Koh Samui to Koh Phangan

The last day at the secluded hotel was a quiet one. There was a tropical rainstorm, which meant us spending most the day inside. We went for a swim in the sea when it was raining which was funny! Even though the surroundings of the hotel were beautiful, there was not much to do in the local area. We were quite glad to be leaving the place and heading to a more livelier area.

The weather had cleared up by the morning, and we got a taxi to the nearest port called Mae Nam Pier. However, due to the wind and weather conditions we got told that no ferrys were leaving that day. Error! Luckilly after trying to surpass the language barrier, they finally offered to take us to another pier in the minibus for free, as they knew we wanted to get across to Koh Phangan that day. So after a free ride we had arrived in Nathon Pier, the main pier of the Island. There were lots of other travellers and backpackers, mostly germans and auzzies doing the same thing as us too. We bought our ferry ticket and onboard we got. The waves were choppy and it was really windy which meant one thing...a bumpy ride! A very long 45 minutes passed, and my god were we pleased to have arrived in Phangan. Both myself and James were SO close to being seasick, as was most of the other people on the ferry were as well!

When we arrived, we saw a guy holding up a sign to our hotel. We were expecting to get a taxi ourselves, but luckilly the guy offered us a free lift back to our hotel with another Isralian couple. Koh Phagnan is a lot less developed than Samui, but is full of lovely trees and forests with empty winding roads around the island. 20 minutes later we had arrived, still feeling slightly sick from the ferry!

This brings us to today - the first day at our hotel. We are staying in one of the hotels on Salad Beach-a very small but lively part of the island. We have met a few Americans and most of the people staying around here are english speaking (finally!). This morning at 8am when James was fast asleep, I went out for a stroll on the beach and had a look around the shops as they were just opening. Bought some postcards and some flourescent shorts with the Full Moon Party emblem on, ready for the big party in a weeks time! Later today we have arranged to hire a 2 person Kayak around the bay which should be awesome, and I plan to capsize James!!!! :p
xxx

Koh Samui

We took a flight from Phuket to Samui which only took 50 minutes, but seemed like about 10! We arrived at Samui airport - apparently one of the most picturesque airports in the world...and it was so true. Stunning location surrounded by greenery and we landed just behind the Andaman Sea. We shared a minibus with some people from our flight to Chaweng Beach, the area where we were staying for the next 3 nights.
We arrived at our hostel. Really cool backpackers place with a sociable snooker/bar area. The main guy who seemed to run the place was this super gay thai guy, who had a thing for James calling him 'James Bond'!!! very funny. We got a lift to our bungalow in a moped trailer. It was a very basic room, but with all the essentials you need. Although when we first went into our room there was a lizard near the bed, which made me kinda freak out! But luckily that was all we saw.
We spent the next two days exploring and island and working on our (non existent) tans! The first night was awesome. We headed to the beach and heard loud music coming from a huge bar at the end. We strolled over and without knowing we had arrived at the biggest beach party. Every wednesday they have a huge party with fire throwing, fireworks, lots of drinking out of buckets with straws and huge sunbeds surrounded by lit up lantens. Was stunning and so much fun - lots of house music was played too.
We've met quite a few Aussies and a couple of friendly english people, but most people seem to just be in Thai for a holiday.
Next stop: Choeng Mon. We decided to upgrade a bit from the last place so have gone up to the north of Samui, in a more secluded area. We arrived at our hotel this morning and one word WOW! The hotel is on its own resort with a private gorgeous beach. Theres a pool and a bar, and a restaurant looking over it all. Stunning little bungalow too, and the football is being played later much to James's delight!
So far weve met some amazingly friendly people here, and the country is so stunning. Its very surprising that there's not more english people here really. Loving the trip so far, and no arguments as of yet which is good! A week tomorrow we will be getting ready for the Full Moon Party with Em and Osc! Time is flying by already, this trip will be over before we know it! Love to all xxxxxx

Phuket

So were leaving Phuket today. We had a lovely 2 days in Karon Beach. Stunning place with a gorgeous beach and loads of nice restaurants and bars. One thing that has become apparent to us is how lovely thai people are. So calm and tranquil and will go out of their way to make you feel so welcome here which is v nice. In the restaurants they serve everything to perfection, at such a low cost too. We managed to find some trendy places to have drinks too - one night we had drinks in a bar served from a pink VW camper van!
On the whole had a great time here, despite the 33 degrees temperatures! Had a couple of days lazing on the beach, laying on that factor 50 suncream of course! The sea is incredibly warm here too.
James bought some rayban sunglasses for 2 quid after bartering with the market- Bargain! There are so many cool food and clothing markets everywhere, its a shame we didn't come to Thailand last to buy stuff to take back. Shame my rucksack was already full when i arrived! Were flying to Koh Samui today then staying in a cute bungalow by the beach for 3 nights. Looking forward to Emma and Oscar to arrive in 10 days! Lots of love xx

First few days in Thailand

2 flights and 13 hours in total, we finally arrived in Bangkok. Its a crazy place. We would describe it as absolute chaos! We booked two nights in a stunning 5* hotel just to get into the swing of things. Central Bangkok is surrounded by huge modern hotels and shopping malls, next door to poor shanty towns and huts. The traffic is mental there too! Most of what we did in Bkok was shopping and eating. We did attempt to visit temples and the grand palace, but apparently your not allowed to show your knees and surprise surprise I had mini denim shorts on..rooky error! We found some nice places to eat Thai food-all ridiculously cheap and good quality. On the third day we took a taxi to the southern bus terminal. Due to horrendous traffic we literally nearly missed our bus to Phuket. Running around like headless chickens we eventually found it. We had a 12 hour journey on the bus-comfy seats with rugs/pillows which were a dream! We arrived in Phuket at 7am and got a taxi to our hotel. Nice clean and basic guesthouse which was what we needed. After a nap we were ready to explore the place. The beaches here are stunning and a treat after the dirty and humid atmosphere of the capital. We are staying at Patong Beach. The shops/restaurants/bars are cool - quite touristy and full of Scandinavians but lots of fun and there's a great vibe to this place. We went to Phi Phi island today to go snorkeling, swimming around the bays on a speed boat. It was an amazing experience and definitely the highlight so far- we even got to feed baby monkeys with bananas! Off to get some grub and take a tuktuk to a cool strip of bars we discovered earlier. Leaving Patong Beach and heading to Karon tomorrow to stay in a guesthouse we've booked. Ciao for now! xxx

Pre Travelling

Its the final day of preparation before travelling begins! Leave on Tuesday morning at 10.05am. Better get packing!