Thailand -Bangkok and the islands

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Bangkok

On the 26th of May I arrived in Bangkok. Once I had gotten of the plane and made it through immigration without too much hassle I walked outside the terminal and just couldn't believe the incredible heat! Definitely not what I'm used too. Managed to get a taxi and luckily with air conditioning. Once you get into the centre of Bangkok people drive like idiots.. I would not want to cross a road there!
I had already pre booked a hotel for my first 3 nights in Bangkok because I really couldn't handle walking around with a big rucksack looking for a place to stay. I stayed in a street called Soi Rambuttri which is a 1 minute walk from the famous Kho San Road.
I met Vicky for a drink and talked about what we wanted to see in Bangkok. So we made a few plans and decided to meet up again the next morning We wanted to walk to Wat Po. It's a massive lying Boeddha statue and it ws quite impressive. We did get lost a few times along the way trying to get there, but we made it in the end! After that we wanted to see the Grand Palace but it was closed for foreigners until 14 hrs. We couldn't be bothered hanging around because it was so hot and humid and decided to get a tuk tuk back to our hotel. In the evening we went for a few drinks on KSR and there are so many tourists here! It's like a European city! The foodstalls were very cheap and so much colourful clothing. The Thai people were so friendly and helpful. I wasn't really expecting that in Bangkok.
I also thought it would be a good idea to get a massage..so cheap here!! First I only did a foot massage and that was so nice I decided to go for a Thai massage. Felt very relaxed and thought I should treat myself to a facial.. I'll definitely be treating myself to more of those ;-)
I wasn't really sure where I wanted to go after Bangkok.. so many places to see and things to do. I really wanted to go up to Chiang Mai but a few peopele told me it had been raining a lot there. Vicki said she would be going down to the islands and had heard that the weather was good there so we decided to book a nighttrain. So finally after 3 days I was leaving Bangkok to work on my tan....

Koh Pan Ngan and Ko Tao
Vicky and I got the nighttrain fro Bangkok to Surat Thani. From there you can get the ferry to one of the 3 islands. I had heard that Ko Samui was full of tourists so we started of going to Ko Pan Ngan. On the train we met an English guy who said there was a bar/restaurant on the train and we decided to check it out. Apparently the bar shuts at 10 but it went on until 1! I tried some cheap Thai Whiskey for the first time and that went down well! We had a good laugh with the staff and in the bar I met Pam a tourguide who had 2 clients with her. She told me of a really nice beach in KPN and decided to go there.
So after our ferry trip we reached the island and I couldn't believe how expensive everything was! 2-3 times the price in Bangkok!!! But it was a beautiful, lush island! We went to a beach called Thong Nai Pan Noi and it was very lovely. There I met a Dutch girl caled Kim who was travelling alone. We decided we wanted to go to the half moon party on the other side of the island so unfortunately we had to say goodbye to TNPN beach.
The half moon party was great! It was in the jungle and when you walked in you could get every part of your body painted on. I had a couple of flowers on my arm.. There was such a great atmosphere there and saw a few peopele there who I had met on the other beach.
Vicky and I really wanted to go to another island after a few days and heard that Ko Tao was amazing. Normally people come to this island to dive but plenty of non-divers there too thankfully. On the ferry to Ko Tao I met 3 german guys and we all decided to go to the same resort. The boys had taken me and Vicky out for dinner and drinks! The food was amazing.. all fresh seafood that you just picked.. gorgeous! After that of course we needed to do an (alcohol) bucket in every bar that we passed.. didn't feel to great the next morning ;-(
The next day the boys and I decided to go snorkelling off a tiny island.. the boat ride there was fairly rocky but definitely worth it! Beautiful fish unfortunately the coral looked pretty dead..
The next day we decided to rent a scooter.. which was awesome. Easy access to different beaches and just seeing some other things.. the island is quite small so it didn't take us very long to see it.

Because the islands are very expensive I needed to leave. My money was just flying out of my wallet! I don't regret it though.. I've met some wonderful people and had a fantastic time. And on my last night on Ko Tao we found a bar on the beach were we just danced and drank til closing time....

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