Koh Samui Island

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Koh Samui Island

What a complete transition from the jungle. After finally arriving here after minivan, ferry, and taxi we settled in and had just enough time to go walk on the beach to find some dinner.

Our hotel is within walking distance of the main part of the town although it looks like something out of the Flintstones bedrock. It has a giant computer/tv in the room where we have been able to get online including skype and catch up with a few of our friends.

Our first night we walked on the beach and were so surprised to find that all the beach front hotels had set up a restaurant of sorts right there on the waterfront. It really was beautiful to look down the stretch of the beach and see all the lights from the restaurants reflecting off the water. We settled on one of the resturants and I got the dish that I've been living off of here: Khao Pad - which basically is fried rice with vegetables in it. . Mom of course got some vegetable dish in oyster sauce which actually was quite good.

This morning we woke up to a nice breakfast and wandered around town for a few hours. They had several markets set up and many stores for us to just peek in. On the walk home, we walked along the beach where the water was so clear and warm! Mom had been worried about whether or not she should wear a one piece bathing suit because she was worried Thais are strict on the dress code; however we quickly learned that is not the case as we saw many women sunbathing topless and many men in speedo bikini bottoms.

In the afternoon we both had Thai Oil massages which are very popular here. The massage was a mixture between pleasure and pain and then pleasure again. We got to pick out which oil we wanted..I think I got one called peace and mom got one called Jet Lag or something. We both liked it so much that depending on how sore we are tomorrow morning, we plan on getting another one before we leave.

Tonight we walked down to the center of town again, although it is completely different at night, much more alive and fun. We decided to eat at this restaurant called The Islanders which had the French Open and Soccer on. There seemed to be mainly tourists eating there which was fine for us, as we had been feeling like we were the only ones visiting there this time of year. Mom and I split a vegetarian pizza that was good. On the walk back to our hotel we passed quite a few transvestites trying to lure us into their cabaret shows where the men dress up as famous women...I hear there is a good impression of Susan Boyle in one of them, but we were too tired to find her.

Things we've noticed about Asia that are so new to us:
1) The napkins they use are what we would refer to as toilet paper, specifically two squares of it. You wipe your hands with it once, and its completely used up.
2) They have pharmacies here where "chemists" work and you can buy practically anything here over the counter that you would normally need a prescription for in the US.
3) Although everything has a price tag usually on it, we are getting a lot better at bartering and getting things at a much lower price. Can't wait to see how that holds over in the States.
4)They drive on the wrong side of the road and its complete chaos. There are no stoplights and any speed limit or stop signs seem to be more like suggestions than actual rules. There have been many moments where mom and I have closed our eyes and hoped for the best. We thought about renting a mo-ped, but realized we were way too unprepared and not aggressive enough for this kind of driving. I am not exaggerating when I say, the driving here makes NY look easy.
5) There are dogs everywhere here without leashes on just wandering around...and I mean a ton of dogs..not so many cats.

Tomorrow we leave really early to go snorkeling and exploring on other islands for the day!

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Photos

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the what pub??? not cool

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me on the beach with the clear water

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hospital really close to our hotel..very interesting

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giant king prawn

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on the side of the road