The Infamous Thailand Full Moon Beach Rave Party
I write this the day after the fact as my abused stomach cries in protest of the forced poisons I swallowed the night before Thailand’s full moon beach rave (don’t worry, nothing illegal for me). The techno and trance that flowed through me into the wee hours of the morning pours out now as I try to convey a party that is already a cloudy memory, quickly fleeting. The nuesa and headaches don’t help either.
I must get to the point, then, so all you part folk can either dream of such a party or seek it out and participate in it. Everyone else can simply read this and affirm the wide misconception that partying is an entirely useless way to spend one’s time; it will make those of you with ‘routine’ lives feel a bit better. So on with it!
The Location: Koh Pha Ngan, Thailand
Known to travellers as Hat Rin and to those more in the know as Hat Rin Nok, Sunrise Beach is the stretch of sand made so famous by the all-night parties that occur on the date of every full moon (except a few times a year when a Buddhist holiday falls on the same date, in which case the full moon is celebrated a few days earlier or later).
It is a powdery stretch of white sand lined by a mass of bars and clubs. It is a pretty noisy place at all times of the night, full moon or not. It isn’t what one might call an ‘island paradise’, as it is too crowded and too noisy for that. The great thing about the island this beach rests upon is that you can take a cheap taxi or boat to many undeveloped and pristine beaches. You can relax like a king on picture-perfect beaches all day, and at night you may return to the crowded turf that has become the homeland of the world’s craziest party. All in the same day and on the same island.
The Party
A variety of full moon warm up parties occur in the days before the final bash, but I am concerned only with the finale–it is what will leave a raver passed out in the sand dreaming of the next full moon. But take note, before you read this, that words do not offer the experience the justice it deserves. To know a full moon party one must not only be there, but one must dance; one must let go of inhibitions and swirl their limbs in a symbiotic relationship with the music. Drugs or no drugs–this party is about soul, and without it you will not know the power of the full moon. So again, realize how unjust it is to paste this party on paper.
That said, I will continue. Throughout the day of the party you will notice all the busy little bees (the Thai bar/club owners) setting up their ‘venues’. Each venue is nothing more than a decorated beach front outside their respective club (since all the clubs are right on the beach). Some are decorated with tricky black lights and paint that is painfully bright. Others are more to the point–plastic chairs (to eat/drink), open sand (to dance), and rather large sound systems (to ensure that you will loose your hearing by 35).
As daylight fades, out comes all the booze. There is not only a wide selection of what to drink (or, on the “down low,” what to smoke, sniff, etc), there is a wide variety of how to drink it. Sure, you can get your colorful mixes and fruity-punches, but I prefer what has become known as “the bucket.” Cute little blue or red buckets (you know, the ones you use to build sand castles) are piled high on cheap tables. Inside these buckets are a variety of poisons–I, personally, chose sprite, rum, and some Thai energy drink–once you choose, out comes the ice and in goes the drinks. They hand you this bucket with a huge volume of liquid and six straws. It is a drink made for six people. Unfortunately, I had only one friend with me. I was drinking for three.
Once you get over all the concoctions–the mixes, the jello shooters, the buckets–then you hit the beach. By not it is well past dark, yet the sand is alive with color. Food stalls serving masses of freshly-fried seafood are intermingled with others selling more booze. Men twirling sticks of fire, painters painting pictures all over peoples’ bodies (which brighten under all the black lights), shopkeepers selling a variety of flashing light objects, and a sea of ravers fill the beach.
Now comes the fun part–sit, make a bunch of friends, drink an ungodly amount of alcohol, and hit the dance floor of sand. Each venue plays different kinds of music, so ravers stumble back and forth, eventually settling at a venue which suits their style. A place called Vinyll has a special place in my heart–I was one of the first dancers on that night on that stretch of sand, and I continued to thrash around long after people fell over, passed out in fallen chairs or in the surf of the ocean.
It is the sort of party where one can experience anything–ridiculous nudity as drunken fools and foolettes strip; blaring noise, as one sits soberly watching the mass expression of passion; the good ‘ol time, as friends mingle, drink, and dance; or you can set free in a mass of people who just want to live tonight because it is here to be lived. It can, if one lets it, not only be the best party you will ever experience, but it can leave you with a lasting impression. No matter how hung over you are the next morning, if you let go the night before, you will remember how it felt to swing in rhythm with the music of, perhaps, the greatest night of your raving career.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, I implore you–return to your desks. Put your ties and skirts back on. Type a report. Pick up the kids. Go to sleep. Go to work. But if you get the chance to attend such a party, know that it will live with you, pumping trance through your viens long after the Djs have stopped spinning.
