Koh Samui

---

Monday 30th May & Tuesday 31st May 2011 - Days 1 & 2

I woke up at 5:30am I guess because I was aware that I had to be up early to pack and get myself ready for my flight to leave the Middle East. I couldn't really get back to sleep so I sent an email to mum and then got up and had a shower. Jess and Jen were awake by this stage and then Di came down to say hi and bye. Shortly after Di turned up Kev turned up with Pop, to my surprise. We went wondering to get some breakfast and met Emma and Dre on the stairs on the way down. I had a great fruit cup for breakfast which is just what I wanted. The taxi van with Nathan and Sam pulled up shortly before 9am - Emma, Dre, Kev and Di were joining them to explore more pyramids for the day. I said my goodbyes to them and then Pop and I went for a walk around the area. It wasn't anywhere near as busy as it had been the night before, not many shops being open at that time of the morning. I had to be back at the hostel at 9:30am as I had not even started my packing for my flight. I said a proper goodbye to Pop which was nice and found Jess and Jen with Gav and Amanda having breakfast. I grabbed the room key and began the task of sorting my pack out. It wasn't too bad as I had not unpacked much the night before. Just before 10:30am I said goodbye to Jess and Jen and then went to reception to get my taxi to the airport. It was a different person on reception than the one who had arranged it for me the previous night and this person did not seem to know what was going on but we managed to get there in the end. As I was being taken downstairs to my awaiting taxi I ran into Pop again, he was coming up to see if Jess and Jen wanted to join him and the others for a day shopping at the Souk. I said another quick goodbye to him and then ran into Ben who was also on his way up. I had not been able to say goodbye to him at all the previous night so it was nice to be able to. I don't think the taxi that I ended up getting into was the one I had ordered as the lady escorting me did not appear to have a clue what was going on but it was a taxi nonetheless so off I went. The traffic and driving in Cairo was just as crazy as in Istanbul, 6 cars wide on a 4 lane road - we were weaving all over the show and at one stage almost had a fender bender but a tight grip for dear life on the arm rest and 45 minutes later I arrived alive and in tact at Cairo International Airport. It was a little confusing at first and took me a few minutes to get my bearings - they had security and scanning before you even went through to the check in desks. The guy sitting at the scanner pulled me over to have a look in my big pack. He was pointing to something on the screen, I had no idea what it was but assumed that it was something in my first aid kit as I had a pocket knife, a lighter and some pins in there. I took it out and gave it to him to inspect. He took a few things out, had a quick look then gave it back to me and waved me away. I was directed by staff to my correct check in counter and despite being at the front of the line I stood there for a good 10 minutes before anyone acknowledged I was even there - it was all over the show. 25 minutes later and I was finally sorted after the staff had a decent discussion about whether my bags would be checked all the way to Koh Samui or whether I needed to collect them at Bangkok airport. I was given a not so convincing "yes, checked in to final destination" along with my 3 boarding passes so I guess only time would tell if my bags arrived or not. Luckily Jess had told me about her bags being lost so I decided to put a few essentials in my carry on just in case. My gate wasn't quite open so I did a little window shop in duty free and bought some skittles. For such a big international airport I was surprised that I only saw 3 other western people there, all the rest appeared to be local. Unlike the cheap airlines in Europe, boarding started an hour before the flight was due to leave so I eventually made my way to my gate. We caught a shuttle out to the plane and by 1pm everyone was boarded so the captain announced we might be able to depart a little early - we were due to take off at 1:20pm. I was on an aisle seat. The seats were quite spacious and had good leg room although not much when the person in front of me put their seat fully back. The crew were friendly and between them spoke 6 different languages which was cool. I had my own screen and entertainment system so shortly after take off I found The Green Hornet to watch which was actually pretty good. Late lunch/early dinner was promptly served which was chicken, vegies, roast potatoes, a bread roll, salad, cheese and crackers and a raspberry cheesecake dessert accompanied by a nice glass of white wine 😊. The flight went by really quickly taking just over 4 hours although it didn't feel that long at all. We arrived in Abu Dhabi just before 7am local time. I went straight through the transit area as I was not sure how long it was going to take - my itinerary said I arrived at Terminal 1 and flew out of Terminal 3. The staff at the transit desk were nice and pointed me in the direction of my next gate which turned out was only a 10 minute walk through duty free. I was a little dubious at first as it did not appear that I had changed terminals at all but as I sat at the gate the screen flashed up my exact flight details onto Bangkok so turns out Abu Dhabi airport is rather easy to navigate. It was also worlds away from Cairo with there being more western people at my gate than all the people put together at Cairo, not to mention the short shorts/skirts/dresses people were wearing. I felt a little out of place as I was still wearing my layers from Cairo but I couldn't be bothered taking them all off only to have to carry them all. There was free wifi so I fluffed around on that for a bit and then an airport staff member asked me to complete a survey which I did, I wasn't doing anything else! I then noticed this random purple bruise on my forearm, no idea how I managed that, a travel injury no doubt! We started boarding at 9am. I was in an aisle seat again but this plane, even though the same airline looked much nicer. The seats looked newer and there was both a pillow and a blanket on my seat. The entertainment system was more modern and surrounding the screen was a uk plug to charge things, 3 computer cable plugs including a USB socket and the system was actually touch screen which was awesome. I'm sure that is the norm with flying these days but given for the past 2 years I have been used to budget airlines that don't even give you a pocket in the seat with a sick bag, you can kind of understand my excitement! I was one row away from the emergency exits seats which was gutting, I would have loved to have one of those seats - all the leg room in the world. I sat next to a lovely Irish couple who had got married only 2 days before, they were on their honeymoon. One of the hostesses came around with 2 glasses of champagne for them as a congratulations but the husband did not drink so the wife kindly offered it to me which I gratefully accepted. Dinner was a chicken dish with rice that I didn't actually like very much, it had a funky sauce on it that wasn't that nice. I tried to sleep as it was about 10pm but couldn't so I watched 2 more movies instead - Due Date and I am number 4. We arrived in Bangokok at 7am local time. I once again went straight through the transfer area and through passport control but this time with a little more pace as my flight to Koh Samui was due to board at 7:30am. Luckily the process did not take that long and my gate was not too far away otherwise I could have easily missed my flight - there was absolutely no way I had time to get my luggage! I was given a blue "international baggage claim" sticker at passport control so I was hoping that was for the airport people to see at Koh Samui. I didn't have time to worry about it as I arrived at my gate just as they called people to board. I met a nice german girl on my way to the gate who was also going to Koh Samui. She was travelling on her own for the first time too but was spending 2 weeks on holiday there. I was going to suggest that we share a taxi but she had arranged her own airport pickup. She stopped off to have a look in duty free and I didn't see her again so I hope she made it on the plane in time! The Bangkok Airways flight to Koh Samui was just like the cheapo airlines in europe, no pillow or entertainment system and I couldn't actually understand what they were saying when there were announcements, I couldn't even understand the captain which could have been interesting but I'm sure I would have been able to pick up "brace brace" or "emergency landing"! The flight was only 1½ hours long so it didn't really matter and I got a pretty decent breakfast - a muffin, croissant, yoghurt, orange juice, water and a cup of tea which I was more than pleased with. As we sat waiting to taxi the rain began to fall which was so strange to see given that I had not seen rain for weeks. We arrived in Koh Samui just before 9:30am. It was the smallest airport I had been to so far in my travels. It had one little building with one baggage carousel but it meant we did not have to wait long for our bags to come out and thank god mine was there - everything all in tact although there was a slight tear in the front of the pack probably from it being jammed full which didn't really bother me too much. I exchanged some money as there was no ATM to withdraw any and then went to get a shuttle to my hotel which cost 120bhat - £3! My resort was only a 10 minute ride from the airport and I was the first to be dropped off. It looked nice from the outside. I gave the receptionist my reservation documents only to be told that the company had cancelled my booking. After having no sleep for 20 odd hours, being dirty, tired and roasting I was not in the frame of mind to be dealing with this and luckily the lady asked me to take a seat while she sorted it otherwise I think I would have flown off the handle. They had no idea why the company had cancelled it but were able to accommodate my reservation in the deluxe villa I had booked and paid for, thank god!!! I was given my breakfast coupons and then taken a short golf kart ride to my villa - #120. It was beautiful - a deck out front, a huge king size bed, a wardrobe, safe, dressing gown, slippers, so many towels, a tv, fridge with mini bar including free water, a computer desk, an awesome bathroom with an inside bath and an outside shower which was just fantastic!! I took photos of it all looking nice and neat before I promptly dumped all my stuff on the floor and made myself at home! Being able to wonder around in my underwear (or less) and not have to worry about other people was great. I went for a walk around the resort which was actually quite small but perfect for what I was after, a nice quiet relaxing 5 days. There was a cascading pool surrounded by loungers, the restaurant right next to it and the beach right in front of it with a great view. There were kayaks that could be used and a small island just off shore that I could paddle to if I wanted - it would be nice for a day picnic. I went back to reception to get some brochures for things to do and bought an internet card then went back to my villa for a long overdue much needed nap. I did think about trying to stay awake and keep with the normal times but given that I didn't have to be anywhere at any given time I figured why not!! I woke up at some stage around 6pm and fluffed around until I headed down to the restaurant for dinner at 8pm. I was a little nervous about sitting at a table by myself but it turns out there were only 2 other tables of people there - the peroxide family, all 5 members having matching bleach blonde hair that looked like something out of an Eminem video and the paparazzi couple who spent more time posing and taking photos of each other than eating, it was quite amusing to watch. I had a cocktail of course - the Samui Sunset along with a chicken, shrimp and rice dish which was very nice. I was done by 9pm so went back to my villa to listen to some music and send some emails before finally getting into bed at just after midnight - I was so looking forward to my sleep.

Wednesday 1st June - Day 3

A pinch and a punch for the first of the month again - man these months are flying by!!! My god I had a great sleep. I star fished the entire bed taking up as much room as I possibly could - it was awesome! I did wake early but went back to sleep. I finally woke at 9:40am and realising that breakfast finished at 10am I made my way down to the restaurant. I had cereal, fruit, orange juice and a cup of tea. There were a lot more people having breakfast than I had seen the day before. I went back to my villa to try and sort out my bag that was where I dumped it the day prior. I pretty much just got the essential beach attire out and the rest stayed in my pack which I put away in the wardrobe. Housekeeping came around at about 11am and I was still swanning around in my towel so I asked them to come back in half an hour. Once dressed, I went down to the pool to have a sunbathe. I didn't last long before I ended up in the pool. The water wasn't actually that cold which was initially nice but after a while kind of felt like a luke warm bath. At 1pm I went back to my villa with the intention of getting my bearings so that I could wonder the island but just as I was walking up to it I saw the housekeeper walking in so my room had not been done yet. I decided to just wonder aimlessly, I had my map if I needed it. I saw a few places just past the resort that offered washing at a price per kg bag rather than the per item the resort offered which was simply going to be too expensive as I had quite a few things that were in dyer need of a clean. I headed in the direction I thought was town and passed lots of shops, restaurants and other resorts. It was quite strange as I was not being harassed at all. Even if I had not just come from harassment captain of the world Egypt, I have been to Phuket and people were always trying to get me to come into their stores to buy things. It was only when I took an interest in something or went into a store that they paid any attention to me - it was quite good as it meant I could shop in peace most of the time. I went into a local store to get some nail polish and remover as both my fingers and toes were in need of repair. I also got another book as the one I was using to write notes on my trip for my blog was quickly filling up along with some fruit juice and a couple of smirnoff ice as the mini bar was of course quite expensive. I ducked through a resort onto the beach where I walked along it in the water which turns out was just as warm as my resort swimming pool. There were a lot of people on the beach, it was clearly the main part of Chaweng Beach.There were lots of people swimming and jet skis galore. I ducked through another resort further down the beach back on the road where I found a Sweeneys and of course had to stop and have a sundae - chocolate blast I think it was, it was so good and came with an ice cold glass of water
(my bottle of water was starting to get a little warm). It started to rain quite heavily but the rain was not remotely cold and I found it quite funny to see all the tourists making a run for it, ducking in and out of shelter whilst I just strolled along out in the rain, I knew it wasn't going to last long and sure enough I popped into a store and when I came out it had stopped! I wondered back along the road to my resort and made it just in time for 5pm Happy hour, how convenient! 😊. I had a swim in the pool, got a 50B (£1 Heinekin) from the swim up bar and splashed around for a bit - I was the only one in the pool. I went back to my villa and had a shower where I discovered I had actually got quite a bit of colour and had interesting tan lines going on! I sent a couple more emails/messages, gave my nails a nice new clean coat of paint and just relaxed and listened to music before dinner time. I went down to the restaurant just after 8pm. There was only one other table there tonight. I opted for a beer and a noodle beef dish. The noodles looked more like a plate of snot than noodles which was a little off putting but that aside it was a nice meal. I gave just over a 50B tip as I had done the night before and the lady just looked at me in surprise when I said I didn't need change. When I walked past her to leave she rushed out to say thank you again and goodnight and hoped to see me again soon - I love how the Thai people are so grateful even at little things like that, it makes me love Thailand more and more every time I am here. It was 9:30pm when I got back to my villa so I just spent the night watching music videos and updating my blog.

Thursday 2nd June 2011 - Day 4

I dragged myself out of bed at 9:30am to go down to breakfast but not before checking my passport and money was still there after having the strangest dream that I had been robbed in my sleep. All was still there so off I went. There were less people at breakfast than the day before. I decided to have a bigger breakfast - fried noodles, sausages, pancakes, fruit, tomatoes, strawberry yoghurt, orange juice, pineapple juice and a cup of tea. I think my eyes were a bit too big for my belly as I felt a little sick afterwards! The weather was not as great as it had been the day before, quite cloudy, but I figured it was perfect to explore some more of the island, not too hot. I set off at 11:30am and did try to even out my tan lines on the loungers on the beach but the clouds were not having it so off I set to explore. I headed off in the opposite direction that I went yesterday. It was interesting to see all the other resorts, it was definitely quiet season as I walked passed at least 4 resorts before I got to one that had anyone sitting on the loungers outside. The beach and resorts ended and rocks and bush started. It felt like I walked over rocks for an age before getting to a little bay that had one resort and some houses on the hill behind. I stopped for a quick rest and swim then carried on. The beach was only a couply hundred metres long then I hit the rocks again, they were never ending. 1½ hours into my journey and I hit a dead end, and by dead end I mean the only way of getting from the rock I was standing on to the rock I was looking at was to swim. I couldn't see how deep it was but it didn't look like I could touch the bottom and given that the bag I was carrying had my wallet, camera, phone & room key in it I didn't think it was a good idea. I briefly thought about going up and over but it was dense bush with sharp looking rocks and sticks everywhere so that was a no go too. So I had to turn around and go back the way I came. I was quite pissed off really as I was looking forward to exploring the island. In hindsight though it was probably not the smartest idea doing it on my own, especially given all the rocks I had to climb over, had I fallen and badly injured myself no one would have known where I was. BUT.... true to my awesome mountaineering skills I came away relatively unscathed apart from exhaustion, sunburn and maybe a little heat stroke. I got back to the resort at 2pm and pretty much fell into the pool. I splashed around for a good half hour before going back to my villa to rest. That lasted only about an hour before I got bored so off I went, this time in the direction I did know and looking for one thing.... a massage. There were loads along the beach but I picked one that was not too busy as everyone here was looking for business. It was such a great massage, I was almost asleep. It did hurt a little when she massaged my shoulders only because of the sunburn and at one point she climbed onto me putting all her weight on me, I assumed to squish all the badness out but all in all it was fabulous and just what I needed and all for a mere 200B - £4!!! I walked down the beach a little way first before cutting through a bar and onto the street stopping in at a pharmacy to get some much needed aloe vera gel for my burn. Whilst I got back in time for happy hour I decided to have one of my own smirnoff ice in my fridge and apply the aloe vera - I was a lot more burnt on my back than I thought, opps!! I relaxed for the rest of the arvo until dinner time. I was intending to go to a restaurant down the beach for dinner that I had seen had chicken Pad Thai (mine only had seafood) but I was not really feeling in the mood to leave my bed let alone traypce down the beach so I opted just to go back to my restaurant - they did need the business after all and the other place did look quite a bit busier than my resort. I was the only one in the restaurant. I had the same lovely lady serve me from the previous night and I managed to get her name Supakorn - don't ask me how to say that! I wanted a curry and couldn't decide between two so I asked Supakorn which one was hotter to which she told me the green curry not the red one. When it came out I poured the whole bowl on my rice which in hindsight was not good as it burnt my face off, it was really hot. Man hindsight was kicking my ass today! I had no plain rice to cool my mouth down so was gulping my beer down like nobodys business. I'm not sure if it was the less hotter curry and if so thank god I didn't go for the red curry or whether Supakorn didn't quite understand and thought I was asking for the hotter one. It was delicious anyway, so many flavours. Supakorn convinced me to have another beer, not that I needed much convincing, my mouth was on fire. I sat and watched with interest as a little frog tried to jump up a wall into its pond which took many attempts but got there in the end - I guess these things you don't notice when you are eating with others. It then started pelting down with rain. I was about to get up and move tables when one of the waiters and Supakorn came rushing over and pulled down the plastic covers to keep the rain out which was lovely of them to do. I sat for a bit longer enjoying the sound of the pouring rain then when I was finally ready to go Supakorn came over with a rain jacket for me and one for her - she walked me to my door and then took the rain jacket back with her. It was above and beyond what she needed to do and I straight away wrote in my feedback form how awesome I thought she was. I watched a movie I had downloaded on my laptop (G.I Joe) before going to sleep just after midnight.

Friday 3rd June 2011 - Day 5

I was up and down at breakfast just after 9am. I had a fair amount of food but not enough to make me feel ill like the morning before - a pancake, omelette, fruit, orange juice and a cup of tea. After breakfast I set off for the day. I took my washing up to the store around the corner from the hotel which also hired scooters. I had forgotten my driver's licence
so I quickly went back to get it then filled out the necessary paperwork which funnily enough was my name, my hotel and room number, my drivers licence number and my signature. After a quick tutorial about using it, as I had not ridden one for years, which consisted of turn key, start engine, go! I headed off anti clockwise around the island. I had only been given less than quarter of a tank of petrol, anything else I had to buy myself, which was a bit rough but oh well. I had no plans and no idea where I was going which made it even more fun, just being on the road with the wind blowing around me was awesome. My speedo was not working so I had no idea how fast I was going, I just tapped it most of the time. I stopped at the Big Buddha, the Wat Plai Laem and the surrounding temples which were amazing. Apart from the statues themselves being massive, the detail and colours used were fantastic, very impressive! I didn't stop there long as I wanted to keep going, I was having way too much fun. I knew I wanted to drive around the island so I stopped off at a little make shift petrol station on the side of the road, there were only a few proper stations on the island and I didn't want to risk running out if I waited to come across one - I would only have saved a few bhat anyway. The petrol I got, for £1, gave me ¾ a tank so I was good to go for the rest of the day. So with that off my mind I hit the road in a blaze of glory 😊. I stopped again at Hin Lad Waterfall. I set off not knowing how long it would take until I got to a sign a good 15 minutes in saying 3000 metres! I just stared at it thinking maybe not but persevered and kept going. At one point I walked straight through a spider web that I had not seen as I was wearing my hat and also looking down at where I was walking. I wish I had of as a huge spider the size of a house dropped on me (maybe a slight exaggeration). I absolutely flipped my lid, I squealed like a little girl whirling around trying to flick it off me - my helmet went flying in one direction and my camera and backpack went in another. Convinced reluctantly that the spider was no longer on me I had to climb down a slight bank to retrieve my belongings. I was shaking like a leaf by this stage and did not at all enjoy the rest of the climb as I was constantly looking out for more spiders. When I got to the waterfall it was ok, not the best I had seen and I'm not quite sure worth the trek or spider attack but it was nice to see and I had a splash around at the bottom of it. It was quite strong, I had to cement my feet firmly so that it didn't knock me over. Any chance that the spider was still on me was now definitely gone! I opted against the bush trek back and instead chose to follow the waterfall down over the rocks. There were a few hairy places but it was much better and more scenic than the bush way. An hour later I reached my beloved scooter again. Sadly it would not start! I had a bit of a panic moment as I was half way around the island and had no way of contacting the shop people. I sat dumb founded for a bit trying the key again and again to no avail. A guy walking past obviously seeing the look of horror on my face and came over to see if I was ok. I told him it would not start and he took the keys and had a look for me. His mate then told him that because the back wheel was slightly dug in the sand that it was probably causing it not to start - there must have been some kind of secret stuck in sand kill switch the shop didn't tell me about because as soon as he picked the scooter up and moved it out of the sand it started no problem. I thanked them both profusely and then set off again. I stopped again at a Tesco just because I found it really funny that there was one on Koh Samui. I got some fruit, coke & lollies then away I went. My last stop was just before Chaweng Beach at a look out point where I took photos of the view which was very cool. The signs to Chaweng Beach were not that great and at some stage I drove past the turn off. I went for quite a while before seeing the Big Buddha sign again. I stopped to ask someone the way and sure enough it was back where I came so I turned around and headed back. By this stage I was running very low on petrol. I wasn't worried about running out as there were little places everywhere that sold it I just didn't want to have to buy more because they sold it in bottles which would have given me way more than the tiny bit the guys at the shop gave me and I figured it was only fair that I leave it as I found it. A slight diversion on the main road and many looks down at the tank and I finally arrived. The tank was pretty much empty by this stage and the guy did notice but he didn't say anything to me so off I toddled back to my hotel, after thanking them of course and telling them I had a great time. It was about 4pm when I got back to the hotel. I had a dip in the pool followed by a much needed shower to wash my hair and relaxed for the rest of the afternoon. By 8pm I was not feeling in the dinner mood, but given that my lunch had consisted of coke and lollies, because I was having to much of a ball on my scooter to stop, I figured food had to be on the cards. I just went down to the restaurant again where Supakorn was on duty again. We had a chat and I ordered the good old trusty cheeseburger and chips, no beer tonight! The chef, who I discovered was also the bar tender at the pool bar came over to ask if my food was ok and have a chat about my day. After telling him about the scooter he said something about 3pm the next day getting a scooter and going shopping - some hand gesters and confusion later I discovered he was trying to ask me if I wanted to go on his scooter the next day and go shopping with him. He was very sweet and I was quite flattered but not interested so I tried to let him down gently by saying I was actually going to use the kayaks, which was not actually a lie. He then seemed to indicate that he could come with me, at 3pm, which I figured was when he finished work. Feeling a little awkward I just said that I would let him know if I was going to be around at 3pm. I'm pretty sure he was the one that gives out the kayaks as there was a sign on the side of the pool bar so that was going to be interesting...... After dinner I covered myself in more aloe vera, watched a few music videos then watched another movie Hairspray.

Saturday 4th June 2011 - Day 6

I was up and down at breakfast early as I wanted to make the most of my final day here. I stopped off at reception to arrange my airport transfer but they wanted to charge me three times what I paid when I arrived so I was not having a bar of that! I set off for a walk along Chaweng Beach for the last time and back along the road through the markets. I didn't find what I wanted to buy which sucked but it was still fun. An internet cafe not far from my hotel had a sign outside that said "airport transfers". I went in to talk to her but the power had gone out and she couldn't really give me any details other than it would cost 200B, which was cheaper than my hotel. I told her I would come back later when the power was restored. I got back at 1:30pm after picking my washing up at the store. I had intended to drop it into my room but when I got there I found housekeeping were still doing their thing. Instead I went and had a swim in the pool while they finished my room. I dropped my washing off, grabbed a towel and headed for the beach loungers. The sun was coming and going which was ok as it wasn't too hot - I was trying to even out my tan lines. I kept looking back and forth between the kayaks and the island I was meant to paddle too but really couldn't be bothered, I was quite happy to relax on the beach instead. One of the hotel guys then came over to talk to me. I had seen him around most days. We chatted for a bit although it was a little awkward as I was half hanging out of my bikini top and trying to tuck myself back in - he kind of snuck up on me. He then asked for my name so that he could look me up on facebook. I felt bad saying no and he knew I was not at the resort with anyone so I wrote my name down, quietly knowing that he was not going to find the right Hayley Quinn. He said nice to meet me and went off so I figured that was it but he came back shortly later with a cold glass of water even though I had a bottle of coke sitting right next to me. He then appeared again shortly after that to make sure I was ok. I'm sure his intentions were very kind but him hovering around me every 10 minutes was kind of starting to get on my nerves, all I wanted to do was sunbathe in peace. An australian guy walking along the beach got his attention when he enquired about the jetski in the water and if he could hire it. I took the opportunity to bust a move out of there while he was distracted. I put my stuff in the villa and walked back down the road to the internet cafe to ask about the transfer. When I got there she said her company would charge 400B but she had a taxi friend across the road who would take me for 200B. I gave her the details and walked across the road with her just to make sure he understood and everything was fine. He took down all the details and gave me his taxi number and said "see you tomorrow morning" so lets hope he's there! I relaxed in the villa for a couple of hours before I made a start on packing my bag that after 5 days was all over the show. Bored with packing I set off for an early dinner at 7pm. I decided to go to the place along the beach that had Pad Thai. The restaurant looked very nice and the people were very polite. I was promptly given a table outside right in front of the water which was beautiful. A lady on her own was sitting at the table next to me so I didn't feel too out of place. There was a guy inside playing live music, he was really good. I ordered my Pad Thai and sat enjoying the night. My meal was very impressive, the size was much bigger than the portions at my resort and the flavours (minus the shrimp) was awesome. I took my time eating and enjoying the sound of the waves coming up on the beach. I got the bill to my surprise cheaper than I thought as they were having some kind of 30%!o(MISSING)ff deal, what a bargain, I wish I had of decided to come here earlier! As I was leaving the restaurant someone on the other side of the beach started setting off fireworks and not small ones, they lit up the sky. It was the perfect end to my night and also my holiday here. The tide had come in so I had to walk through the waves to get to the steps leading to the resort, the water was not cold at all even at night. When I got back to the villa I finished packing, dyed the roots of my hair which were looking horrible and relaxed until bed time, just after midnight.

---