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Published: December 24th 2010
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Koh Tao and Koh Samui:
After a rather long bus trip (I know, stuck record) and a bit of a bouncy boat on which Kasia felt most unwell (not quite as unwell as the chap next to her however, as her clothing could later testify) we arrived at Koh Tao, a small island off Thailand’s east coast.
For the first few days we relaxed in the warm waters. Unfortunately, these were coming from the sky as early December is the (very)wet season on these islands and the rain really bucketed it down. It made a good Cumbrian downpour look like that fine rain that soaks you through. Our bungalow, on the remote Tanote Bay resort, had superb views over the small boulder strewn cove, and despite the weather, it was wonderful to sit reading in the hammock.
After a few days at Tanote we drove to the other side of the island, still in the rain, and since the dirt roads had been washed away we had to use a 4x4 taxi - even that struggled! The west of island was pleasantly busy and we stayed in a great room quite high up the hill so again enjoyed
good views of the sea. With the weather improving we hired a quad bike and set off to explore the island. This quad was especially exciting as you had to keep revving the engine or it would cut out. This was fine except when we had to negotiate a difficult section of track which required a bit of performance reversing. Kasia got sort of squashed between me and a big rock.
The next day we took a boat trip around the island and to the smaller neighbouring island of Nang Yuan. The boat stopped at various spots around both islands to let us enjoy the great snorkeling (no sharks at ‘Shark Point’ I was glad to note). The view from the top of the hill on Nang Yuan was something to behold too.
Our next stop was Koh Samui. This, we had been warned, was a bit of a party island. It was, but we did eat some great food at the street stalls which we now realize are a better bet than many of the restaurants in Thailand. We mostly eat Pad Thai because it’s really cheap, and we can pronounce it.
Koh Phi Phi and Koh Lanta:
We didn’t stay long on Koh Samui before crossing the long thin bit of Thailand and heading to Koh Phi Phi off its west coast. Phi Phi was lovely and we spent our days swimming in the crystal clear waters off its many beaches. It’s only a tiny place, so we could walk everywhere including up to the view points which offered superb views over the island. After one night in a hovel of a room (giant millipedes and cock roaches anyone?) we found a great room and stayed for more than a week. We even tried to rediscover our old ways by having a night of heavy drinking. This, and my headache the next morning, made me realize two things:
1) I’m too old to drink a bucket of vodka wotsit through a straw
2) Drinking from a tube while someone else pours brown liquid into the top through a funnel is a bad idea.
After we’d recovered, we took a boat around the neighbouring island of Phi Phi Li where The Beach was filmed. Again, the boat stopped at numerous points, including the famous Maya Bay (the central location for the film) and allowed us
to snorkel over the coral. The fish here were spectacular, much better than Koh Tao. Kasia was most excited to see ‘a fish with legs’ (one can only assume she means long fins) and a ‘fish in a dress’ (that’s a squid to you and me).
We are now on Koh Lanta, just south east of Phi Phi. We’ve been here for 3 nights and its peace and quiet has been a nice break from the noise and bustle (discos and fire dancing shows!) of Phi Phi. We hired a scooter yesterday and buzzed round the whole island. At one stop we saw a baby elephant by the roadside and it entertained us with a few climbing routines. This however wasn’t quite enough tusky action for us so today we went elephant trekking to a waterfall in the jungle. Riding on our elephant’s back was staggering, but the strangest part was that it didn’t like the puddles, and stepped gently round each one. At one point, to avoid a really boggy section, it decided to go straight through the bushes, despite the protestations of our driver (and much to the chagrin of the bushes no doubt).
We're
now on the island of Koh Lipe, four hours south of Lanta and our last stop in Thailand before Malaysia.
As it's Christmas Eve we’ll take this opportunity to send our love and best wishes to you all, and thank everyone who's been in touch on the blog or by text, it's been great to hear from you all. Keep it coming!. We hope you have a lovely festive time and eat loads of lovely turkey for us!
As a foot note I'll leave you with the news that last night, at midnight and when nearly all the resorts had shut, we had to evacuate our room due to the the largest spider I've ever seen in my life taking up residence in the bog. Kasia didn't see it as she was hiding, and she won't let me tell her how big it was until we leave the island but suffice to say she'll never believe me when I do tell her! It worked out for the best as we're now in a cracking beach front bungalow which is - hopefully - spider free!
Love and best Christmas wishes,
Kasia and Tom x
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Jack and Linda
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Just wanted to wish you a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.When you get to Perth if you have time I can recommend a visit to Rottnest Island.It's a beautiful island where the Quokka's live and I believe it is the only place in the world that they inhabit .Well carry on enjoying your holiday you will have lots to tell us when we see you next year.Lots of love to both. Jack and Linda.