Sunday 24 November 2013

Island Paradise Version 2.1

Sunday 24th November

Ko Samui...



How much of this hell must I endure? This place is Hades and I know not why I am condemned to suffer in this infernal torment. Only this morning I was forced to suffer a colossal breakfast of eggs, sausage, bacon, beans and toast. This was washed down with two large glasses of ice Pineapple juice. No one should have to endure this, this torture, this hell. Following breakfast we returned to our brutally comfortable bed and slept for another couple of hours of rest. This hell is taking away the hardness we created at the island of Chui!


Yes folks, being serious for a moment, Ko Samui is not only beautiful, it is great fun too and so far we we have barely scraped the surface. Once again Carol has made new friends in the bar and this evening I found her showing people her photos of home and holding court with the staff of the hotel. Although we are not in the most auspicious part of Ko Samui, we are in a vibrant part of it and with the port just a few minutes walk away, when it comes to leaving, we can stay here right up until the last few minutes. 



After all of yesterdays travelling, we were exhausted and after breakfast we returned to our room, curled up on the bed and fell asleep for another couple of hours. Once we awoke though we were feeling like exploring and left the comforts of our air conditioned room to head out into the sunny warm streets. With a sea breeze blowing in, the weather was cool for Thailand but still hot for us cold British types. As we wandered along the streets enjoying the smells and flavours of the area we had a sudden painful discovery. Once again Carol has lost her bank card and after we returned to the hotel we searched every bag and pocket until it finally set in that it was gone. This left us with eight thousand Baht and with us still needing to buy tickets back to the mainland, buy food and keep ourselves busy it was looking like we were buggered!

So with a few horrible minutes spent on the phone it was time to try my bank card again and it failed us once more time. So it was back on the phone to find out why my bank was playing silly buggers and it turned out to be due to them trying to protect me from identity fraud. With that fixed, we had access to some basic funds and once again we could breath a sigh of relief because to be honest the thought of Squid Ink potnoodle for dinner every night was making us want to puke! As I drew money from the cash point though we made a discovery, unlike British ATMs, Thai cash points ask you if you want your card back and with the question coming up in Thai, it is hard to know what button to push.

So back out on the streets and wandering about we met a bunch of local bikers, with the sort of bikes we see back home. Parked up outside the bikers shop was a Yamaha Dragstar, a Kawasaki z1000 and a couple of small scooters. The guy riding the z1000 was dressed in black jeans, a black biker t-shirt and white trainers. He rode with no gloves, no jacket and no helmet on a bike that has more power than my precious Sylvie and a top speed in scary triple figures. 

No idea what this is, but it was damn pretty
A while later though we decided to try a new burger bar and were greeted with huge smiles and a polite bow, inside we found a charming German who proudly showed us his menu and assured us that his kitchen was clean. He was not wrong, it was clear that the place was spotlessly clean and the comfortable seats in the air conditioned lounge made a wonderful place to settle for weary travellers. The burgers are clearly aimed at the Asian palate, but that does not detract from their flavour in any way, if anything it adds more spices and flavour to what could otherwise just be a plain burger. If you do not believe me, head over to Ko Samui and check out the HD Burger Bar in Nathon and tell them that Jayne sent you. You wont be disappointed I promise, especially now that they know how to make a proper cup of tea. Yes Carol and her ability to make friends also includes her buying tea bags and teaching them how to use them. 

Following this we went for another wander and saw some more of the sites before heading back to our hotel. Sadly for me, I am feeling rather poorly again due to missing one set of my medication last night. This evening I was feeling very dizzy and struggled to explain how I felt to my dear Carol. The only way I could describe it is like being in the horrible stage of being drunk, but with out the brain fog and then with a live power cable touching me somewhere. So it was off to bed for me and a nice lay down in the air conditioned comfort. 


Aww, look what we found




So far Ko Samui is wonderful and mean while in Ko Phra Thong an awful monsoon is literally raining destruction upon the region, it truly does seem like we escaped just in time.

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