Was it ... or wasn't it?

When well-meaning friends learnt that I was going to Phuket at the start of the Hungry Ghost month, everyone wanted to put in their two cents worth of opinions, the scary kind of course! I am not prone to superstitions but that doesn’t mean I don’t believe in the existence of ghosts. Still, I have always felt that the chances of my encountering one was pretty remote or so I thought.

My roommate while in Phuket, Pauline, on the other hand has this unfortunate knack of bumping into ‘them’ every now and then. It’s always thrilling, listening to her ramblings, much like watching horror movies. Except in her case, they are true events! There have been many stories of haunting after the Tsunami took thousand of lives in Phuket. That, coupled with the fact that we were going at this time of the year when ghosts were allowed to roam free, all added to the suspense. Pauline was supposed to, no, not “kiss and tell” but “meet and tell” while I imagined myself to be blissfully unaware even if these strange encounters take place right under my nose.

Our hotel, Best Western Ocean Phuket is located towards the end of Karon Beach. The front of our rooms faces some lush greenery, which the kwai-lohs might love… being so close to nature, while our balconies offer a nice view of the beach across the road. One added plus was a café bar placed at the lobby, complimentary for hotel guests so you can drink cups after cups of Latte, Cappuccino etc… oops but I am going off-course from my topic.

On our 1st night, after walking part of Patong beach and having dinner at BBK, (Jung Ceylon) we went back to the hotel with plans to meet at the games room after taking our showers. (Leaving home without the “chiap koot” set wasn’t an option. It goes where we go.)

Pauline asked if I wanted to shower first as she intended to do a 3-in-1 while in the toilet, i.e. smoke, shit and shower. (the 3 esses!) I decided to let her go first. In fact, if I wasn’t feeling so dirty and if Phuket’s weather wasn’t so hot, I might have contemplated skipping showers altogether!

While waiting for Pauline to finish, I decided to go for a smoke at the balcony. Ours was a non-smoking floor so it had to be done in secret. It’s funny how fear has this ability to creep up on you when you least expect it. Just as I unlatched the lock on the door leading to the balcony, an unexplained surge of terror suddenly gripped me. I could feel my heart beating at twice its speed, while my hands became clammy and my whole body filled with goose bumps. “Whoa…” I asked myself “what happened?”

Instead of going out to the balcony, I decided I didn’t need to smoke after all. I went to sit on the bed and turned the TV on so the room would be less quiet. As the beating of my heart slowly returned to normal, I convinced myself that it was just nerves. That’ll teach me to watch more horror movies!

At that moment Pauline came stomping out from the toilet and gave me that “I have just seen a ghost” look. She asked if anyone had come into the room. I said “no” but she emphatically asked again. “Are you sure? Did my brother come in?” I knew then that the brief feeling of fear I had felt earlier was not a coincidence. She muttered that she heard doors opening and I told her it was probably Jo getting spare towels from the cabinet outside our room. Pauline must have noticed how pale I’ve grown and decided to lay off the interrogation.

Much as I loathe leaving the feeling of security I got from being in the room with another human being and with the TV blasting away, I knew I had no choice but to have a quick shower. I decided then that the experience I just went through was to be my secret and mine alone.

While at the games room, E commented how bloodshot my eyes were and jokingly asked if I showered with my eyes open. Ironically she didn’t know how close she came to the truth with that statement. While I was washing my hair, simultaneously praying and denouncing the spirit of fear, I had a feeling of being watched and had opened my eyes abruptly, allowing the shampoo and the water to get into my eyes. Hmmm… I wonder if I completely rinsed off the shampoo from my hair before scrambling out of the bathtub.

On our way back to Klang, we brought up the topic of the strange encounter that night in Phuket. Contrary to what I thought, that same evening, Pauline did not complete her 3-in-1. While she was doing her second routine, she heard the front door opened and vaguely heard a male voice. This was followed by more opening and closing of doors and an additional two female voices contributing to the conversation. Hmm.. Perhaps she was afraid too and that’s why she decided NOT to shower but to come straight out of the toilet?

Where did the voices come from? Did the sounds Pauline heard of doors opening came from our room door, or was it next door's or did someone getting towels from outside our room cause them? Was it linked to the terror I had felt? Was there a logical explanation and we were just scaring ourselves? You be the judge …..

F