The Travelling Band of Idiots! Thailand 10 August - 27 August 2007

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The Travelling Band of Idiots- so named cos we all got ISLAND brain! I love life on an island!

Off to Thailand 10 August

We all set off from Twickenham early in the morn to catch the train to Gatwick. Our flight was leaving at 11a.m. and we were transferring in Doha- not the greatest airport in the world, but excitement was high and adrenelin was rushing. Our travel companions were Kimmy and Lieb, Paul and Karin, Ren, Susana and then Cyn and I. We met Derry in Bangkok as she flew in from sunny South Africa. Susana met us in the UK from Spain, so a rather eclectic and well travelled mix of people! When we finally got to Bangkok, there were massive queus through immigration- the last thing we needed after such a long flight! But P, K and Ren were through first and they collected our luggage for us. While we were waiting for D to arrive we had a scrumptious meal at the airport cafe. Some of us were brave enough to try the Thai cuisine, but not Lombi, she stuck to good old fashioned Lemon Merangue Pie! Our connecting flight to Ko Samui was at 12 and while we were waiting for D, we found comfy couches and had a little nap. We started worrying a little when D hadnt turned up half an hour before boarding. But suddenly she appeared having run the entire length of the airport only to realise she had left her passport at the counter and had to run all the way back! Crazy fool! We then all boarded the plane to Samui and promptly fell asleep. But not D and Paul, however! They stayed awake and drank beer all the way!

Ko Samui- first time round! 11 and 12 August

We finally landed in Samui after being on some mode of transport for the past 25 hours! Let's not mention the smelly bodies! Our airport pickup was ready and waiting for us and we all jumped in to the airconditioned mini bus which whisked us off to our 7 star luxury accommodation, Sandalwood Villa, Chaweng Beach! We were met by a chap called Sathit and his very helpful assistant, Porn! While our rooms were still being finalised, we changed into our costumes and dived straight into the infinity pool. Sandalwood is quite high up on Samui and we had the most breathtaking views- I highly recommend this place, I know I cant wait to go back! I think it worked out to be £23 per person per night, for this kind of luxury its all worth it! Our room was just incredible, with an outside bath area and private balcony! All airconditioned and stunningly decorated. We just chilled there for the rest of the day, drinking Pina Coladas and Singha! We organised full body massages and the most scrumptious seafood barbecue on the girls' (Nietsie, Ren and D) balcony. Sathit hired us a double-cab bakkie- Paulie was in his element as it reminded him of his one back home! We did lots of exploring and even found ourselves a tailor to make some very pretty clothes and all and all! I forget the name of the tailors- very good though. Will have to ask Paul and Karin as they even got a Christmas card from them! We also went to a beach at Coral Cove which was awesome, not busy like Chaweng and Lamai. There is a little bar there that serves good food too. We really did not want to leave Sandalwood. After the hubbub of London city life this start to the holiday was teriffic! But Ko Tao was waiting for us! Turtle Island here we come! Sathit booked us on the Sea Tran ferry- I wont use it again. The Lomprayah is so much better! So off we were to the next exciting venture...

Life is a catwalk hey Nietsie!

Ko Tao 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 August

After a very rocky ride across the sea we jumped off at Ko Tao and climbed straight on to the Buddah View truck. I will never go with Sea Tran ferries again. Lomprayah all the way! Buddah View is about 10 minutes from the main drag on Ko Tao and it has a fantastic dive centre there called Buddah View Dive Resort. There is a shallow bay which get sooo low at low tide that you have to hike for miles to get to cooler deeper water. But its awesome for frisbee throwing and drinking beer at the same time! A Dutch girl called Jolene met us as we first arrived- think she thought with all the Saffa surnames that we were all Dutch! Oh well! She gave us a tour and filled us in on the diving aspect of our stay. Ren and Lombi did their Padi dive course- they were so excited. Because of Cyn's asthma, she was advised not to dive, so her and Nietsie did lots of snorkeling. They took a day trip out around the island and Cyn got sooo burnt on the back of her legs and her back. She couldnt even sleep at night! Her favourite place on Ko Tao was the 2 islands joined by a sand bar, called Naang Yuan. Its almost an unspoilt part of Ko Tao but still super overrun by tourists- kind of a paradox hey! But you're not allowed to take any food or drinks on to the islands, you have to buy everything there. I didnt get to go there but we did do some diving just off the Naang Yuan peaks.
Lieb and D were the only ones who had dived recently. Kim, Paulie and I had last dived like 3 years ago! We all did a refreshers course- loads of fun! We unfortunately didnt see any whale sharks- although we were assured that they were in the area. My buddy for all my dives was Paul- buddy checks are not my thing when the boat is swaying and tilting and I have all my heavy gear on- but we managed and in we jumped! We dived Chumpon, Ao Leuk and White Rock. The others did more diving than me- the seas were just too rough! But I still saw some of the most amazing things, even those dreaded trigger fish!
While on Ko Tao we stayed at Tropicana- a low budget place that was clean and had the much needed aircon! The cool thing with Buddah View is that if youre diving with them they sort out your accommodation for you! We went for the yummiest meals at the restaurant on stilts- Taraporn! Love the pad thai there! Hired bikes for our stay on Ko Tao- easiest mode of transport- and coolest! Bought loads of Thai pant as theyre also so cool! Didnt dive on the last day as the seas was too rough but the others did. Paul, Derry, Kimmy and Ren all saw 5 sharks- lucky them! Kar and Ren are now official DIVER DIVER DIVERs! Very sad to say goodbye to Ko Tao but super excited for Ko Phangan. Didnt see much of Lombi and Ren as they were studying and diving and all that, so major catch up time! Got a taxi to the pier to wait for the Lomprayah to take us to Ko Phangan.

Mutt alert hey Ren!!!

Ko Phangan 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21 August

We arrived at the pier on Ko Phangan and once again were met with a transfer to our accommodation. We were staying on the other, less busier side of the islaad, a place called Dreamland Resort at the Thong Nai Pan Yai beach. Because Ko Phangan is essentailly 1 big mountain, our trip to Dreamland was rather hairy- narrow roads and loud hooters round corners seemed the norm! But it was all well worth it! Lieb absolutely loved this island- its by far the most untamed of the 3 we've seen! In fact he disappeared for a couple of hours on a trek into the mountains! He came back incredibly sweaty and had a handful of stinky fruit, which he then proceeded to eat! The fruit was called dorian I think. Anyway, we were originally booked in here for 2 nights but we extended it to 4 because of the serenity and total tranquility! The actual resort is right on the beach with its own restaurant! Just off the restaurant steps is this beautiful big tree and under that tree is a table with enough seating for 9 people! So you can just guess where we sat for the rest of our time on Ko Phangan! Every evening we would all walk down the beach and find a different bar or restaurant. It seemed like everyone needed early nights on this island except for Derry! Invariably Cyn and I stayed up with her, well actually Cyn! Ren and Nietsie did join us one night for the opening of a new bar! Yip you guessed it, this is where D did her famous pole dancing move and met her German friend!!!! Never a dull moment with Holiday around! We had a couple of buckets that night- this is a half jack of vodka, a can of sprite and some red bull syrup! Usually you have it with Sangsom rum but vodka is far tamer! We were all given jello shots as we arrived and it was actually rather festive! The flyer read "Tonight sun 19th beach party. Uplifting hose musik. Kip hop and funky beats. Cocktail, bukets and firework"! Dont you just love Thailand! On the 18th was Lieb's birthday! We celebrated in style as the locals organised a lantern to be lit and cast it off into the night sky. I must say its a bithday I will never forget! Cyn went to the bar and ordered birthday shooters-the waiters bought B52s out with stunning flowers and "bananitos" decorating the tray! What a friendly nation the Thai are! In further celebration of Lieb's coming of age, we all bought different flotation devices with us to float on the sea in serious style! Ren had a huge green alligator which was nicknamed "masturbator gator"! Cyn had a tiger, I had a dragonfly, Lombi and Nietsie had bright red lobsters, Lieb had a massive whale called Sharmu, Kimmy and D had comfy lilos and Paul had this flippen ginormous turtle! Lots of beer and flotation device toppling over, we stumbled out of the sea and off to our final meal on our favourite island. While on Ko Phangan we also did a snorkeling tour on a long boat- yip those very noisy, very flimsy looking long tail thai boats! The thai guys name was Yo and he bought his daughter, Pim with- she took a shining to Nietsie. She was also petrified of water! Our first stop was Koh Maa beach- vis wasnt that great, 5-8m at most. But we did see lots of different coral fish. Our lunch stop was at Bottle Beach, a stunning little spot that doesnt have much, except 1 restaurant! The table service was really bad! Our final stop was Than Sadet where we hiked to the nearby waterfall and Derry had fun soaking in one of the pools! We headed home round 4:30 and as soon as we got there we all headed straight for our table, dumped our stuff, grabbed our flotation devices and hit the sea! Cyn bought us all some beer- what a gal! I forgot to mention the fact that everytime we jumped off the long boat to go to the beach or whatever, Nietsie had spectacular wipe outs! For some unknown reason evertime she jumped off the boat, she slipped or tripped and ended up head first in the water! It was very funny, but luckily she didnt hurt herself! On the day we left, we gave our flotation devices to any kids we could find, they absolutely loved them! Time to go, next stop, Samui! We caught the early morning ferry to Samui with Lomprayah again. They give free hotel transfers when you arrive- must remember that for next time!

Samui round 2! 21 and 22 August

Lombi found us these really cool Chalets right at Coral Cove, another one of our favourite beaches! Everytime you check in somewhere you need to provide your passport as proof of ID and all that other stuff! The funniest thing happened at Coral Cove Chalets where the lady checking P and K in to their rooms mistook the place where the passport was issued for thier surname, thus P and K's new surname was Pretoria! Kimmy, Lieb and Derry stayed for 2 nights cos they were saving cash and taking the bus back to Bangkok and meeting us there. We decided to fly to Bangkok a day earlier and would source accommodation and let them know where to find us. P and K were also flying out earlier to head off to Hong Kong for an extra treat! But while on Samui again we just totally chilled! The pool at Coral Cove Chalets was just what the doc ordered, although it was closed by 10pm. But did we listen to that rule! Not at all! The main reason was beacause they put on a 10% service charge for everything we bought every time we bought it! Money makers! We also zooted in to town for our final fittings at our tailors. Paul and Karin got lots of suites and a big winter coat each. Kimmy and Cyn also got some work clothes. D and I had pretty Thai style shirts made! We did some last minute shopping- Ko Tao is by far the cheapest island. Just remembered the name of our tailor- G. Armani! Highly recommended. The one guy there, Kenny, could say "Sawubona" and "Hamba Kahle"! Small world! We had a very chilled last island evening- raided our mini bars and packed up. Cyn and I had to buy an extra bag to fit everything in! Crazy how much stuff you pick up! Our alarm was set for 06:30- earliest we've been up all holiday! We needed to be at the airport early but when we arrived we found out that there were huge delays. So we finally took off after 10! Oh something else I forgot to mention, Nietsie's nickname for D- cocoracha! It really stuck! D's nickname for Nietsie- Spanakopita! Never a dull moment with those 2 around! Off to Bangkok for our last leg of the journey. Very very very sad to say bye to island life!

Baan Thai Scuba Sapaai Rum Bum

Bangkok 23, 24, 25, and 26 August

Serious note to self- you dont need to be in Bangkok this long! More island living next time! We arrived in Bangkok and had yet another hotel transfer air conditioned mini bus waiting for us to take us to Hotel de Moc! We were looking forward to dumping our heavy bags and heading straight to Ko San Road for some more shopping! But oh my hat, what a s*~t hole! It looked and smelled like a hospital hostel thing! And the doors didnt even lock properly! I was seriously pissed off as their website states that the UN uses it- whatever! Paul and I then jumped into a taxi to find something better while Cyn, Nietsie, Lombi and Ren stayed behind looking after the bags. Paul and I found something in one of my Thailand books and headed there to see if it was any better- and it was! New Siam Guesthouse II! Brilliant little spot closer to Ko San Road and a decent swimming pool! We phoned the others and they headed on over. Hotel de Moc was rather surprised that we were leaving and offered to drop the girls off at New Siam- only the ruddy driver didnt do that! He dropped them off way before the new hotel entrance. Luckily Paul spotted the girls walking in the total wrong direction with heavy bags. We sprinted after them and relieved their heavy loads. When we finally off loaded our bags we all just fell into the swimming pool. It was freezing! The coldest water we'd swum in all holiday! We all hit Ko san Road that eve and shopped some more! We found a cool restaurant on the way home and had some yummy food. Not like island style food though! And boy oh boy was it hot! We were seriously melting! We had organised a mini Thailand tour for the next day through Buddah View's office in Bangkok- a very helpful chap called Dave. We were headed for the Floating Market, Bridge over the River Kwai and the Tiger Temple. Early start so early airconditioned night!

Damner Saduak Floating Market

Wow what a day to remember! And what a taxi driver to forget! My word I though we were going to die at least 20 times before getting home! But we made it to tell the tale! The Damner Saduak Floating Market near Ranchaburi is something to experience! Ranchanaburi is some 2 hours north west of Bangkok. The colours, the vibrance, the people. Really something. We took a long tail boat to the market and went along river roads and saw where the locals live and work! I think the worst thing we saw was 2 guys bathing in the river and brushing their teeth using the same water! Once at the market we just ambled around. Cyn and Ren were brave enough to try some of the local sweets- a strange looking pumpkin fritta. They said it tasted good- I'll take their word for it! The trade that takes place is amazing, and these little old ladies are strict hey! We left the floating market on a high and headed to our lunch stop. The restaurant turned out to be a cafe for the factory workers that make those yummy traditional Thai biscuits. We saw the being made- awesome stuff. We had a yummy yet very simpe lunch- rice and veggies.

The Bridge over the River Kwai

After lunch we headed off again- yip we willingly got in to the taxi! The Bridge over the River Kwai is a bit of an anti climax- I mean its just a bridge! I know about all the history there but I guess I was expecting much more. The museum area is not very well looked after and there is so much more that can be done. There are random stalls set up to sell bits and bobs to the tourists and that seems to be the most important issue. We did see our first monks here- dressed in their bright orange robes. We all walked over the bridge too- there are areas off the rail track to stand cos there is a train that uses the bridge frequently. An experience indeed! Ren nearly wet herself- the river is rather wide and you can see it under you while you are walking- a little scary I agree.

Tiger Temple at Kanchanaburi

Mixed emotions here. On one hand here I am touching one of the world's most beautiful and endangered cats and on the other hand, they are chained up in a confined space and I am supporting this cos I paid my money to see and touch them! Tigers truly are magnificent beasts! Their teeth are massive. In order to approach them you are allocated a guide. Another guide takes your camera and the 3 of you head off to the different tigers. You're told to approach them slowly and while youre doing this the person with your camera snaps away! If youre not looking then tough luck! Cyn and I were lucky cos the lady who had our camera was loving it- we have about 50 photos of our 5 minutes with the tigers!
Our trip back took 3 hours. Our taxi driver drank copius amounts of red bull, over took non stop, swerving from lane to lane. He even overtook a truck in the emergency lane! Sounds a bit like the South African taxi drivers! Crazy fool!

Seriousy sweatting like a pig dog!

Kimmy, Lieb and D arrived safely after a very long bus trip, so it was supper, swim and bed for all of us!

Grand Palace and Wat Po

Because the Grand palace is the Palace of the Thai Emperor, it is disrespectful to show your shoulders and ankles, so we had to wear proper clothes for the first time this holiday- seriously sucked! Boy oh boy was it hot that day- even my knees were sweatting! We tried to find shade in between the statues but everyone else had the same plan. The Grand Palace is sooo beautiful, we also saw the Emerald Buddah- he has a different costume for every season in Thailand. Only the Emperor can dress him. Once you're in the Emerald Buddah Temple, you have to kneel before him and make sure your feet are not pointing towards him. No photos! As soon as we were out of the Palace gates, Derry stripped off her long pants- much to the amusement of the passers by! Cyn, Derry, Ren and I headed off to find some lunch. P and K had already left for Hong Kong and Kimmy and Lieb went home to swim. Us 4 found a great resaturant with yes, you guessed it, air con and most importantly, cold beer! After lunch we headed to Wat Po, the 46m reclining buddah! Now this is a sight to behold! Magnificent! We met up with a group of Thai students who proceeded to ask us random questions and tape us at the same time- must have been for a thesis or something! Was lots of fun though! After our day of looking at buddah, we headed home for a much needed swim. It was our last evening and we celebrated in style. After supper Cyn and I finished packing. I left the UK with 18kgs and came back with 21kgs- not too bad! Cyn started with 13kgs and returned with 16kgs.

Remeber for next time...

*do not fly with Qatar Airlines- my reasons are very clear and cant be mentioned on a public space!But one reason that can be mentioned is that we had a 6 hour stop over on the way home which was terrible! So FLY DIRECT!
*NO hairdryer
*No takkies
*no 3/4 trousers and pack less shorts!
*only take VESTS!
*sarongs all the way- no beach towel needed
*torch is a good idea
*less books and games, availanble everywhere there
*buy flotation devices in Thailand, do not cart them around with you!
*1 hat!
*less toiletries
*smaller 1st aid box
*water retention tablets needed (for me)
*travel sick tabs for the ferrys (buy at 7/11 as soon as you land in Thailand! The yellow packet)


When we were in Doha waiting for our transfer to London, the times were as follows:

• Bangkok 01:15
  
• Doha 21:15
  
• London 19:15
  

I was soooo tired! But all I was thinking about was island life!

Cyn when are we going again?!!!!!

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Comments

[BaanThai]

Mutt Alert
This is like a book - how will I ever read it all! I want to go back to the wonderful place tomorrow! Thanks for the hilarious recap and walk down memory lane! ps. Doha hairy port is horrible! pps. Floatation Devices rule!