  Even going down, the brakes fully pressed-in, could not bring the bike to a halt… so yeah, it was a little scary.  As we got closer the jeep taxis filled with party-goers also proved interesting, especially those driven by the goers themselves.

On the way back I dodged 3 bottles that were thrown out the sides and back of these jeeps (not aimed at us, but just discarded), and those were the only 3 I noticed because they landed right on the street.  Well done, bastards.

Fun fact: the island of Koh Phangan has a population of around 14,000, and the average full-moon crowd is between 10,000-30,000!

The party itself was situated around several clubs spinning all kinds of music right on the beach…while behind the clubs countless back streets with more noise, liquor, and paraphernalia in every direction.

Applying body paint and wearing fluorescent colors were a must, which made for quite the [more] surreal experience.  Also, drinks didn’t come in cups or bottles, but rather you bought a bucket that consisted of a half bottle of liquor accompanied with some mixers, ice and a garnish, and severed in a…… well, in that very bucket of course.

I opted for the vodka + sprite + red bull + lime.

So there ya go… what an experience!  I’m not aware of any list of the top party places in the world, but I’ve definitely marked another one off the list.  I’m also happy to report that we arrived back safely without any injuries or damages… well, besides my feet, which took a mean battering due to sandals + dancing + fine sand.

More information (schedules, tips, etc) about the full moon parties can be found here: http://fullmoonparty-thailand.com/, also keep in mind that in between these monthly parties the island hosts an array of other supposedly crazy party experiences… black moon parties, half moon, blue moon…. the list is endless, but the full moon party is the place to be.

I will most certainly be back… and this time I won’t be driving, or wearing sandals.

This is pretty crazy.

Check out this image compiled by UK scientists consisting of thousands of images taken of space via satellite over the course of 10 years.  STUNNING, to say the least.  It is said to show 1 billion stars (!!!).  Dubbed project “Vista Data Flow System”… well, I’m just gonna have to stop typing because it is quite truly beyond words.  Check it out!

Static Link:
http://djer.roe.ac.uk/vsa/vvv/iipmooviewer-2.0-beta/vvvgps5.html

BBC article:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-17539315

PS- FROM NOW ON, MY PHOTOGRAHY WILL HAVE LARGER IMAGE SIZES!!!

Well, it has been a rough several weeks, but now I am fully moved into my new apartment and once again have internet at home for the first time in 16 months, so expect more dopeness soon!

Well, I’m somewhat of a New Yorker myself… born in Morningside and matured (somewhat, actually maybe not) in Brooklyn.  So I know me a block party.  Close… Converse set this one up on Moganshan Road with head-lining musical act Jeru the Damaja, a legendary 90′s underground MC.  I’d seen him before in NYC, but never this close and this out-of-step with his listeners… but that’s not his fault, that’s almost solely the fault of the Chinese.

The police department shut this party down early citing “noise complaints”, which is utterly hilarious in it’s own right, never mind the 24/7 construction (even at 6am on Sunday’s), or the constant car horns, or the firecrackers outside every wedding or business openinig, etc. It’s just sad that the police/government has to clamp down on any form of creative expression, especially in concern with things they don’t understand (like music and art; or just life in general). Jeru said it himself when someone shouted out “f*ck the police, f*ck the government” to which he replied “yeah, you can say that, but I surely can’t say that sh*t cuz I still gotta get outta here.”  True.

Anyway, about the pics… some stuff with graffiti, some “typical” NY food, a dope MC, and some dude getting his hair cut (which for some really strange reason was a massive success with the photographer/videographers in the crowd).

Peace & Love.

Stopover in Rotterdam… yes I lived there for several years, but the reason for this [quick] visit was [no] thanks to KLM and Schiphol Airport.  Who both told me I could come to the airport (a week after I had arrived) to pick my suitcase.  The 2.5 hr drive from Antwerp up to Amsterdamnit proved to be pointless as I was told by airport staff upon arrival that my suitcase “had not yet been located”, then spending the next 2 hours looking through several thousand suitcases….  I eventually got my baggage back 10 days after I arrived, literally minutes after finishing packing my new suitcase to fly back to Shanghai.  Thank you KLM.  Thank you Schiphol.
For nothing.

Anyway, these images are from the quick stopover on our ways north (for no reason) in Rotterdam, we hit up the SS Rotterdam, a popular cruise ship built in 1958, since retired and transformed into a restaurant and hotel.
Also, a big thank you to Rotterdam’s finest who gave me a parking ticket within the hour of arrival there… for having “all 4 wheels on the sidewalk”, pictures attached (keeping in mind all the cars to my left are legally parked).  Holland: where we give out traffic tickets like no where else in the world (my personal favorite is still the “speeding” ticket I got for going 53 in a 50 kph zone).

As I am still sifting through 274 images I took over the past week (Huangpu district, Peoples Square, and the newly re-opened Bund), I’ll leave you with another DOPE VIDEO by OneMoreProduction titled “Pixels“, if you know what’s good for you, you’ll check it out:

OneMoreProduction – “Pixels”

Have a great weekend, wherever the hell you may be!

*UPDATE*  Check out this amazing photography of Earth Hour in action around the globe (click the image to dim the lights)!

In 10 days, on March 27 @ 8:30pm (local time, wherever you are) the World Wildlife Fund will organize Earth Hour, asking you to turn off your lights for one hour.  
Just do it. 

Also just today I received an email from my hosting company, that my website is now run on 100% wind energy, let’s hear it for the environment, woot!