Turtle island - turtle speed

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When the bus came o pick usup for th ferry this morning I asked for the refund that was promised to me. The lady refused and told me to go back to the agency. I picked up my bag and walked 200m to the agency only to be told that I'd get it back the next time. Yeah right. I started to wrorry if I'd missed the boat and almost had an argument with the lady. She got on the phone and agreed to drop me off at a nearby bus depot (5 min walk really). So I got on the back of a scooter and off I went.

At the bus depot I waited and waited. I asked the shop what time the bus would arrive, and 8am was the answer. The boat also leaves at 8. Not good. Thankfully the "bus" had arrived just then before I was about to hail a taxi. It was the same "bus" tuk tuk that went to the hotel to pick up the stranded passengers from last night. Lots of running around to no fuition.

At last I arrived at the pier. I talked to the Dutch girls who stayed in the room next door. They too heard the loud bangs and the yelling "Go, now!" last night at 1.40am. None of us went out to check what was going on. It sounded like a drug raid to me I thought I'd better stay out of trouble. Curiosity killed the cat.

The journey to Koh Tao this morning consists of 2 boat trips. I have to change boat at Koh Phangan. The direct boat to Koh Tao was cancelled due to low season. I wonder if the night boat had suffered the same fate. If that was the case they really shouldn't sell that ticket to customers (it was more expensive too). ETA for the day is 1pm. At 8.20am there was still no boat, but a bus arrived instead. Apparently petrol is too expensive to sun so we had to take a bus (1hr) to another town. ETA 2pm. In reality a whole day is wasted. Turtle island has really lived up to its name. I hope it's as good as it's promised to be.

So fianlly I arrived at Koh Tao, after a day and half of travel. There are many dive shops competing for business. I'm staying at Coral Grand Resort. For 900B, I get 4 nights' accommodation, PADI open water dive course plus an additional free dive. It's a really good deal. The resort is very secuded and quiet, but it's far rom anywhere. The dive resort is almost the farthest north resort on the beach. Most shops, banks, etc are 15 mins walk away. Ban's, where the English girls (Leanne, Cat, Rebecca) are staying is a much nicer location. There are many really nice bars and restaurants along the beach and the prices do not seem over inflated.

For dinner I had read curry pork, Thai mango salad, pineapple shake and watermelon shake. This is pretty much breakfast, lunch and dinner all in one considering I had a burger for breakfast and instant noodles for lunch. The red curry is REALLY spicy. That's why I needed 2 cold drinks. And all this for just 170B! What a bargain. But I'll have to stop eating like this. It's starting to eat into my budget. The dive couse is by far the most expensive item so far. Hopefully my money will last me all the way till the end of the trip.

The other thing about Koh Taois that electricity drops out between 5 and 5.30pm every day as power switches over. I'm not sure from what to waht, but it certainly increases awareness of the things we take for granted, such as fans and aircon.

At the same time, I realised my Vietnamese visa runs out early, so I reverted back to my original plan: Thailand- Cambodia - Vietnam, but added Laos in the end instead of in the middle. I'll then have to return to Bagkok for flight to Taipei. I don't think there are any direct flights from Laos to Taipei. But most important thing for now is study the course material and get ready for the next day.

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Photos

Lamp lit restaurants along the beach
There are cusions and lamps on the beach for customers. Again the photo does not do it justice. They are so beautiful!