Biking Around and Alex’s Arrest

Another lie in today, not quite as extreme as the last couple of days but still very much appreciated. This morning it is Jon and I that head to Sandwich Box together. After we have eaten we meet up with Alex and Scott and we all head to the bike rental place to get a couple of bikes for the day. We are spending the day exploring. I am riding with Jon and Scott is with Alex. I am very much enjoying being a passenger princess for the day, it also gives me the chance to take lots of photos and videos as we zip around. First we head off for some local viewpoints and beaches, stopping to take in the views and enjoy the sun. On the first beach, Nai Harn, where we are sunbathing and swimming, we are joined by Bee, a local girl who Alex has made friends with. She is sound and has brought her bike and has offered to show us around. So we jump back on the bikes only this time Scott is riding on his own with Alex now being a passenger princess on Bee’s bike. It is a lovely day and we explore loads of different places, we work our way down from Karon to Promthep Cape then back up the other side of the peninsula to Pa Lai Pier then on over to Ao Yon beach before we head back to Kata Beach to watch the sunset. It is an amazing day wizzing round seeing different areas winding along main and local roads. I have to admit there were a couple times that Jon and I got a little worried struggling to keep up with Bee who very much drives like a local, working her way through traffic like a pro; she is definitely not afraid of the throttle. The sunset at Kata beach is a beautiful way to end the amazing if somewhat chaotic day. To top it off our friends Charlotte and Louis are arriving at Karon beach this afternoon so we are planning on meeting up with them and all going for a drink and a meal.

After the sunset we head back to the hotel to wash and change and arrange to meet Louis and Charlotte at a pub called the Green Man Pub Alex found on google last night. Supposedly it is an English style pub but its got good reviews, so we give it a go. The pub is a bit of mess: our waiter gets my order wrong, brings me Ox cheek rather than Lamb shank, but it tastes good so I don’t complain. On top of that he drops Charlotte and Louis’ gravy all over the floor and doesn’t bring another or clean it up for way too long and to top it off they have a local singer performing who is rather bad. Just as we are finishing off our drinks she gets a patron up to join her, who represents everything that embarrasses me about England, a drunken rowdy mess who just screeches into the mic. All in all, although my food was rather tasty, we are all more than happy to pay and get out of the place. So we order a Grab, Asia’s equivalent to Uber, and once it arrives we see it is essentially a party bus with lights and everything, shame we didn’t bring a few drinks for the ride. Luckily the driver lets us play some tunes as the traffic is mad. Finally we get to the Patong Beach Strip. We start the night by heading to a massive hall made up of lots and lots of mini bars. We grab a beer and head to the back, at the back there is a pool hall with the best tables we have played on for a long time. Alex and I play a few games while the others play doubles. It is nice to play on a decent table with balls and cues that haven’t been through the ringer. After that we do a little bar hopping. This place is very lively although unsurprisingly there are still lots of women of the night about, most of us don’t have trouble spotting them, although Scott seems to not be so great. Finally we end up in a famous club called Illusion; it is pretty good, although very busy.

Off we go

Chalong river opening into Chalong Bay

View of the three beaches of Kata, Kata Noi, Karon

We meet Bee at Nai Harn Beach

View of Rawai Beach

Looking out to Ko Man island

Getting out of town
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On to the next beach
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Biker Boyz
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The coastal road
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Overlooking Chalong Bay

Sunset at Kata Bay

Charlotte has gone home early so it is just the boys, Louis and I as well as Bee, Alex’s friend, who has joined us. Jon, Louis and me decide to head home after some convincing from Jon. We try to get Scott to come too but he wants to stay and we let him do his thing. Jon and I get dropped off and pay the driver a handsome tip to drive Louis back to his hotel as well. Once we arrive we realise that Scott has the key to Jon and his room; looks like Jon is sleeping in my room tonight. Alex has got himself a hotel room which I was chuffed about; a room to myself, but that doesn’t seem to be happening now. Jon and I are up chatting when we receive a rather distressing text, “Guys I’ve been arrested… sitting in the back of a police car.” Jon and I start panicking, I am pacing up and down the room as we try to get as much info as possible: no bail; heading for the police station; 48 hour hold; his live location shows he has reached the police station and the messages stop. Oh fuck, what are we gonna do, we are suppose to be checking out tomorrow morning and heading to Phuket Town, and when I say tomorrow morning I mean in like five hours, it is already 5am. Jon and I knock on Jon and Scott’s door hoping he is in as he hasn’t responded to any messages. I am still a little drunk so jump into a cold shower to sober myself up and Jon and I start planning. Okay we are gonna drop the bikes back tomorrow morning get the deposit back, pay for an extra night at Alex’s hotel so he doesn’t have any issues there and then head to the police station to see if we can bail him out or grease the right hands.

After about 45 minutes which feels more like an eternity we notice something – his live location is moving again and he is around the corner. Jon and I run out to the street like puppies when they hear their owner returning. Bee has saved him! The arrest was fishy Alex tells us, they pull him and Bee over as they were coming back on the bike. As he tells us Jon and I realise we had passed the same police stop and been waved right through. Upon searching Alex they had found a couple Valiums left in his bag from the tab he bought in Vietnam to help us all sleep on the sleeper buses, Valium is perfectly legal in Vietnam but in Thailand they require a prescription. So they cuff him, put him in the back of a car and drive him to the station, the whole road block is then shut down. Luckily for us all Bee films the whole thing and then follows on her bike, once in the interrogation room the police completely ignore Alex and only talk to Bee. After a stressful half an hour or so they are free to go. Bee tells us that she told them that Alex and her are in a relationship and have been for months, using the photos that we had taken the day before and tonight as proof, and that this is a simple mistake. The police then remember she has filmed the arrest and start questioning her and if she knows any powerful people. Eventually they confiscate the drugs and send Alex and Bee on their way. We guess they probably thought Bee was a prostitute and did the stop hoping for a pay out, unfortunately it is not an uncommon thing here and when Bee, our hero, stuck by Alex defending him and selling her story, they got worried she was connected in some way to powerful people and let them go. After a still-in-shock Alex and Bee tell us the story, we all head to our beds exhausted but relieved that Alex is okay. Now all we have to worry about is Scott being back in time for check out.