Intermission

Instead of flying straight on to India, I delayed my flight to Delhi and headed towards some islands off the coast of Thailand. First stop was Ko Samet, a small island about 6hrs drive by minibus & 40min ferry from Bangkok. I also later visited Ko Chang, a much larger island further east.

First though a few days spent in Bangkok where I visited the Chatuchak market. An amazing spectacle attended by around 200 000 vendors and customers every weekend (they hand out maps to tourists when you arrive). There was a dizzy array of goods for sale from live animals to paintings to food. I'm not much of a buyer though, but if I had a house and could imagine where to put all those carvings and paintings, I'm sure I could spend a lot of money there.

It was low season on the islands (rainy season) and you could tell - it was really quiet but peaceful and beautiful. Many businesses were closed for the off season and others were undertaking renovations but there was more than enough choice in terms of accommodation and places to eat. There wasn’t a huge amount of things to do but I kept myself entertained with elephant treks in the jungle or hiring scooters and driving on funny little dirt roads, or sipping cheap cold beer at the many beach bars. There were great beaches too, but not much tanning - the weather didn’t play along and it rained quite often. Consequently I didn’t take up the scuba diving on offer either. Apparently at the right time of year it’s possible to see whale sharks so definitely a good reason to return.

The islands were not as stunning as some I've visited in Krabi (South Thailand) but a lot better than being bogged down in a big city. If the weather is good, I'm sure that these places are awesome and in high season there's sure to be a good buzz about the place.

Suitably refreshed I continue now to India, deep breath cause I know it’s going to be crazy.

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