Swaying in the breeze

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A gentle breeze sways the hammock. I look up at the coconut tree over my head and hope a coconut doesn't fall on my head. The thought moves from my head and I return to thinking of nothing much. I fall back into a semi doze. This is relaxation. At last. After three months of being on the move every few days, this is downtime.

The journey here from Bangkok involved a cockroach filled journey on an overnight train to Chumphon and a ferry to Koh Tao first thing in the morning. Mind you, I had the upper bunk so most of the creepy crawlies hit Patrick first. A sleepless night was had by him as he flicked the bugs off his bed until our arrival at 4am to Chumphon. After a ferry trip to the island we were approached by hordes of taxi folk and bungalow hawkers. Heads bowed low, avoiding all eye contact, we kept going until we exited the throng and found a payphone. A quick call to Sunset Bungalows confirmed some bungalows were vacant. We haggled for a taxi fare and walked the remainder of the journey across the beach and around the headland to our paradise escape. And here we are. Doing nothing much really. No temples, no organising visas, no searching for a place to stay or trying to see as much as possible in a short time. Not that I'm looking for sympathy mind you .. just recharging the batteries for the next leg of the trip. And Thailand seems a good a place to do it. The people are hospitable, the climate wonderful and the food delicious.

Once you get out of Bangkok that is. Bangkok... a sprawling mess of traffic, crowds, noise and hawking. Three nights staying on the Koh San Road, Bangkok's Backpacker Central, is enough to challenge most peoples patience. After the delicate bows and politeness of the Japanese, Bangkok was certainly a contrast. The Koh San Road, famed for it's cheap ass guesthouses, bars, clubs, food stalls and 24-hour partying certainly lived up to its reputation.

A word of advice. Don't take out your Lonely Planet in Bangkok. The first of many mistakes we made. Hordes of "helpful" people will assault you with offers of tuk-tuk rides,visits to attractions and made up information about opening times of the Grand Palace. We finally managed to get away from them all while trying to be polite and not lose too much face. The Grand Palace was magnificent and worth visiting although it was very hot and crowded. We didn't take in many cultural sights in Bangkok as getting around is not too easy and we had plenty of chores to occupy us. We managed to restock our medical supplies, buy some new clothes, mosquito nets, malaria tablets and a host of other essentials all within a 1km radius of our guesthouse.

So here we are in Koh Tao, taking a break from sightseeing. Stay tuned for the next chapter but it might not be anytime soon...

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Photos

Coconut trees
Swaying in the breeze ... they really make you feel like you've arrived in a tropical paradise.

Our beach
Small but perfect for two pasty bods getting their thighs out for the first time this summer.

Our bungalow perched on a hill overlooking the sea
Cool view from here and they're not called sunset bungalows for no reason.

View from the hammock
Patrick's found a spot to dream up Mekano Set tunes.

Overnight train to Chumphon
The seats converted into beds and it would have been a nice journey was it not for the constant visitors to Patrick's bunk. My bed is that shelf at the top.

Koh San Road
Teeming with travellers, Pad Thai stands, fruit sellers and everything else you could ever need.

Comments

[Bob]

Tuk Tuk's eh @ HA !
Well, at least when you get back to Brighton you may be able to re-live a little of your trip as 12 of these ere Tuk Tuks now operate on the seafront & from the station to the marina ! £2.50 flat fare & causing quite a stir running on completely green gas ! Bungalow on the beach looks like paradise - enjoy ! (Thought you'd gone quiet for a bit)...