travel report 13: Koh Tonsay

The gods surely must be beautiful. For I dined as ye kings of old. Good things come in three and the third night on Koh Tonsay will remain edged in the souvenirs of my mind. I was not supposed to stay this long, but realize now how foolish that thought was. The fresh pepper crab, pulled out of the ocean minutes ago, melts on tongues too taste-stunned to express the usual. You must at one point in your life partake of Kampot Pepper. Have it in Paris, as they used to during the Roaring 20s, but prefer it freshly whence it grows from.

This starry night I spend with souls well met. This idea, present in all our minds - floating in and on the waves of this soon to be moonless night. We are in the becalming waters of the bay, of the soft sand, of the moon setting distantly, of the spirals overhead. Of the luminescence underneath.

The gods surely must be merciful. For tonight I swam with the candles of the sea. Imagine, every movement, every moment a trail of glittering light. Enlightening us. Tiny, too small to see during the light of day, but glowing grandly, hundreds of times their real size in the light of the night of the falling moon. Mother nature's ephemeral blessings bestowed upon us all. A ballet of the sea on fire. A symphony of joy; and sing I must, softly, while floating in these milky waters of creation. Shine in this music, cleanse me thus. Melody in these lights, set me free.

The gods surely must be bountiful. For I dove among the floating stars of a million miles beneath the sea. My open eyes drink an orgy of riotous light streaming past as snowy flurries do on dark winter nights. I wish to remain, to stay in this place. To be something else. A dolphin. With fins of light trailing joy.