He dips one end of the stick in kerosene, takes it out and ladles on some more. He turns it around and dips the other end as well and repeats the ladling. One hand goes in the middle of the stick while the other hand lights each end and a great burst of flame leaps into the sky.
The roughly 14 year-old, shirtless boy begins twirling the stick with his right hand, rotating the twirling stick around his body, then above his head and then around his body again. The crowd eating their roasted prawns, fish and squid at the restaurant on the beach is transfixed. Something about the fire always has an immediate effect.
The boy goes from restaurant to restaurant putting on his show. He’s a fire twirler in training, practicing his new craft freelance – not linked to any restaurant or group. He’s just a baby fire twirler….
The big fire twirlers are usually 18-26, by which time they have formed grouping and relationships with restaurants. In the 9.5 years since I first came to Koh Samet, fire twirling has gone from a novelty of two young, Thai beach dudes who liked to twirl fire for attention and tips in front of the Silversand Bungalows Restaurant to becoming the primary form of nightly entertainment on the island.
The largest beach restaurant on our beach proudly advertises it’s home to the original fire twirling show. I saw this and felt contempt for their lies – anyone who’s been around knows it all happened at Silversand. Then last night as we had dinner at the next restaurant down the beach – the one with bean bag chairs instead of traditional Thai triangle cushions – I understood the validity of their claim.
They had a team of fire twirlers choreographed to music in a 20 minute routine that occurred several times throughout the evening. Flashes of fire and smoke, guys standing on each other’s shoulders – pyrotechnics and razzle dazzle. It was a little piece of Vegas on Koh Samet. I was half expecting to find Celine Dion taking stage – or beach in this case – after them.
At the same time, that’s all the excitement there is on Koh Samet at night. A few places had some techno and dance music playing as the night wore on, but no one was there. It’s not very “Samet”.
We passed Naga Bar – infamous as the one bar on Koh Samet that has always appealed to the dance party/late night drunk-fest set. Someone has to, I guess. Naga, up on it’s small hill is somewhat removed and distant enough from other bungalow places and restaurants that they can do it and be tolerated. Only Naga took a direction I never would have predicted – live Muay Thai boxing.
There in a very small ring at 10:30 pm, were two guys putting on head gear, about to kick box for a crowd of about 40 people.
I was waiting for someone to comp our room – I’ve been here a lot over the years and spent a lot of money. Isn’t that how Vegas works?
There’s a progression of the Thai island lifecycle that seems sadly inevitable.
Someone discovers a hidden gem of an island that tourists don’t have listed on their trail. Word gets out and a few people “in the know” start going. A few years goes by and the island starts building better accommodations. This triggers guidebooks to pick it up and feature it.
Then more people flood in. Those people like more comforts, tastes of home – air conditioning, baked desserts, banana pancakes (found on all Thai islands for some reason), full bars, Internet, speed boats, higher-end shopping, chain restaurants…. It progresses until the island is a shell of it’s former self and all the charm that attracted the original backpackers has turned into an overblown resort filled by families from Singapore taking long weekends and retired British and German couples looking for a taste of Thailand in comfort and style.
This is the story of Koh Samui and Phuket. Koh Phi Phi and Koh Phagnan are well into this progression as well. Koh Chang is now predicted to be the next Phuket. Nine years ago Koh Chang was barely visited compared to other islands and was pristine. Because of it’s large size, 4.5 hour proximity to Bangkok and verdant, lush interior, developers have finally caught on that Koh Chang is a goldmine. Chang is Samet’s big sister down the block.
Koh Samet is showing the signs and symptoms of being part of the process. My heart aches just a little with each thing I notice. Of course, no matter what there has to be some progression. No one was going to keep dedicated phone lines and high-speed Internet out of Samet. That’s just the way of the world.
The 7-11’s and ATM’s were an inevitable improvement. Infrastructure had to arrive and oddly, in Thailand, 7-11’s are a major form of infrastructure. Most importantly, they are where you break large bills. It’s just how the system works.
But Muay Thai boxing was a new level I hadn’t expected.
There are other signs. Cafes imitating Starbucks (which is all over Bangkok) that have gourmet desserts employing the traditional Thai talent for making western-style baking look amazing and taste like air. New, fancy bungalows and suites built over formerly budget places. My favorite back-up guesthouse used when my usual bungalow places were full has been turned into what appear like condos. Not that the old cement sweatboxes didn’t deserve to be razed to the ground….. But a shocking replacement.
Koh Samet is changing – for both better and worse.
Emily and I are managing to enjoy it all the same. The key elements – warm, calm, inviting water, white sand, and deck chairs are there and accessible. Emily worked yesterday with intermittent “dip breaks” to revel in the sea before coming back to grade more papers. We spent our entire day working, swimming, eating and drinking for $12. It’s still Koh Samet.
Today, we plan to do nothing – exactly the way Koh Samet intends. We will sit in our deck chairs, read, swim, get massages, eat fresh fruit that comes to us….and then at night decide which fire twirling extravaganza to watch.
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