Surviving Thailand, Episode 5: Something's Fishy

It's the night after Tribal Council, and several people at Chuay Gahn (CG) are confused. Clay says they knew Ghandia was manipulating Jan, but he didn't know she'd been that successful - and why would they vote for him, he wonders. Jan is next on the block. As for Jan, she agrees. She knows Clay holds a grudge and so she's next. She says Helen said she'd vote with the other two women, but she didn't, and that was her choice to make. Helen calls it a necessary evil to betray the other women. If it gets her further in the game, so be it.

The next morning at Sook Jai (SJ) is chicken-killing day. Penny says they'd decided that as soon as the chickens wake them up, it was time for one to be breakfast. Stephanie holds it and Jake breaks its neck. They pluck it and boil it and it's time to eat! Shii Ann says it's tough, but tasty. Robb complains that Shii Ann ate the lungs, intestines, picked the bones, everything. He calls her eating habits "repulsive" as she grabs the stuff others won't eat. Shii Ann notes privately that culturally, it's not an American thing to eat that stuff, but she grew up partly in Taiwan, and in her family, hearts are a great thing to eat. Indeed, when you're in the middle of nowhere and without other food, it seems to me that any protein coming from a chicken (as opposed to, say, slugs or bugs) would be better than not eating.

Over at CG, Clay is looking for crabs but finds only one, calling it frustrating. Ted says they need fish, so he and Brian head out in the boat with the net. Really, he wanted to talk to Brian about their alliance. They both swear total commitment to each other until the end, and Ted swears on his daughter. Brian says out here you have to think before you act, and he has been low key and subtle, looking for a way to move forward.

Back in SJ, Penny calls it the first real day off. They have food and can relax, lay in the sun, play in the water, etc. So a few of 'em are in the water, including Robb. Suddenly, Robb screams. But Jake notes that nobody went to him because, well, he does that a lot. Then he comes out of the water with blood on his foot. OK, that's a bit more unusual. They all gather 'round as he is lying on the ground, until they decide to put his foot in hot water - I guess to sterilize it. They decide something bit him. What? Well, Jake says he was wading without any shoes and probably pushed off against a stingray. Shii Ann calls Robb a baby who was having a tantrum lying on the ground in pain. She says he should just have been a mature person. Robb, on the other hand, says Shii Ann is a know-it-all on every subject. She is talking about how excruciating it is to be stung by a stingray. He asks if she's ever been stung. No. So how the hell does she know, he wonders!

Penny says they have to be aware of their surroundings - sharks, snakes, etc. (And she's just talking about the animals!)

All in all, Robb has been such a pain in the neck, the little pain he got in the foot doesn't even begin to make up for it.

That night, over in CG, Helen sings a nice sleigh ride song as the tide comes in and the boat… goes out.

The next morning, Ted comes down to the beach to not find the boat. Uh oh. Brian joins him and says there must be a reasonable explanation. Yes, there is. You bozos left it sitting there! Ted insists he tied it tight, and also points out that, by the way, the net was inside. Double uh oh.

Clay notes that they need the boat to get water and for fishing. He also comments privately that if he had been the one who hadn't tied it up tight enough, it would have been all his fault. Persecution complex there Clay? The cameramen know where the boat is, though - waaaay across a cove.

The next day at CG, Clay comments that he is so hungry that if he had a choice between a hamburger and sex, he'd choose the burger without regret. Then the treemail comes in with $1000 in $20 bills, which Jan stands and counts on the beach while the others are in the water hunting for food and trying to get her to read the freaking mail. Eventually, she does so and then states the obvious - that it's some sort of gambling or bidding with food, adding to Clay's annoyance.