Laemsos Temple, Namuang Waterfall, Lamai Thai Cultural Center and Nathon Town

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I began my day with sitting on the beach while writing a dialogue for my creative writing class. I order fruit from our resort so frequently that when I sat down on the lawn chair, right away a server came over and asked, "fruit again?" The mango, pineapple, and watermelon here are especially delicious and fresh!

Our first excursion took place at Namuang Safari park again, but a different section than the last time. The whole park is very vast, so today's experience was much different even though we got to see the same waterfall. We first saw a baby elephant! She's four years old and her tusks are no longer than four inches. We even got to hear this elephant let out a small squeal when Edward stepped over the fence to take a picture with her. Moving on, we walked up to see a different stretch of the waterfall. Here, people were swimming in crystal clear water. Annoyed that I couldn't take a picture without tourists in the background, I climbed up some giant rocks to get a few different angles. The group started to leave, so I scrambled down, being careful to not drop my bag and camera in the water.

We left to visit Laemsos Temple, another main attraction. Before, we hadn't really abided by the dress code rules, but today an older woman would not let us enter because we were all wearing shorts. Keep in mind- it's 90 degrees here, so wearing pants would be torture. She told us we could go in if we covered up with a sarong, which is basically just a long silky cloth that you can wrap and tie as a skirt or dress. After covering up we entered and realized that this temple was very simple compared to other more lavish ones we have seen. The entire temple is painted gold and there are a few statues on each side. Laemsos Temple overlooked the beautiful ocean, a light teal blue.

After the temple, we drove to my favorite site so far: Lamai Thai Cultural Center. I cannot describe the purpose of this site, other than a place for visitors and meditators, but it's a beautiful forest area with hundreds of statues, tropical plants, and intricately designed huts. The architecture is both modernly unique and traditionally symmetrical at the same time. The statues ranged from Buddhas, elephants, Hindu gods, and other deities. Here, we were not surrounded by a mob of other travelers and we couldn't hear the loud music and traffic from town. Rather, this site was tranquil and relaxing, somewhere I could spend an entire day.. Here we got to feed some peacocks bread. The males were a vibrant blue, with green detailed patterns on their backs. One even puffed his feathers, putting on a little show for us!

Our last stop was Nathon Town. Here we visited the Hainan Chinese Temple. With dragon statues, scaly serpent designs, and bright reds and greens, this temple really stood out. I took off my shoes, went inside and watched a face painting ritual. Walking out, I saw a local woman behead a few chickens, and suddenly I knew what I would not be eating for lunch...We met up with the rest of the group and chose a small cafe on the main street in Nathon Town. I ordered coconut water and Panang curry with shrimp and rice for my entree. The coconut water here is so different from the brands we're offered in the grocery stores back at home. Here, it's naturally sweet, no artificial colors or additives, and you can even scrape out the coconut meat after drinking all the water. Very refreshing!

Later, I worked on a photography project with Bobby where we captured a sequence of pictures that give a deeper meaning or tell a story. We decided to portray the addiction of technology and social media, and how it keeps people from enjoying the present moment. Here we've noticed this as a problem with people sitting on their phones at one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

Tonight, we're planning on visiting Ark Bar which runs along Chaweng, the side of the island with more nightlife and bars. Tomorrow's our last full day in Koh Samui and I'm sad to see my time here come to an end. I've loved waking up to the sound of the ocean and being able to take long walks on the beach everyday. The Thai people here have been nothing but friendly, keeping our best interest in mind, and offering honest recommendations. I've loved the fresh seafood and tropical island fruits. Someday, I'll be back...

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