Arriving at Ko Samui and Safari

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Arrival

Our overnight train from Bangkok to Surat Thani departed 3 and 15 seconds early as we prepared ourselves for another night on the train. The journey was particularly uneventful as you can imagine (already suffering a night on the train and a full day in Bangkok).

Ko Samui is well known for its clear blue skies, golden beaches and deep blue sea! However, on arrival, we were a bit disappointed as the heavens opened and the dream of sipping coconuts while having my feet massaged was shattered. Arriving at the pier form the mainland (after freezing on the ferry - we had pot noodle we keep ourselves warm), we were herded onto a minibus which took us to our hotel. Along the way other tourists were also dropped off at their spectacular five star hotels. Unfortunately we had to contend with ‘Panzy’s guesthouse’, which sounds worst than it is. I will give it some credit as it was pretty modern with ac, fridge, TV and balcony. Shame the balcony was overlooking a building site though!

After checking in, a shower was definitely needed as we collected a lot of dirt over the two and a bit days of travelling from the north to the south. Squeaky clean, we headed for some exploration on the flooded island. It did clear up slightly with a glimpse of sunshine and food became priority number one. A 3km strip of restaurants, bars, shops - clothes, souvenirs, counterfeit goods - DVDs, watches, jewellery was on sight sucking in tourists left right and centre.

Dinner was fast approaching and we decided to entertain our stomachs with a suckling pig which had been slow roasted and talking to me! I think it said something like ‘eat me’ but can’t quite remember. Despite the pricy listing, unlimited helpings to Mr Piggy made it ever more enjoyable. Stuff to the brim, we called it a night and headed back for some proper sleep.

Samui Safari

The following morning was a full on day of action. We had booked a safari tour that commenced early in the morning at the terrifying hour of 7am! Safari it was! An army style open hooded 4x4 motored across the island taking us to see two rock formation resembling the human genitals (please see pictures for more details!), a mummified monk on display (he had a cool pair of ray bans on which was rather amusing) and the national park to see various animal shows (not the most pleasant but no way around this as our primary target was to get to peak view). To get to the mountain view point, the 4x4 drove up the rocky terrain stopping off at a waterfall along the way. Lunch was overlooking the island coast, with breathtaking views of the west coast. We continued on our way to the mountain view point, however, there were, as always, troubles ahead. The rain from the previous day had pretty much flooded the slopes and the 4x4 was struggling to cope. High revs and the blistering heat didn’t help and the condition known as ‘engiiiiinnnne overheating’ occurred! Nothing major as safari man found a source of water and cooled the engine as we sizzled in the sun.

The evening brought us back to the hostel where we once again roamed the street of chewang beach looking for some grub……..settled for the cheapest restaurant in town, which served up some pretty decent local food - morning glory was fantastic - that’s water spinach for your information!!

Chris and Tsz Wai

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