Eerie

So all of you remember that huge tsunami that hit SE Asia back in 2004? Well Zach had two couch surfers from Korea staying with him about a week ago that witnessed the aftermath of that tsunami firsthand. It was kind of eerie, hearing what they had to say about it.

Apparently, they had been travelling in Thailand when the tsunami hit. They were actually on a train headed down the peninsula to southern Thailand at the exact timing. They couldn't figure out what had happened because there was hardly anyone on the train headed south. When they got to their destination somewhere on the mainland, all they could figure out was that there had been an earthquake, but nothing more. Nobody in the hotel could really tell them what had happened. Finally, they got on a bus headed to the coast and found out that a tsunami had hit most of southern Thailand, wiping out some of the major islands. On the bus was a Canadian guy who was on his way to try to find his girlfriend, who was staying on Koh Phi Phi. Sadly, the couch surfers realized he probably didn't find her since the waves washed over Koh Phi Phi, completely submerging it. The only other people on the bus were a family of four, who were headed down there to see what they could do.

When they got to their final destination on the beach, the couch surfers realized the extent of the damage. Most of the hotels were inundated with refugees who had survied the tsunami but had no belongings. They ran into a man from India, who, when the waves hit, had linked arms with his two friends around a light pole. He watched as his two friends were swept away with the water. I don't think he found them.

It took several days before the couch surfers were able to call home and let their parents know they were safe. By the time they did, the female couch surfer's mother was so relieved that she couldn't even talk on the phone. Apparently they had called the American embassies in the States, Korea, and Thailand, trying to find out what had happened to their daughter. I can't even imagine what that would have been like. To hear about how this huge tsunami had taken place right where your child was supposed to be, and you had no idea if they were dead or alive. How horrible!

The part that had astonished them the most while they were there was how friendly and hospitable the Thai were, despite this horrible devastation that had occured. I don't know how they could manage when they were facing such heartbreak, but they still treated foreigners with kindness.